3 answers
Voc
Student
Landrum, South Carolina
42
Questions
3 answers
Christy Marx
Writer & Narrative Designer
48
Answers
San Francisco, California
Updated
Christy’s Answer
Input gives you output. If you want to have a lot of ideas as your output, you should have a wide range of input. That means reading/watching a lot of interesting subjects both fictional and non-fiction, exposing yourself to many different kinds of ideas (philosophy, religion, political systems, etc.), meeting many different types of people and learning about them, and having many different life experiences (such as learning a martial art or scuba diving or learning a musical instrument, etc.). The input should be mental, emotional, and physical.
BUT, and this is important, in creative fields, ideas are a dime a dozen. Anybody can have ideas. You could have a hundred ideas and if that's all they ever are -- ideas -- then they're worthless. What matters is what you DO with the ideas. How you express those ideas in some final form, whether it's a screenplay, film, book, or some other format. The finished expression of that idea is what has value. That is how your ability will be judged. That is what will make the difference between having a creative career or not.
BUT, and this is important, in creative fields, ideas are a dime a dozen. Anybody can have ideas. You could have a hundred ideas and if that's all they ever are -- ideas -- then they're worthless. What matters is what you DO with the ideas. How you express those ideas in some final form, whether it's a screenplay, film, book, or some other format. The finished expression of that idea is what has value. That is how your ability will be judged. That is what will make the difference between having a creative career or not.
Teresa Zhang
30
Answers
Los Angeles, California
Updated
Teresa’s Answer
Talk to a lot of people and listen to the stories they have to say. You can always gain inspiration from those.
angie azur
Writer | Artist | Death Doula | Yoga | Meditation | Psychology | Philosophy
78
Answers
Weaverville, NC
Updated
angie’s Answer
Hello, Voc,
How do you come up with a lot of ideas? Well, you have to have a lot of experiences. I went to WBC in Santa Monica - Writer’s Boot Camp and what the teachers had us do was to come up with an ideas box. We got a box and some index cards and then we sat with our pens in hand and wrote as many experiences that we had had up into that point in our lives. Those experiences became ideas for story.
Each card gets an experience written at the top.
One of mine says: My cat, Jingles, got a worm in his neck.
Under that title I wrote what that experience was like for me and what happened. This is just a short blurb.
Experience: Jingles had a white plump worm diving into his neck. My dad had to bend his neck sideways to get it out with tweezers. My cat screamed and tried to scratch my dad. But he held him tight and dug the worm out. There was blood. I was scared. Then my cat ran away fro 3 days. But he came back and was all better.
This experience might become a picture book some day or a short story. Or it could be a scene in a movie.
Keep a list of your experiences in a box - write down your feelings during the experience. This box will help you write stories or scenes of your stories.
Good Luck!
How do you come up with a lot of ideas? Well, you have to have a lot of experiences. I went to WBC in Santa Monica - Writer’s Boot Camp and what the teachers had us do was to come up with an ideas box. We got a box and some index cards and then we sat with our pens in hand and wrote as many experiences that we had had up into that point in our lives. Those experiences became ideas for story.
Each card gets an experience written at the top.
One of mine says: My cat, Jingles, got a worm in his neck.
Under that title I wrote what that experience was like for me and what happened. This is just a short blurb.
Experience: Jingles had a white plump worm diving into his neck. My dad had to bend his neck sideways to get it out with tweezers. My cat screamed and tried to scratch my dad. But he held him tight and dug the worm out. There was blood. I was scared. Then my cat ran away fro 3 days. But he came back and was all better.
This experience might become a picture book some day or a short story. Or it could be a scene in a movie.
Keep a list of your experiences in a box - write down your feelings during the experience. This box will help you write stories or scenes of your stories.
Good Luck!