We have plenty of them, don't we? In fact, there are days when we are bombarded with ideas...but they all disappear when we sit down and think about them.
For the budding writer, it might be a little hazy how to get or at least retain wonderful ideas. Let me tell you how I find my ideas. Let's go back a year in time. It was just like any other normal day, my cat waking me up with his loving scratches and me skipping breakfast to work on my magazine’s layout. To this minute, I don’t know what made me go to the salon that morning.
Have you seen the Demi Moore chick-flick GHOST? I had seen it the previous evening and told the girl to give me Demi’s chic look. After thanking the slightly uneasy assistant, I took one look at the mirror and froze. The cut had transformed me into the movie title, not the heroine.
Still in shock, I left the mall and stepped on a puppy, which gave the sorriest shriek. Filled with guilt and compassion, I took it to the nearest Blue Cross and paid for the medicine, emptying my wallet. I arrived late for brunch with my extremely irate client who was hyperventilating at my ‘non-punctual’ behavior. And lost the nerve to negotiate a better deal (for me).
To top this all, I forgot that I had a full stomach and traveled long distance in the local bus. And promptly threw up all over my gorgeous next-seat neighbor.
Think this as just another bad hair day (literally)? Actually all my experiences had a great article in them. These incidents are too ordinary to remember for long when in reality, they camouflage the ideas that make the articles of the quintessential glossy - namely, What To Do After A Terrible Haircut, How To Pacify Your Client When You Are In The Wrong, and How To Prevent (Or At Least Reduce) Motion Sickness.
It’s funny how I made money from these miserable experiences but hardly surprising. I had found the idea in them, the idea that would develop into an article given the right treatment.
With ideas coming out of such improbable circumstances, it is easy to lose track of them. An idea bank ensures that you have your facts at your fingertips (or rather mouse point) and are never without a theme at hand to write about. And most importantly, it gives you a great query; one you could fill with lots of lovely details and specifications. This is particularly useful during tight deadlines and replacement assignments.
STARTING AN ACCOUNT
Start thinking about what kind of story you'd like to write. First of all, is there a story worth developing and creating in your idea? Would it be interesting, timely and resourceful? Is there any background work to be done (interviews, quotes, old historical references) to sustain it?
Be sure you’re tracking the right idea. Of all your ideas, it is likely that only the fittest (and timeliest) will survive. If an idea seems too flimsy or inappropriate to work, then don’t proceed. Talk with experts, do a casual library study or a Net search, anything to give a strong form to your idea and find your angle. In this way, you can prepare a list of future articles and store it in a separate folder. When you find the right market for it, just open your query template and mail it to the editor(s).
REFERENCE FROM A KNOWN PERSON
“How do I store my ideas? That's a good question!” chuckles Peggy Tibbets, author of Carly’s Ghost and affiliated with that notoriously resourceful website Writing World. “I have stored several in spiral notebooks labeled "Story Ideas" and dated them. If the idea grows into research and I've collected newspaper/magazine clippings, and articles printed from the Net, then I put them in a folder and give it a working title.”
Peggy has a drawer full of idea files, with clear titles and short blurbs. She continues, “When I want to include links to specific web sites in my preliminary research files, I send an email with the link and a short explanation to myself then print it out and put in the file. I look forward to the day when I have more time to pursue more of those ideas!”
GOT A YES! NOW WHAT?
Once you get a positive response, roll up your sleeves and start developing your ideas. You must have got some sort of lead about the desired angle of the article or any precise information. Now, you will find it easier to proceed, because your background work is already done and you can concentrate on more difficult, specific details.
DEVELOPING THE IDEA
To identify the value, research relevant information, structure the idea into cohesive sentences and market the idea into a bundle of information - all part of the process of writing a topical article that requires a sequence of formidable editing process.
Organize: If ideas are all jumbled together, with no order or relevance to each other, then it is time to do a little cleaning up. Twist and transport the paragraphs, play with the sentences and add your random thoughts. Start your chopping job then, form the sentences into a cohesive train and organize them into interesting paragraphs.
Evaluate: Now is the time to test whether your killer instinct is still functioning. Is the story still alive? Have you targeted the right market? Do the available facts amount to nothing or do you still have the makings of a good article? Check if you have enough details (this way you can have a roaring start in less time).
Focus: Your original story may have taken off in a different direction. Don't panic and abandon your work. Begin to focus the story by thinking about the gist, the approach, and the topical angle with the thrust area. Follow your facts but don't get deviated. The pieces will soon begin to fall into place.
Structure: Of course, the most important part in drafting an article is your structuring style. You might have to incorporate the editor’s ideas or the magazine’s writing style. It is never a crime to go through some back issues of the magazine or ask for extra advice from the editor.
Update: Don’t forget to update your article with appropriate facts and additions. If the initial idea happens to be a little too old to include in the submission, then you might need to be extra careful. A net search or an interview might be called for, to give the topical flavor to your article.
MORE SAVINGS
Your handy notepad is the best idea recorder; only make sure you have it with you all the time. For people who need a slightly better choice of an idea recorder (no doubt, fed up with the idea of scribbling on a dirty paper with a pen that refuses to work), a hand recorder would help.
Tell your idea to a second person. Non-writers tend to look at an idea from a different viewpoint, something that you might have never done yourself. They are likely to tell or even immediately spot the strong or weak points in your idea, and might actually help you by quoting a supplementary idea of their own. This will add more ‘oomph’ to your idea.
Without bothering about queries or assignments, just let go and have a ball with your word processor. Pick a random topic and write whatever you think about it. Don’t give a hoot about first drafts or grammar mistakes. You will be amazed at the amount of related AND diverse ideas you get when you work in such an unconventional manner. You can always edit it later!
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Radhika writes for chillibreeze.
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