How I Brainstorm a New Idea

Hi friends! First things first – a very belated Happy New Year! Here’s to the hope that 2022 is better than its predecessors – and that Omicron settles down. For this post I’m going to be talking about my brainstorming process; basically, how I start writing a book when all of the first ideas are still bouncing around and simmering in my head.

But first, I want to catch you guys up with a writing update. I’m setting down my current WIP for now because of many reasons, but mostly so I can take a break from this project. Because, if I’m frank with you guys – it sucks. (Cue the tortured screaming). Hopefully I can fix how much it sucks, but I recently started drafting a new WIP, and I’m really loving the characters and world – and also loving the break from WIP#1. (Sorry, I know it’s confusing).

Anyways, shortly after hitting the 40k mark in WIP#2, I got hit with a new book idea while watching a movie with one of my good friends. (Funny how that happens!) At first, I didn’t do much with it. I just jotted it down in my idea notebook – the brief premise that had popped into my head – and let it sit for a couple days while getting back to drafting WIP#2. (I usually work on multiple ideas at a time – like drafting one book while brainstorming another). Most of my ideas usually fizzle out after a little bit, mostly after I dismiss them as dumb or cliche, but this one felt different. Especially when so. many. ideas suddenly exploded into my head earlier today and I was overwhelmed with the details that my brain was feeding me about this story, characters, and world.

So that’s what led to this post: what I do next when an idea feels “different.” When it feels like a whole world has just opened to me and I’m beginning to eagerly trek over its terrain, trying to figure out what makes it work.

First, I jot down every single thought that comes into my head. Even the bad ones. Especially the bad ones, because those lead to good ones. Usually my notes are clustered into a bunch of what-ifs. What if a farm boy on a desert planet discovers he’s a Jedi? What if a young boy realizes he’s a wizard and attends a magic school? What if, what if, what if. . .

But my “what-ifs” tend to build off of each other. Something like: – What if this boy got a letter from the school but his aunt and uncle didn’t want him to go? – What if the headmaster sent somebody to collect him instead? – But why is it important for him to go to magic school? – Oh! – What if he needed to learn to control his magic? – What if he vanquished an evil wizard when he was just a baby and he would be the only one who could defeat him if he would return?

Other questions are usually sandwiched between the what-ifs, like the “but why is it important for him to go to magic school?” I inserted in the last paragraph. These help me get a better sense of the world and rein in some of my ideas before they become too overcrowded and contradicting.

After this, I usually take a step back and clear my head. I know more ideas will come to me at some point, so I start searching for inspiration photos. These are usually aesthetic photographs – like portraits, scenery, settings, and landscapes that help me visualize the feel that I want my world to have, especially if I’m writing fantasy. Creepy or quirky? Whimsical or dark? Detailed or mysterious? I save all of these photos into an album – but you can also create a board on Pinterest, which I think is easier.

Then – one of my favorite parts of the process – I start digging into my characters. Who is my protagonist? What do they want? What obstacles are in their way? What action do they take to overcome these obstacles? At this point, I also determine whether there is a love interest and start asking them questions as well.

And I scour dozens of baby websites for names. I honestly love doing this, despite the pounding headache I usually have at the end. Most of the time, I have a general idea of what kind of name I want – like from a certain culture or with a certain meaning. I choose my favorites and save all of those that didn’t make the cut – so if a side character suddenly pops into my draft I can just pull out one of those names instead of having to search all over again.

I don’t usually start a playlist until I begin to draft, but sometimes a song just clicks with the feel of my story and I just have to save it. Playlists are great – I usually listen to instrumentals, like epic movie score soundtracks, while I draft – and I’ll shamelessly listen to certain songs on repeat during a scene.

Finally, I’m sort of a hybrid plotter/pantser. (A “plotter” outlines their book, a “pantser” does not, like writing by the “seat of their pants.”) I don’t need an outline before I begin to draft, like a plotter – but I have to know my protagonist’s goal, their main obstacle, and where they’re going to end up at the finale of my story; otherwise, my ideas will tangle into a convoluted mess. So I write these down in my notebook towards the end of my brainstorming, along with scenes that have popped into my head and ideas I have for more subplots. Sometimes I need to research, as well – usually I do half of my research before I draft and the rest while I’m drafting and editing.

And that’s my brainstorming process! A lot of authors have an outlining process after this, but like I said before, I don’t outline – so after this part I immediately plunge into my first draft.

I hope this post was helpful – and happy writing!

*How do you start a book/brainstorm?*