I've been on a bit of a reading binge. Summer does that to me. Warm sun, lounge chairs, a tall glass of iced tea...it's the perfect setting to kick back and read.
The funny thing is, I woke up at 2 a.m. the other day with the opening of a story in my head. It wasn't like anything I had read. It wasn't like anything else I had written. But the voice was fully formed and it wouldn't go away. I finally had to get up and type out the first four pages or risk not sleeping the rest of the night.
Since then I've been turning it over in my mind, trying to figure out the rest of the story, where the character goes from here. Even as I try to work on other things, this story keeps interrupting.
Have you ever had a character show up in your brain and demand that their story be told?
21 comments:
I LOVE THIS. And yes, I am one of those writer's that doesn't write word in a new story until my character shows up and tells me his or her story.
yes yes always. it's the only way it's ever happened for me. best of luck with this one!!
This is so great when it happens. Follow that story!
Shelley
I'm so glad that you got up and typed it out. I've had times that part of my story pops into my head in the night but I'm too tired to write it down and I lose it!
When I first married my hubby, I got up in the middle of the night and wrote three chapters (this was before I really thought I wanted to write for children). I have to find that somewhere!
Definitely see where that story goes, Sherrie!
I have to admit, I've never been woken from slumber for it, but sometimes it hits me right as I'm falling asleep, and I have to scribble it on a notepad by my bed and then decipher it in the morning.
And usually it's for ideas I've already got going...
(PS: I know what you'll be reading tomorrow. ;P)
I *love* it when that happens!! It always means that the character will be close to my heart, and I will work *very hard* to tell his/her story. :)
hi miss sherri! wow that cool that you got a good idea when you were sleeping but not so cool it got you awake at 2. a couple weeks ago i got dreaming of a story and its every night for a while i liked going to sleep cause the next part came to me til i got a whole story out of it. i wrote lots of it down for later cause i got other stuff im writing now.i hope you get a good book out of that dream.
...smiles from lenny
That's how I got started with Caro. SO exciting. Yay for you!
That is a great feeling! Keep turning it over and I hope it turns into something that ends up on paper!
maybe not in that way. But when a character and/or story idea is constantly in my head, I give it time and do some plotting before I lose it. Go with it!
No. Never. I'm jealous and intrigued. ;)
How wonderful and utterly inconvenient. Yes, I have. Enjoy!
Oh yeah. I've been trying to finish a manuscript for almost a year and I am constantly interrupted by great new ideas. I love them, but they sure do slow down my progress on the first project!
That's wonderful, Sherrie! All my stories started as dreams. I never learn the plot, I just meet the main character and know I have to find out who they are. That's why, for me, writing is always an act of discovery. Keep dreaming (and writing)!
Oh, how exciting. I'm so curious and excited for you.
Yes, I have had at least one character charge into my dreams and stay firmly rooted.
This is very interesting, as I have just finished a YA urban fantasy that, I swear, came to me in a dream!
I woke and scribbled down the names of my two characters and also the central conflict.
I hope to start querying it soon.
This is so interesting! I really hope this works out for you. I've never had an experience where I wake up...but Cinders came about kind of like this.
Yes! Write it! If it's gnawing at you, you'll probably bang it out in no time. I love those stories that just flow through you like you're channeling.
Go Sherrie! GO!
That so NEVER happens to me I am so jealous of people who just have characters, scenes, plots pop into their heads fully formed!
Always have pen and paper handy...no matter where you are. I carry a voice recorder when I walk too...
That's fantastic ... I can't wait to hear about how this story develops - - I bet it's going to be amazing!
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