“Where do you get your ideas from?”
It’s the question we all get. For some authors, the characters speak to them. Unfortunately, I don’t have voices in my head. It’s just me up there talking to myself. 🙂
Inspiration comes from anything that captures your interest or tweaks your imagination in some small way. And generally, once the idea gets in there, it refuses to leave. Hmm. Maybe it’s an infestation?
Do you listen to music? Look a photos or paintings? Watch videos? Listen to the news? People watching is an awesome activity. Maybe the young couple arguing in the park grabs your attention and you start to wonder what they’re fighting about. Or you see a young woman sitting all alone at the bus stop looking incredibly sad. Did she lose her job, lose a friend? It could come from a story you read—something in the same theme, but you envision a very different plot and outcome. It could be a scrumptious meal you just ate and you begin to envision the sexy cook back in the kitchen wondering if he’ll ever meet the woman of his dreams. What about the conversation you overheard between two people in front of you at Starbucks. At the time you stifled a giggle about the topic of discussion, but it’s stuck on repeat in your head until the idea for a story comes together. Perhaps it’s a real life event that affected you deeply and you need to write about it to purge yourself of your emotions.
I took a fantastic course a few years ago. We had to search for five articles from newspapers. The stories had to be odd. They could be strange odd or funny odd. Each week we chose one of the stories and then wrote a scene inspired by the chosen article. The scenes varied in length and they varied in genre. We brought our work back to the class, told them about the original article and what about it in particular inspired the story. Sometimes it was the theme, or simply a sentence or an emotion it invoked. Sometimes, it was difficult to make the connection between the article and the story the author created, but something in how they interpreted that story sparked an idea for them.
For me, it’s usually something I’ve see or read. A great cover will spark an idea. I let the image sink into my mind and from there the story unfolds. I look at submission calls. The publisher or editor provides the nugget for inspiration and then I run away and create a story, taking it in whichever direction I choose. I don’t even necessarily submit that story to that particular requestor. They were simply the conduit for the idea. Somebody or something somewhere, somehow plants the seed. Then we make it grow.
In my debut novella, Worth the Risk, a submission call prodded me to write a story, but the inspiration came from my real life. In Friend with Benefits, the idea was sparked by something a friend said, but my backyard was the inspiration for the scenery. In my upcoming release, Sliding into Home, the idea was sparked by a trip to Las Vegas and a bride I saw in one of the casinos.
The possibilities are endless. Look around. Watch. Listen. Touch. Read. Use every sense, open your eyes, clean out your ears, but be discrete when you’re eavesdropping LOL! Inspiration is everywhere.
I get my ideas mostly from things I see or read about. Where do you get your ideas from?
Sliding into Home, A New League Series (Book 1)
By Anne Lange
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Release Date: October 17, 2014, Available for Pre-Order Now
Publisher: Totally Bound Publishing
Word Count: 37,827 words
Heat Level: Hot
Can an injured ex ball player convince the woman he wakes up married to in Las Vegas to take a second chance on him?
After spending the last four months drowning his sorrows over the end of his baseball career, Jack Bishop finds himself winging through the blue skies to Las Vegas, not so ready to spend the weekend with some woman his best friend set him up with. He expects a paid escort. What he gets is the woman he walked away from ten years ago to pursue his passion, and she’s not very happy to see him.
Devyn Tate believes she’s quite capable of finding somebody to take her out to dinner. She’s no longer looking for a lifelong promise. She has a commitment only to her battery-operated toy to fulfill that particular need. Yet her friends have managed to talk her into spending the weekend in Las Vegas, on a blind date of all things. They promise the guy is trustworthy. They insist that she should have fun. Unfortunately, fun is not what she envisions when she discovers Jack Bishop lying on the floor of her suite in nothing but his underwear that’s on backward, and she has a wedding ring on her finger.
Available for Pre-Order September 5th (from Totally Bound)
Early Download: September 19th (from Totally Bound)
General Release: October 17th
Totally Bound Publishing: https://www.totallybound.com/sliding-into-home
Author Bio
Shoes are her addiction, but books are her passion. Anne Lange grew up with a love for reading. If you take a close look, she’s got either a book, her Kindle or her Kobo—maybe all three—tucked into her bag or a pocket when she leaves the house. You know, just in case there’s time to sneak in a chapter or ten. Anne reads many genres of romance, but prefers to write sexy stories, often with a dash of humor, and usually with a side of those sinful pleasures your mom never told you about.
Oh, and always a happily ever after.
While embarking on this wild journey of becoming a romance author, Anne juggles a full time job and a family. Not always successfully. Who needs a clean house every day? And what’s wrong with cereal for dinner? She lives in Ontario, Canada with her wonderfully supportive husband, three awesome kids who are growing up way too fast, and Rocky the bearded dragon.
Author Social Links
Web Site | Facebook | Twitter @Anne_Lange | | Goodreads | Pinterest | Amazon
Sign up for Anne’s Newsletter
Email: Anne_Lange66@yahoo.ca
