6 Sources of Story Inspiration You Can Use Again and Again

Finding the time to write is never easy, so an empty hour in a busy day—or even a whole weekend free to write—can seem like a gift. But how many of us have found ourselves with an ocean of free time, only to lack the inspiration to begin? 

(6 Tips for Writing a Book When Your Life Is Full to Bursting.)

Facing a blank page can be a daunting experience… so here are six tried and true methods you can use over and over to spark inspiration when all else fails.

Ask yourself: “What If?”

Take a walk around a room, your home, or your neighbourhood. Allow your eyes to settle on objects and people and ask: “What If?” focussing on your genre of interest. Here are some examples:

What if I opened my mailbox to find a letter from a future version of myself? (science fiction)What if I opened my front door to find something other than my street? (fantasy or portal fiction)What if my neighbour is not who he says he is? (crime)What if, underneath these floorboards, there was a necklace secreted there a hundred years ago? (historical fiction)

“What if?” can quickly become a habit—and it’s a useful one for a writer. After all, isn’t this why readers read? We want to place ourselves in different lives, different circumstances for a while. Focus on asking “What if?” for a few minutes each day, and not only will your ideas gradually become more original and exciting but you’ll have a wealth of writing prompts to work with whenever you find yourself with time to write.

Use random phrases as prompts

Choose a novel on your bookshelf you haven’t read yet, open the book at random and allow your eyes to settle on an intriguing phrase—one vague enough to take your writing in a direction unique to you. Use the phrase as the first line of a writing prompt, or allow it to guide you towards an idea. 

If you use the phrase as the opening sentence of a piece of your own writing, don’t forget to go back and change it after you have finished writing, to ensure your creation is entirely your own. Here are some random phrases selected from books on my shelves and paraphrased:

“How do you think they found out?” [she] asked me.Her arms were sore in the morning, reminding her what she had done.He was walking through the graveyard when he began to have the feeling he was not alone.

Use newspaper headings or articles

Newspaper headings—and articles—provide endless source material for our writing. It is so often the case that truth is stranger than fiction! There are excellent blogs and websites that collect together some of the strangest news articles, such as this one: https://www.huffpost.com/section/weird-news

Searching archived newspaper articles on subjects of interest to you can often lead to unique stories that might form the basis of a novel or short story. In 2022 I came across a newspaper article from The Guardian that explored Operation Lena, the Nazis’ failed attempt to infiltrate Britain with spies in 1940, prior to the intended invasion. The idea of a thoroughly inept spy mission fascinated me, and led to further research. Many articles claimed with surprising confidence that every Nazi spy to land on English soil was captured almost right away, and I began to wonder: How can we be certain of that? 

This question led to the writing of my new historical novel: Her Secret Soldier. In the book, an 18-year-old girl—Rose—discovers a German spy, injured and helpless, in the ancient woodland behind her home. He claims he was sent to England under duress, and intended to turn himself in right away. Rose must decide whether to help him or report him to the Home Guard, knowing that England’s new Treachery Act means he would almost certainly face execution. She chooses to help him—setting in motion a chain of events that tests her courage, and her loyalty, to the limit.

Check out Julie Hartley’s Her Secret Soldier here:

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Use mood music as a prompt

Sites like www.soundstripe.com list original movie soundtracks by mood (‘epic,’ ‘pensive,’ ‘sinister’) and can be an excellent resource for writers. Select a soundtrack option at random, close your eyes, and as the music begins, allow images to form in your mind as if they are the opening sequence of a movie. When the clip ends, open your eyes and begin to write.

This technique can also be used to practice three-act or five-act structure. Play the first piece of music and as ideas flow, use the mood of the music to sculpt the opening ‘act’ of a novel or screenplay, including the ‘status quo’ of your characters’ world, an introduction to the protagonist, and the inciting incident. Select a contrasting piece of music, close your eyes again, allow the mood of the music to suggest act two developments… and so on. 

As the plot takes shape in your mind, your music selections can be based on the mood you feel may be appropriate for the next act you want to write… but since the music is new to you, you can still expect it to move your imagination in unexpected directions.

Place an object in a location where it does not belong

List 20 random objects. Now, list 20 random locations. Imagine an object in a place where it does not belong, and you have the potential for a story. Examples:

A horse and cart on the New Jersey Turnpike.A prosthetic leg in a garbage can.A child’s teddy bear in a World War I trench.

Experiment with writing constraints

Just as the empty canvas of a blank page (or screen) can paralyze our imagination, stringent rules may liberate! Ray Bradbury was once challenged to write a short story without characters and the result was the compelling “There Will Come Soft Rains.” Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote a 5-page short story which consists of a single sentence, “The Last Voyage of the Ghost Ship.” Mark Dunn wrote a novel in which letters of the alphabet gradually disappear until the ability to communicate is completely gone (Ella Minnow Pea). 

There are entire books consisting only of dialogue, short stories in fewer than 250 words, novels in which every chapter is shorter than a page, and others written entirely in verse. Experimenting with writing constraints encourages originality, and you’ll find yourself exploring themes and styles entirely new to you. Even if you don’t end up with a masterpiece, constraints liberate the imagination, making this a worthwhile exercise.

Next time you find yourself with unexpected free time to write, don’t waste time staring at a blank page, or searching for a prompt that suits your needs. Try these ideas, figure out which ones work best for you, and return to them again and again.

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