“Have you overheard a conversation and added it in some way to a story?”
Apparently, this was a suggestion of mine and again, one that I wish I had made notations about when I thought it up. I cannot think of one overheard conversation which inspired a story to me.
I actually do have a line I overheard which I put down, thinking that it SHOULD inspire a story, but it has not, not yet anyway. Watch, as soon as I post this, I will overhear people talking and be inspired for my best piece yet!
What I HAVE been inspired by have been other people’s accounts of their experiences: a friend who survived birth when her twin did not, a friend who was called up on stage to assist in a magic show, friend’s family on an island. More of my writing is inspired by things in my life, although I have taken the ball and run in another direction more often than not.
I have always been discreet, and my family secrets are not something that I have used in stories.
Until recently.
A story told to me by my mother about the Black Sheep of the family, another one that he, himself, told at our house years later, and a third one which a cousin was told about him by her mother, (which she recently related to me), I realized that they are all part of ONE story, and it’s a juicy one!
All of the people involved are long gone, and the names will be changed. Only the one cousin and I know all of it, if, indeed, anyone left who knows any of it at all. I think that the story just may be ‘put out there’ sometime soon.
But sorry; I wish that I knew what I had in mind for this week’s topic.
Hmmm, but I am missing a good story somewhere in my mind.
About a year ago I did overhear an apparently long-married couple in a doctor’s waiting room. To be honest, it was obvious that they wanted to be overheard. I got the impression that I knew all about these people with the little that was said
and I can’t seem to forget them.
They need to be in a story.
Probably not their own story, one based on them alone, but I think they will make good characters. I just don’t know where they would go right now, and I can’t see using what I heard them say.
Give me time.
I will probably smack myself in the forehead when I go to edit or continue a story and see that a line or so was from an overheard conversation, but any elude me now.
That’s my problem; I’ve got too many ideas, but ones that were overheard? Not coming to me just now, unfortunately.
I know the feeling — so many concepts, starts, snips, etc. As well as bits of dialog and idiosyncrasies of people that would be great to use with a character.
But you need time and concentration.
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Yes, I and once again, I have restarted on the main one, with warnings to The Husband not to equate the problems of my protagonist and HER husband with us! Actually, all things work for the best, because I had a logistics problem in the storyline. A friend, (whom a character is based upon), posted a picture of a local,(which mine is based upon), which contains the answer!
I looked at a file called “Starts” and frankly, I don’t even remember where I wanted to go with one.
Ah, well.
Concentration? Oh, well, I am everybody’s ‘sounding board’ and I guess, ‘holder of the life saver rope’. I just need time to escape to my keyboard!
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It’s too bad we don’t have an automatic recording device so that we can remember things we’ve heard. It sure would have come in handy in college, and it would definitely be useful to us as storytellers.
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I think that I am go9ng to ask that as a topic next time around, Patty, about how we take our notes, remember ideas, file ‘starts’. I think that would be a good question, don’t you?
I think that our other writer friends could chime in on that one, at the appropriate time. It’s too involved to get into on this one, especialy at the end of the week.
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Nice post! I’m thinking now that I need to make better notes. Too many things I neglect to write down, thinking that I’ll remember them. HA! Others – I make cryptic notes, but yes, looking back at them later, I’m just thinking…HUH??
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Yes, I wont to devote a whole week on making notes,I figure we can learn from each other’s mistakes and maybe pick up some pointers,, don’t you think ?
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Absolutely!
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