Ask Friends

Sometimes I ask friends for just random words, or topics. They might say something like 'Viper' and I might come up with a nickname for a character--'The Viper Queen'. Or I might research vipers. Sometimes, while researching, I come upon some interesting things that'll help me start a story.

Look out the window

by Jessica Poertner
(Missouri)

You never know what you'll see when you look away from the page or the screen. You never know what you'll feel. I enjoy sitting near a window when I write. That way I can look out the window and think of the past the future and the present. Even the weather can be inspiring. It's a perfect platform.

Listen to Music Without Lyrics

by Silence Beesrot
(Wilmore, Kentucky, USA)

Everyone loves music. A lot of people enjoy music with lyrics, but music without lyrics -- e.g., symphony, ambient, and even techno, etc. -- is unbiased, not leading the listener in any direction other than the emotion conveyed by their perception of the sound.

Sometimes I will listen to this type of music just to warm up for deep thought and to find emotions.

Video Games

Take vague ideas from video games. Think about how people would react to them. Start to daydream. The game Slender doesn't have much of a back-story save for Marble Hornet references. Could you paint a more peaceful world on the ominous forest? How would the Chinese pork bun salesmen from Sleeping Dogs fare in New York?

Note that this tip does not require your story to have a fan-fiction feel to it. In fact, you might find it best to completely detach the idea from the original work.

Freewrite

by Mia Malich
(Oviedo Florida)

Freewriting is a great way to beat writers block. Set a timer for about 5 minutes. Simply write down anything and everything that crosses your mind. Do not stop to fix mistakes. Just write. Write down even the things that you think are silly and useless. They could end up being extremely useful. You never know until you try. Good luck with your writing.

Crank it up.

by Jessica Poertner
(Missouri)

I enjoy blasting music in my ears when I'm writing. I close my eyes and become enveloped between my words and the music and a story plays through my head. Sometimes I write about the story that the music inspires and other times I write about how it makes me feel. It's good inspiration.

I look to other writers!

by Zoe Dunning
(Kansas City, MO)

My mom is a writer, and so am I, and sometimes she gives me ideas for writing a story! Whenever two writers get together to share ideas, often times they end up inspiring each other with ideas and weaving them in to their stories!

Quick-jot

by Atomik Angel

A quick jot is when you just sit down and for ten minutes you just write, with your writing tool of choice never stopping. Write about whatever you want, but never plan ahead of time. A quick-jot just lets you write freely, so when you look back on the paper, you can find ideas you maybe wouldn't have thought of if you took time to plan your writing.

Think of a genre

by Becky
(Topsfield, MA, USA)

What I usually do is think of a genre. recently I wanted to do Sci-Fi and now I'm writing a novel about it! It's about an astronaut who went missing and NASA's quest to find him. I also like to think up names and base the character off of the name and I do keep (many) journals.

Read A Lot

by Mia Malich
(Oviedo Florida)

Read anything and everything you can get your hands on. Reading is a great way to notice wonderful writing techniques and styles. Recognizing great writing techniques and styles helps you understand what great writing should look like. It also gives you incredible ideas for your great writing. So get up and start reading and getting ideas for your writing. Good luck.