As writers, story ideas are our bread and peanut butter. It’s how we pay for all the things, like Netflix, Apple watches and therapy to keep us sane. Shout out to my therapist for dragging me from the edge week after week. We cannot write for free. Don’t get me started on that.
But even the best of us get stumped and find ourselves sweeping the dust bunnies from under the bed while wondering where the next story, screenplay, poem or line of dialogue is going to fall from the idea cloud and miraculously change everything.
We cannot all have Jordan Peele’s idea cloud, although I’d give my left pinkie toe for a lint-ball sized piece of that thing. And even Peele, with all of his wonderfully creepy original ideas, will put his spin on a classic—the Twilight Zone.
So while the goal is create that new new, there’s nothing wrong with being inspired by a movie, book or TV show and putting your stank on it, via a spin-off.
Hollywood does it all the time. Every summer I look forward to a reboot of something that I enjoyed as a child. Then, I see it and I immediately need Will Smith’s neuralyzer from Men in Black to permanently erase whatever trash is trying to make an imprint on my brain.
In the video above I break down six ways to find juicy story ideas and dialogue.
Oh, a quick word about dialogue: When you listen closely (okay, eavesdrop, damn it) to people talking in Target or at the nail salon you’ll get a few gems for your characters.
But my favorite place to read the most outrageous convos and find perfectly imperfect words to put into my character’s mouths is Overheard in New York. Follow them on Instagram. And if you cannot relate, try Overheard in LA or London.
Reading is super sexy, so check out:
Reading is SoulCycle For Your Brain
Break Up: Four Signs That Your Story is Over
