All I know so far is that I want my leading heroine to be a werewolf. But other than that, I am having some trouble with the plot. I just have a few questions that will help me brainstorm. 1. I can't decide whether I want to make the werewolves a secret or not? What do you think? What are the pros and cons of keeping them a secret or making their existence known to humans? 2. I don't know if I want to include other supernatural creatures in the story? Would it make it seem more vibrant and realistic with more paranormal elements? Will it seem odd for werewolves to be the only paranormal creature in the world? 3. I don't know if I should set the story in modern America as realistically as possible, or make an alternate reality. (For example, The Hunger Games is set in an alternate version of the United States). Should I go for stark realism as a setting or make an alternate fictional version of the U.S.? 4. What occupations would a young adult werewolf have? She's 19 years old. What job do you think a 19-year old, African-American, female werewolf would have? Initially I was going to make her a mechanic but I don't know. 5. What werewolf tropes do you hate reading about? What do you like about werewolves? Is there an aspect of them that you haven't seen explored all that much that you would like to read?
1)The pros of having them known are the fact that you can more easily move your character about the story being who she is. Perhaps there's even a faction associated with werewolves. The cons of having them known are the fact that human beings aren't too keen on "The Mysterious Other", and pitchforks often result. However you could easily turn this into a pro by milking the "leading a double life" angle. 2) Its entirely up to you. Whatever you do and commit to won't be "odd" if it's well written. Honestly I could see either scenario, it just depends on what the big turning points and strengths of your plot are going to be. 3) Seriously, it all depends on your plot. What are the big moments you want to accomplish with the story? What is the character development your heroine goes through? If you have a compelling vision for an alternate world, go for it. 4) Mechanic sounds fine. I would guess something working-class, if not outright criminal as keeping your secret/dealing with discrimination against werewolves (and black people and women, triple whammy there, lol) would probably not end you up as senior project manager at a big firm. 5) I'm honestly not a fan of werewolves in general. Perhaps I'm biased by all the teen romance stuff out there, but it seems like a trope that has been thoroughly rotisserie'd by recent authors, rather like zombies (which I actually like a lot). In the end, none of that matters, it's about how YOU write your characters. You could turn out the most origional werewolf on the planet and have it be crap, and you could also play all the tropes straight and yet be subtle about it and have a breakaway hit.
These are the things that every writer needs to work out for him/herself. Yes, other people can make suggestions, but they won't be as well thought out as anything you come up on your own. What others can do is provide you with a method, and for that I would consult Cogito's excellent thread pinned to the top of the list here in the Plot Development section. Story ideas can be odd little creatures, sticking just a little of their heads out at first and then pulling back, making you dig deeper into your imagination to come up with something. My advice is not to rush it. No idea I've ever had has presented itself completely at first blush. They need lots of thought. Good luck.
Answer these questions for yourself. I'm not saying this in a mean-spirited way, though. Each of these decisions takes the story down a different path. With five questions of two choices eact, that makes thirty-two story prompts. Each of those can be written in an unlimited number of ways. Good luck.
You are asking us basically to make all the important early decisions for you, and that isn't really fair. Plus, you should write the story you are passionate about. Knowing what you are passionate about will answer half these questions. For the rest - you just have to take responsibility and choose for yourself.
The excitement of the supernatural is the mystery. Open, obvious, plentiful supernatural has no mystery, and is therefore not interesting. The supernatural is most interesting when contrasted with the mundane. Therefore, I would make werewolves very, very secret and I would put them into a very plain, mundane everyday world. That's my vote.
Start writing, as you get into it, your plot will develop. For example..you ask about other supertantural beeings. Maybe after a few chapter you realize that your heroine, MUST run into a Vampire to happen too know the person that made her into a wearwolf..etc etc.
