I always wonder when thinking or searching for a new concept that are there any ideas left who you can call truly original and new. You have concepts presented in astonishingly brilliant ways but all seems to root from some other overly used ideas . I think you can twist and turn old concepts to make them look real but there are nearly none new or original ideas remaining out there . so all i wanted in this tread is to discuss if you guys know of some topics and and fields we as writers can delve into and find some possibilities for new ideas to tell the world. don't share your stories , just some fields or potentially exiting topics you came across or are writing about. Thanks.
Many people find that there are only a few basic, over-arching plots. Stories like a quest or voyage, redemption, tragedy, etc. While all basic plots have been used (and many specific ones have been rehashed time and again), I classify a radical interpretation as a "new" plot. For instance, the concept of another realm hidden from most humans has been covered heavily over the centuries. The stories that stand out are the ones that have especially compelling characters and themes (Narnia series, The Matrix, etc.). I pretty much consider these plots revolutionary, because they were the first of their particular kind. That's just my opinion though. "That which has been is that which will be, And that which has been done is that which will be done. So there is nothing new under the sun." Ecclesiastes 1:9
" That which has been is that which will be, And that which has been done is that which will be done. So there is nothing new under the sun."Ecclesiastes 1:9 Well it is a brilliant line but as it suggests , there is nothing new in fact. Matrix is one of my fav movies , and i agree that you can call it new and original but i just want to know for thinking purpose that is their really an unexplored ground out there . One can think of truly amazing concepts and make it totally original , but i was trying to know that can there be areas still left whose roots can not be traced back to some previous work.
There are or there aren't, depending on your definition of original. Even "original" works always follow some of the fundamentals found in all stories, while even the most cliche stories have some originality.
I am not talking about the story here , i am talking about the concept, the idea. Even the rarest of stories will have things used before but idea is a whole new thing and i am talking about "original " idea on which to write a story. like: Vampire - who ever wrote about it the first time or made it up was the original idea , stories followed. One can always create entirely new things but , are their existing things in history , mythology or religion or science documentaries that are not used before. like: Agartha: A World Inside Earth is a concept scientists are talking about. Theia (planet) is one they say collided with earth long ago . when one first made a movie on time travel. things like these .
I'm new here, the name is James, but I'll give it a shot. I usually tell people to choose a subject, you don't necessarily have to be passionate about it but it does help, and then simply put your own stamp on that subject. For instance, I am writing a horror story/script right now, I won't get into detail, but I do feel with what I have so far that it is indeed "original." For me, the idea is to make it both scary and entertaining. I am writing a blueprint for a movie after all, a script, but typically when you think of horror you think "scary" but you don't necessarily think entertaining. Now all I want to do, need to do, is add in that little bit of cleverness and I've found the combination that has always worked for me. That's the type of horror I enjoy the most, something that is both scary and entertaining, because it has to be scary, as well as clever. A few good examples: Final Destination (the first one) The Blair Witch Project. The Sixth Sense. You can't deny the cleverness in every one of those horror scripts/films, as they were all scary in their own right as well. With Blair Witch, maybe you never wanted to go camping in the woods again. With Final Destination, after indulging in the opening, maybe you never wanted to get on a plane again, but the high concept involving Death coming after the ones/passengers who cheated him in the specific order they were sitting on the plane by getting off due to the student's premonition was really unique at the time. That very high concept has been sustained now for what? ...6 sequels. Now why is that? That's where entertaining comes in. All the script writers have to do is open the project with some other, new tragic accident at the start of each screenplay/film... A roller coaster malfunction, a bridge collapsing, a race car disaster, etc.. and then they just need to find new, funny, unexpected, CLEVER, SCARY, and ENTERTAINING ways to kill off the characters... Burning in a tanning bed, something gone wrong in a Dentist's office, a branch flying through a windshield, something landing on a nail gun causing it to fire rapidly, etc... It's really never ending, and the suspense comes during the lead up to each character's inevitable death. In other words, they could WRITE/make 10 more FD films because the high concept is that good, sustainable. Every FD script/film is the same, all the way down to it's structure. ^^^ This is what you need to be searching for - that high concept. That is what will make your project stand out and be original. It may apply more to screenwriting, but it will, should, blossom in other mediums as well.
Of course there are new ideas. In every element of creativity there are new ways of looking at things. To think there are no new ideas is the easy option, and a little narrow minded. I think this way of thinking is normal though, a natural way of falling in line with the human condition. But if you take time to question things, you'll see new ideas everywhere. When I started a rock band at fifteen, I thought the hardest thing in the world was coming up with a band name. Surely all the good band names have been used. Yet 20 (ish) years later, new bands, new names. It is never ending. We can't always reinvent the wheel, something's, like adventure and romance are core to human emotion and soul, it's how we relate to the world. But we ARE constantly evolving, and exploring and inventing. There is an old saying that ideas are 10 a penny. But a good idea is a once in a lifetime thing.... Or something along these lines... Long time since I studied design.
Excellent. You look at some of the more unique & relatively contemporary band names in... Dashboard Confessional Thirty Seconds to Mars The Verve Pipe Imagine Dragons Collective Soul ...and you get the idea, there are plenty of options still left that will define either you as a band, or you as a writer. The name/concept is literally right around the corner, waiting to be found.
If there are no new ideas left, then at some point in history, someone expressed the last new idea. So which idea was that and when was it expressed?
Is there tomatoes inside the ham sandwich i'm ordering? Is there a reason the Sky is blue? You got to go on a journey to pave your own path. We can't be concerned with ifs and buts, just innovation. That's why most of us write, to innovate and inspire. That's the primary goal. If we sit here and question ourselves silly, are we really accomplishing that? There are original plots out there, just nobody wants to be brave enough so far to make that happen.
The great thing about creative writing is that new ideas are meaningless. What matters is the execution of an idea.
My problem with this question is the point of view it generally comes from. I think novice authors tend to feel like they are expected to make every theme and plot point innovative or risk being torn apart for being unoriginal. If it is impossible to be original, then that is a convenient defense. "There are no new ideas, so I cannot be expected to come up with new ones of my own." The thing is, there was never anything to defend in the first place. Yes, there are new ideas waiting to be explored, and we appreciate innovation. But if something merits praise, that does not mean the lack of that thing merits criticism. There is nothing wrong with choosing to use an old idea instead of a new one. Newer ≠better. The singular goal of an author is to write the best book he can write. Ideas are merely tools at the author's disposal. If an old tool works better than a new tool, then use it. And when a new tool works better than an old tool, it is not simply because it is newer, but because it accomplishes something that was previously unaccomplishable.
For me ideas and fresh concepts come when you can challenge your own opinions and your own thoughts on beliefs or things that interest you. But I agree with Daemon, what's the point in worrying about or forcing a fresh concept? I can't say I've ever ran across a book with a fresh concept. But I have read a lot of books with familiar concepts that offered a fresh outlook.
I'm the usual pessimist (or realist?) so I'd say no, I don't think there are any unexplored concepts. Only variations of old ones and different combinations of two or more ideas. Considering for how long humans have been telling stories I find it quite unlikely that there would be something that had been overlooked by everyone. And like Daemon said above, I think beginning writers are too obsessed with the thought of having to come up with something entirely unique, like their whole future as a writer depended on that, but I think it's more important what you do with the ideas you have.
At some point, the POV of an artificial intelligence robot was new. At some point, writing a fantasy novel from the perspective of a cat was new. At some point, having the protag become antag was new. You can't ride every wave of history through every culture and remember and forget what was hot. On other planets they're probably writing stories we would think are new, and maybe ours would be new to them. Who cares just write stuff.
Well first of all , i didn't say anything like that. And the reason behind me asking the question is that i am thinking of many ideas and i have some good concepts but i always want to know and make sure that i always keep trying to dig up new concepts . I keep researching about that but if some of the guys here know some new areas , then it would be good. And i personally don't agree with you on the fact that writers only has to write the best book they can , and not worry about the ideas or concept . I think it has to be other way round , one has to write to tell an amazing idea or story , if the idea is not something unique or gripping either because its totally new or because it has been told in a new way , i don't think the writing would be fun without a great idea. Its no good to write Just because you write well , you write because you are in love with your idea and want the world to do the same. Ideas are not tools they are souls . And lastly thanks to everyone for replying.
You are right, you did not say you were worrying about being torn apart for being unoriginal. I actually like the basic thing you are trying to do -- to search for new areas to explore. I was referring to the general sentiment--the fear of being unoriginal--that is so common as to be the reason why "there are no new ideas" is a refrain we are all familiar with in the first place. The refrain that your original question asks if it is true or false. This is actually a very complex issue. But long story short, the job description (figuratively) for "author" is to command the language and storytelling. Not to generate ideas. Personally, I actually do appreciate interesting and unique ideas in literature more than I appreciate style. That is why my reading list tends to contain a lot of high concept titles. So I get where you are coming from. But the reason why I read books, instead of just chatting with people who have interesting ideas (though I do that too), is because of what authors bring to the table. They offer something I cannot get from anyone else: verbal craftsmanship. We judge all other craftsmen by their skill rather than whether or not their work interests us personally. A chef who cooks an excellent gourmet dish that I personally dislike (e.g. anything with tomato sauce) is a better chef than me, even though I prefer my own grilled sandwiches over tomato-ey food. It is the job of the customer to decide what he is interested in and the job of the craftsman to deliver.
"We judge all other craftsmen by their skill rather than whether or not their work interests us personally. A chef who cooks an excellent gourmet dish that I personally dislike (e.g. anything with tomato sauce) is a better chef than me, even though I prefer my own grilled sandwiches over tomato-ey food. It is the job of the customer to decide what he is interested in and the job of the craftsman to deliver" daemon I completely agree with you on that . As you said it is wrong to think you can't be original , because if you are writing some thing in your way ,it is already original. i think i personally prefer a good story , It may be because i am not a writer yet , i am more in the thinker phase . But thanks for taking time to reply.
Of course there are new ideas. For instance I'm currently working on the story of a boy wizard with 20 20 vision, who's parents are alive and well. That definitely hasn't been done before.
