So I have these themes... ideas, characters, etc. But no plot or setting... o.o I need some dire help haha. I don't want to ask anyone to write this short story/possible novel for me, because I will indefinitely mold any ideas given to me into my own, but I was just wondering if I could lay down some themes and ideas and people could comment or give me some other ideas or themes to run with, to better help me develop a plot or setting. Also I don't know if I want this to be a thriller, or to be an action, or an adventure story. So keep an open mind please. Please give me your honest opinions..
Card Suits: A clever story could easily be dealt using playing cards as protags. You could have the different suits be different nations or ethnicities. The face cards and the numerical cards could be used to draw parallels with class structure in your country. The 10s could be like self-hating numerical cards since they have the same numerical value as the face cards and want to pass as face cards who are of a high social stature. Tons of things could happen with playing cards.
Wow thats some good starting points. I like the cards idea - for me this would be really interesting to see in something like a spy novel, but would also work well in a consipiracy kind of theme, see if you could link those two together. It could be a really interesting cohesion tactic to use throughout the story. I think something with a feel of The Bourne series/Shooter/The Unit (TV series) with those two themes would be something definitely worth reading. Wish you well! Rachel x
Thanks for the ideas everyone Now the last thing I need is the environment.. hmm... I have no idea where to make! I should think of something though. Thank you everyone for your time
I very much like these scattered ideas. I almost see a romance novel when I see this. Two people with agendas, through thats the only thing they share. You could kinda play up their plans by comparing it to a card game, and I deffinately see some black and white options in there. I would say, skip the supernatural, and go for realistic fiction.
Nothing wrong with your ideas and themes. But it's not the idea that makes the story; it's really the story that gives life to the idea. The key is to create a character and extend him into and through the idea somehow, giving him life and plausibility. Then unravel a sequence of events your character finds himself contending with. Sooner or later, with ideas like yours, you'll probably find a way to weave the behavior of all your characters, their reactions, and notions of what's going on and how they experience and react to all that into the very best your imagination can deliver (so your story will cooperate in some way with how your main character unfolds, construes, confuses and ultimately makes sense of the idea(s) you have).
Thanks for that Manhatten, I think I have an idea pooling together in my head. But I have to go so I'll dwell on the thoughts later! All comments and posts appreciated everyone, thank you!
here's the bottom line: the greatest great idea can be a total bomb, if the writer hasn't got what it takes and the worst idea can be developed into a bestseller, if the writer does... so, what happens with any of those ideas above will depend ONLY on the talent and skill of the writer who develops them into stories, and not the least bit on what story elements are suggested by others... you're wanting to be the writer, and writers are supposed to be able to come up with their own ideas for plot/setting/characters, et al., not have to depend on others to do it for them... just put on your thinking cap and i'm sure what you need will come to you... and, btw, none of what you're asking for is 'editing'... editing is finding mistakes, or things that need to be corrected/changed in what has been written, so can be done only after a piece of work is written, not before then... one can't 'edit' ideas...
To me the themes that you've thrown out scream mystery novel. Dolls and puppets- people being used as tools by a player behind the scenes, possibly using some form of magic. The heroes, who become the opposite of the mysterious antagonist, find themselves drawn into a game combining bluff, skill and luck in equal measure as they search for the identity of the mysterious Queen of Hearts...before the Ace of Spades catches up to them.
A story concept means nothing. I can tell you now, it has been done before. What matters is how you write it, the characterization, the flow, the imagery, all of it. There's no point to asking what other people think of the concept! They'll either say,"Sounds great," or, "it sounds like a ripoff of..." If the idea stirs you, write it. Then ask people what they think of the final story. After they tell you what they don't like about it, revise it, usually several times, until you're happy with it or until you throw up your hands and say the hell with it. Please read this thread about What is Plot Creation and Development? (and yes, this is a template post, which should give you an idea of how often this comes up.)
I don't understand why you would have an area to post entitled "Plot Creation" if it wasn't created with the intention of helping one create a plot..
You're asking for opinions on a plot idea. That isn't the same as asking questions on how to develop a plot. Did you read the thread What is Plot Creation and Development? As I said, there is no point asking for opinions on a particular plot/story outline. What is important is knowing how to develop a plot, and to understand its dynamics.
What I said was... People develop plots to things their own way... there is no "set way" to do it.. and this was my way, which was finding out different opinions from different people about select themes I already had. By getting vastly different answers I can narrow or broaden my viewpoint and it helps me to figure out a plot on my own... I don't feel like I'm doing anything that warrants a template post.
And this is exactly what is pointless, for the reasons I already gave. If the themes hold your interest, and you can write a decent story from it, it doesn't matter what anyone thinks of the idea. An idea is exactly as good as its execution. Until you have turned it into a story, anyone's opinion of it, other than your own, is completely and utterly useless. And this is the point I find myself making over and over (and over) again, which is why I created a template resoonse.
By trying to be as polite and considerate as possible... excuse me? No... it isn't. Just because I do things differently does not mean that it's wrong or in this case; pointless. I receive opinions and different views. These influence my own opinion. This in turn, influences what I decide to write. I fail to see how that is pointless at all. I did not simple ask "Are these good ideas or bad ones". I gave more context, asked for other ideas on where they would go with the themes, and in the first sentence stated that I have no plot or setting, welcoming other ideas from different people. This isn't pointless, and you didn't need to post a template response. I was getting the feedback I desired, and it was helping me come to my own conclusion.
I can't tell you what to do with these ideas, but one thing I can tell you is to not worry about labels like action, thriller and adventure. Genres overlap a lot more than marketing people care to admit. Adventures often have lots of action and are thrilling.
