I've been pondering a plot for sometime now. My question is, dies anyone have any tips for someone who is struggling on how to start there story? Right now I'm thinking a dirt track racing themed book that could lead to multiple booms in the future going from dirt track to asphalt to nascar, or a war themed book of some sort..any help would be appreciated and useful
First off you need to pick one, nascar or war story? Do you have any characters, ideas for either? Make a comparison between the two and see which ones sparks your imagination. It will be hard to go further here without knowing at least these things.
You need to think about what it is you want to write about, not the plot you will fit it into. Plots are easy. Stories are more important. Nascar vs war? Where are you going with that? They are so different it is hard to imagine. Is it about a hero that overcomes hardship, or one that conquers the world? What is your story, not how will you tell it?
What I've learned from my relatively short writing experience: Pick one, stick to it. Complete it. If dissatisfied, re-start: Pick another one, stick to it. You guessed it, complete it.
In elementary school I read a series of books about a young guy who went from tinkering with a car to racing to becoming a full time professional race driver. I liked the idea then and still do today. It is basically following the life progression of a character and can be done within any profession or sport. This does not remove you from the responsibility of making it interesting, however.
I'm thinking a story about a young soldier his journey through basic training and then his life as a soldier and war and the hardships and what not he overcomes
First question: Do you read a lot? I mean, do you read at least an hour per day, if not more? If so, read some books on writing. Read everything you can get your hands on about it. If these books get your blood pumping and get you all exciting about the storytelling possibilities writing will bring you, then you're a sick puppy and welcome to the club. By the time you get through the fourth or fifth book on writing (Google "Advice on Writing by Crawford Kilian" if you want something free to start with) you'll have some ideas on where to start and how to proceed from there.
