I am looking for comments and thoughts on my story idea, any help welcomed. --------------- Fiona, at 37 has been forced to re-evaluate some of the decisions she’s made in her life. She’s enjoyed success in her career, has a wonderful group of friends and a great social life, yet love seems a more arcane matter. Fiona’s parents, married 50 years, are childhood sweethearts, all she ever wanted was the same, to find a man she could fall hopelessly in love with settle down, get married, have children, the usual stuff. Instead Fiona has a stream of shattered dreams, a broken heart and at the age of 37 and the real prospect that she will never find someone ‘normal’ and have the family she’s always dreamed of. On her 38th birthday, after a night out with her friends to celebrate, Fiona finds herself reassessing the ghosts of her past relationships. The journey is a painful one but one that might help her move on and give love a chance again. Firstly there’s, Andy, her childhood sweetheart whom she loved desperately but he was too busy out “loving” as many others as he could. Then there was Peter, her ‘soul mate’ she thought, who turned out to be a tortured soul, and liked to take it out on her. Next came David, so sweet and innocent, who liked to play cat and mouse. Finally, ‘The One’ she had thought, Martin, trustworthy, stead-fast and honest, she almost gave up everything to be with him, until she found out he was leading a double life. On looking back Fiona decides that she just isn’t willing to submit herself to any more of the heartache that she’d experienced in the past, it was just too hard. Relationships are best left alone. It’ll just be her and her 5 cats, her friends, her family, that’s all she needs. Men can’t be trusted. Then she meets Dan. Gentle caring sensitive Dan. Too good to be true Dan. Dan, who despite her past and the scars left behind, will do anything to prove to her that not all men are the same. He’s different, he won’t let her down. But can Fiona take the leap of faith needed to find out?
Welcome, Annapl to the forum. You may want to have a read through the Rules of posting here. We have some minimum requirements as regards receiving critiques. Your story idea is not really what we would call a finished work or part of a WIP, so this is fine to post, but I am moving it to the correct area for Plot Development.
Story ideas are not critiquable. Any idea can be fleshed out into a good story by good writing, and any idea can fall flat with poor writing.
OOh I do love a nice warm welcome.. sorry, I have now been warned about abuse of the word CRITIQUE.. regardless, I'd really like some thoughts on the story idea. Ta x
Hi Annapl - this is a very friendly place and you are welcomes but there are rules. Seeing as we can talk about your idea here goes, What exactly is your story? Fiona has a string of crappy relationships and meets Martin on her 38th birthday who promises he's the one. She's not sure. What's the story? Does he have a dodgy past? Has he just got out of prison? Did he last love interest disappear in mysterious circumstances? Does he have 10 kids who like to torture cats? What is she unsure about? Fiona longs for the big love, the 50 year marriage her parents enjoy, why wouldn't she take a chance? I don't think her previous boyfriends have been bad enough for her not to want to try for love again. Maybe if she was battered by John, raped by Bob, left scarred for life by George, robbed and conned by Noel, has children for all of them, then she might have trouble risking her emotions once more. Tell us more about Martin's double life or Peter's abusiveness. What makes Fiona's story like no other?
Based on what you've just written Im not sure you've actually read what I've written properly. It doesn't state that she meets martin on her 38th birthday. but I see I need to expand on the info. Yes she has experienced pretty brutal physical abuse at the hand of peter on top of some extremely twisted emotional abuse too. Martin, who happens to be an airline pilot, knows about her past, he's seemingly perfect but it turns out that he has another paradoxial life with another women elsewhere, she has given up a business and a life to be with him only to find this out at the last minute. thats the basics of it. I have a lot of work to do but thats a basic story idea. thanks for your input its a huge help.
As Cogito said, ideas really have no value until they're put into 'production'. Grand ideas can be badly written stories; bland ideas can turn into blockbusters.
ditto that ditto! the worst story idea can be made to work for a good writer and even the best idea can bomb for a poor one... so it doesn't matter what your idea is for a story... no one can tell you if it'll work or not, till you finish writing the whole thing...
My first thought was that the reason why she can't find anyone is because she has 5 cats. She's one of "THOSE" kinds of women. You might want to lower that number to a less freakish one, "1". Also, there really wan't anything there to draw me in. Sounds like a single woman that just can't settle down. Will she take a leap of faith? Honestly, I really don't care. Draw me in somehow. What's the antagonist? Does she have to do something freaky sexually... that kind of thing. Romance tales really aren't my thing, so I really can't contribute anything more, but I sincerely wish you luck.
