Ideas by johnhain

“Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.” – John Steinbeck

Have you ever read or watched something and wondered where the writer got his or her ideas? Or worse, have you ever wanted – or needed – to write something but couldn’t think of a good idea? The only thing worse than asking someone where they get their ideas is trying to find them yourself.

At some point, every writer faces this question; where do you get your ideas? Since the answer “my warped and fevered mind” tends to put most people off, you have to give a tamer reply.

Ideas Can Be Found Everywhere

Ideas, imagining the unimagined, are the reason we have the society we live in today. Asking “what if” took those ideas and either made them better or made them horrific. For example, someone had the idea of removing the horse from the carriage and giving it an engine. One person asked “what if?” and added a cot and medical supplies; it was an ambulance. Another person asked the same question and added a large gun and ammunition; this became the tank. Someone had an idea to build a house; someone asked what if it had windows. The list of ideas followed by what ifs is endless.

Conversation Mining

Listening Statue by couleur

Beyond asking what if, another place you can glean ideas is from listening to conversations. I am not encouraging eavesdropping, but hearing snippets of people’s discussions is nearly impossible mainly because a lot of people today no longer common courtesy or the art of whispering.

At the other end of the conversation suggestion is the podcast. I have recently started listening to Writing Excuses, a podcast about writing. I am only up to season 2 while the podcast itself is up to season 19. Brandon Sandersen, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler started this podcast, and trust me, they are both knowledgeable and entertaining. I have had several ideas for posts pop up while listening.

The key word is listen.

Any News is Good News

Back in the day, we only had a few sources for the news. We could watch the 6 o’clock news on our local television channels, followed by national and international news. The other source of news available to us was the daily newspaper. Today, the news is unescapable. It’s on our phones, our computers, our radios, and our televisions. It has even taken over the conversations of a large part of the population.

If your chosen genre is political intrigue, then you have hit the motherlode of ideas. The news also lends itself to mystery, romance, and, with a bit of tweaking, even fantasy and science fiction.

Looking At Your Own Life

What have you done with your life? If you have led a more active lifestyle, you can find ideas based on your own experiences. Have you engaged in extensive travel? Are you an outdoor enthusiast? Perhaps you have had interesting encounters with people while engaged in your various outdoor activities.

Perhaps you have hobbies that lend themselves to writing ideas. When we are passionate about our hobbies, we tend to learn as much as possible about the things we enjoy. I know collectors research the things they collect so they know whether an item is genuine or fake.

Suppose you are more of an indoor person. That’s perfectly okay. If you enjoy baking, I have read more than a few books where food plays a big part. A few of them even added recipes at the end of the chapter if the food is a part of the story.

Even if you are confined to your house because of sickness, you can write. As a child, I was allergic to just about everything; there was even a limit to the amount of sun I could handle. This meant I spent a lot of time inside. I imagined worlds where no one got sick and worlds where everyone was sick.

Don’t think that just because you think you live a boring life you can’t find ideas. You just need to do a little searching.

From Page to Screen (and Other Media Outlets)

Movie Tickets by igorovsannykov

These sources produce a great number of ideas. A lot of these, or rather, most of these ideas come from the question, “what if?” Numerous people, me included, have read stories or watched movies and wondered what if they ended differently. Another question we’ve asked is “what happened next?” These questions are the reason fan fiction is so popular. (Most of my fan fiction stories revolve around the DC Multiverse, particularly the years immediately following the 1985 series “Crisis on Infinite Earths.” My stories can be found at 5Earths.com; just look for stories by Lee or Drivtaan.)

Look at the many movie franchises. One of the things they all have in common is someone looked at the source material and asked, “What if?” Whether it was “what if we explore this avenue?” or “what if we give everything a reboot?” someone asked the question. Most of the time, a second question follows, “Will it make us more money?” but still, it is curiosity that expands the story.

Look at some of the iconic characters writers created during the last century. Even though their creators are long gone, writers are still recording their adventures. Most of these writers do so because they love the characters. I have been reading some Sherlock Holmes tales by James Lovegrove and they are fantastic. His love for the characters comes across as you read them.

Building a Better Muse Trap

The Greek Muses by wikimediaimages

You may have heard writers credit their ideas to some mysterious muse and wonder where you can get one of those. For those of you wondering what a muse actually is, let’s see what the dictionary has to say about it.

Muse (noun)

1. Classical Mythology.
2. Any number of sister goddesses, originally given as Aoede (song), Melete (meditation), and Mneme (memory), but latterly and more commonly as the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne who preside over various arts.
3. Any goddess presiding over a particular art.
4. (sometimes lowercase) the goddess or the power regarded as inspiring a poet, artist, thinker, or the like

(lowercase) the genius or powers characteristic of a poet.

While I believe in divine intervention, many of the goddesses in Greek mythology are fickle and petty. When struggling to put pen to paper, the last thing I need is to rely on someone with those qualities. I think I do have a muse; we just aren’t on speaking terms. Ray Bradbury once said, “To feed your Muse, then, you should always be hungry about life since you were a child. If not, it is a little late to start.” Perhaps my muse died while waiting for me to seek it out.

I am in the minority, however, when it comes to having a relationship with a muse. Homer and Plato believed in them. Terry Brooks and Maya Angelou have all spoken of visits by their muse. Numerous artists and musicians claim to have one as well. Let me just say this – a muse is often a pain in the backside. They seem to come and go according to some nefarious timetable that in no way coincides with the writing schedule I use.

Recently, I decided to rethink the muse issue and came up with a solution; if I can’t find my muse, I will take a page from “Frankenstein” and build one. The question is how? If you are already doing the aforementioned ways to find ideas, you are on your way.

Rather than make you go back and reread everything, let’s make a list.

Building My Own Muse

1. Listen – Pay attention to what people say around you.
2. Watch – Watch people, movies, television, everything, but watch with curiosity.
3. Read – Look at the way others write, and what they write. Genre choice can generate its own ideas.
4. Write – Writing will not only help you to grow as a writer, writing continually can help generate more ideas.

Capturing Ideas in the Wild

Idea Trappers from freestock photos

You never know when I idea is going to come to you. In the old days, I would carry a notepad and pen everywhere. Ah, who am I kidding; I still do, even when I have my phone and laptop. I take it with me to work, family gatherings, trips, even to church, although I don’t usually jot anything down until service is over.

Although the notepad is my go-to means of keeping track of ideas, I have made use of the Notepad app on my phone. Aside from the obligatory ad, it is actually a pretty nice app.

The key thing to remember is always be prepared; you never know when an idea or ideas will come to you.

And Introducing…Writing Prompts

Inspiration by geralt

So, I thought I would try something new with this post and offer a few writing prompts. Three is a good number, so that should be enough, hopefully, to give you a few ideas.

1. Your character is a teenage telepath. A big dance is near, and your date suddenly says they can’t go because something has come up. Even though it is a bit unethical, you scan their thoughts and find they are telling the truth. What is their reason?
2. A storm is coming and many people in the low-lying areas are heading to higher ground. A car breaks down in front of your place and a woman carrying her baby ask to ride out the storm with you. You agree but soon discover something very odd about your guests. What is it?
3. Aliens have abducted you, but they don’t intend to probe you. They say you have a specific skill they need you to teach them. What skill do you have and why do they need to learn it?

A Final Word of Encouragement

Sometimes the ideas flow and sometimes they don’t. I hope this post will keep the ideas flowing for you.

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The post Ideas, What Ifs, and Building Your Own Muse appeared first on Downjot.

A woman typing by sibealartworks.

Women writers of the 18^th, 19^th, and early 20^th century don’t seem to receive the credit they are rightfully due. Many of them had to adopt male pseudonyms or names more gender neutral. A few chose to simply use their initials. There were those who excelled without the name change such as Mary Shelley, Jane Austin, and the Brontë Sisters. There were also women popular during their lifetime but lost their place on the bookshelves as time continued marching into the future.

Many of these women did more than just write stories, they created, or at least, helped build, new literary genres. As mentioned in my previous post, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was the start of the science fiction genre. Horace Walpole may have written the first gothic novel, but it was Ann Radcliffe who popularized the genre. (Her work also influenced a future writer by the name of Edgar Allen Poe.) After researching the aforementioned post, I decided it was time for a few reintroductions.

The only problem with making these reintroductions is deciding which, and how many, of the deserving women do I choose. I suspect this post will eventually have a “Part 2.” Since I am currently reading The Mysteries of Udolpho by the aforementioned Ann Radcliffe, let’s include her. Our second woman is C. L. Moore, an important figure in the science fiction genre. I had intended to include a third, but I didn’t feel I could give each woman the attention she deserves. (Just a quick note. I have read some of the works of each of the authors I have chosen – and will choose for future posts – to have a more informed idea as to who these women truly were.)

Ann Radcliffe

A Portrait of Ann Radcliffe.

Ann Ward was born July 9, 1764, in Holborn, London, England to William, a haberdasher, and Ann Ward. When she was 8 years old, her family moved to Bath where her father managed a shop owned by her maternal uncle, Thomas Bentley. She often visited her uncle and became a close friend of his partner’s daughter, Susannah. Susannah, known as Sukey, was Ann’s only known childhood companion. Sukey’s father, Josiah Wedgewood, often referred to Ann as “Bentley’s shy little niece.” A quick note about Sukey. In 1796, she married Dr. Robert Darwin and, on February 12, 1809, gave birth to their son, Charles (yes, that Charles Darwin.)

Due to being in trade, William Ward was able to provide his family with a good life. His position was enough to allow them to mix with other well-to-do families. From this circle of peers, Ann met William Radcliffe, a journalist. In 1787, the couple married and William, we surmise, took note of Ann’s talent and encouraged her to pursue writing.

Ann published her first two novels in 1789 and 1790, those being The Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne and A Sicilian Romance, respectively. She chose to do so anonymously. Her third novel, released under her own name, came in 1791. The Romance of the Forest brought her fame, but her next novel made her the most popular novelist in all of England.

The Mysteries of Udolpho (which I am currently reading,) which earned her £500 in 1792. Her popularity was such that when Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice sold for £110 just 21 years later. In today’s currency, Jane earned £9,905.52 while Ann made £96,567 from the sale of her book. (These totals are according to Google.) If the British pound isn’t your thing, here’s a breakdown in U.S. Dollars. £110 = $146.85   £500 = $667.52, £9,905.52 = $13,224.35, and £96,567 = $128,921.72. (These conversions are from xe.com, my go-to site when I want to add foreign currency to a story.)

Her fifth novel, The Italian, earned her £800 (£130,500 in today’s currency and $174,220.62 U.S.). Oddly enough, this was the last novel Ann had published in her lifetime. In 1826, three years after her death, Gaston de Blondeville was published; it was not received as well as her previous works.

Ann withdrew from the world of publishing following The Italian, and numerous rumors began to circulate. Some said she went mad and ended up in an asylum. In truth, she was busy traveling, writing poetry, and enjoying life with her husband.

Ann Radcliffe died on February 7, 1823, peacefully at home.

So, why is she important?

Horace Walpole’s 1764 novel, The Castle of Oranto, is the first Gothic novel. Ann Radcliffe is important to the genre, and to writing in general, for three reasons.

1. She popularized the Gothic novel, giving it a broader appeal.
2. She helped define the distinction between terror and horror. “Terror expands the soul and awakens the faculties to a higher degree of life; horror contracts, freezes, and nearly annihilates them.”
3. Ann was a source of inspiration to numerous writers who came after her. Jane Austin, Charlotte and Emily Brontë, Mary Shelley, and Walter Scott were among these. She was also counted an influence among Dickens, Poe, Hawthorne, Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas, and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. She was even considered an influence on the Marquis de Sade, though his works were considerably more, well, sadistic.

This is in no way a full biography on Ann Radcliffe. It’s sad that, despite her contributions, Ann has been largely forgotten. Without Ann’s influence, we might not have had Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers, or anything by Edgar Allen Poe.

I hope this encourages you to seek out Ann’s novels and learn more about her.

C. L. Moore

Catherine L. Moore circa 1940.

Catherine Lucille Moore was born January 24, 1911, in Indianapolis, Indiana, to Otto Newman and Maude Estelle Moore. As a child, she was an avid reader; her favorites included Frank L Baum’s Oz series, Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, and Edgar Rice Burroughs’ adventure novels. As she got older, she became a fan of the pulp magazines. In 1929, she began to pursue her dream of being a writer by enrolling as an English major at the University of Indiana. Unfortunately, she only managed three semesters before the Great Depression forced her to attend a business college to become a secretary.

It was during her time as a secretary at the Fletcher Trust Company in Indianapolis, Indiana, Catherine began submitting her writings. By all accounts, her first printed work was a poem; it appeared in The Indianapolis Star on October 7, 1928, and was titled “Song of the Spirit of St. Louis.” This was followed up by three stories published in The Vagabond; they were “Happily Ever After,” “Semira,” and “Two Fantasies.” These appeared between 1930 and 1931. Her first professional work appeared in the pulps in 1933.

At this time, many women writers were using male pseudonyms because they weren’t readily accepted as professionals. Catherine chose to publish as C. L. Moore for a different reason; she wasn’t ready for her coworkers at Fletcher Trust to know she what she was doing.

Catherine sold her first professional work to Weird Tales and the story “Shambleau” in the pulp’s November 1933 issue. It introduced one of her most famous characters, an adventurer named Northwest Smith; Northwest was a bit of a rogue who wandered about the Solar System. The following year, in the October 1934 issue, she introduced Jirel of Joiry, one of the first female protagonists in the sword-and-sorcery genre. Jirel’s first appearance, and her most famous story, was “Black God’s Kiss.” By the 1940s, Catherine’s stories had begun appearing in Astounding Science Fiction magazine.

In 1935, Catherine’s work had drawn the attention of fellow writer, H. P. Lovecraft, and the two corresponded until shortly before his death in 1937. In 1936, her work had caught the attention of another man, a member of the Lovecraft Circle. He sent her a fan letter under the impression C. L. Moore was a man; it was a letter than would change both Catherine’s life and the science fiction genre.

The man was Henry Kuttner. Born in Los Angeles, California on April 17, 1915, Henry was also a contributor to the pulp magazines. His first published story, “The Graveyard Rats,” appeared in Weird Tales in March 1936. It was this tale which caught the attention of H. P. Lovecraft. (Since I intend to go into more detail on Henry in a later post, we will skip to the part where he writes his fan letter.) It was actually Lovecraft who suggested Henry write to Catherine. Considering Lovecraft and Moore had been corresponding with each other since 1935, we assume he knew she was a woman. As to why he didn’t mention this to Henry when he encouraged him to write his fan letter is anyone’s guess. He might have assumed Henry knew, or maybe he withheld this information for fun. Regardless, Henry’s letter began simply, “Mr. Moore.”

Catherine showed him the error of assuming and the two eventually began a much more intimate correspondence. In 1937, while still friends, Catherine and Henry collaborated on their first story, “Quest of the Starstone.” Combining her style and his storytelling, the pair successfully crafted a story that brought together Catherine’s two most popular characters, Northwest Smith and Jirel of Joiry.

At some point after this initial collaboration, these two realized they had become more than friends. On June 7, 1940, Henry Kuttner, Jr., age 25, married Catherine Lucille Moore, age 29, in New York City. Mrs. Beverly Claire Finlay, wife of Weird Tales artist Virgil Finlay, and Mrs. Annie Kuttner, Henry’s mother, were the couple’s witnesses. The couple had many collaborations, but they also continued writing their own stories as well. One of their most used pseudonyms was Lewis Padgett; it was a combination of their mothers’ maiden names.

The couple moved to Los Angeles, California in 1950 and enrolled at the University of Southern California. While earning their degrees, they also taught courses on writing. During this time, they began to shift their writing focus to mysteries. The pair served as joint vice presidents in The Mystery Writers of America. They also went to work for Warner Brothers developing television scripts. Then, tragedy struck.

Henry Kuttner died of a heart attack on February 3, 1958.

With his passing, Catherine retired from writing literary fiction and began to focus on television. Having written scripts for 77 Sunset Strip and Maverick, among others, she retired from writing for good in 1963.

On July 18, 1963, Catherine married Thomas Reggie. Catherine was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 1984 and passed away April 4, 1987, due to complications from the disease and pneumonia.

So, why is she important?

1. She helped pierce the barrier that kept women from writing in the science fiction and sword and sorcery genres. Among many of the Lovecraft circle, including H. P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard, she was a top-notch writer. Her collaborations with her husband and others proved women could not only keep pace with male writers but improve their work.
2. She created characters who became touchstone characters. Without Northwest Smith, we might have never had Han Solo.
3. She set an impressive bar as a speculative writer that influenced not only future writers such as Marion Zimmer Bradley, C. J. Cherryh, and Michael Moorcock, but also contemporaries such as Leigh Brackett and Robert E. Howard.

Catherine L. Moore was the recipient of numerous awards, including World Fantasy Award for lifetime achievement in 1981, and, posthumously, the Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award (along with Henry Kuttner) in 2004. She was also, again posthumously, inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in1998. She was also the first woman nominated to be the Grand Master of the Science Fiction Writers of America. At the request of her husband, Thomas Reggie, the committee withdrew her nomination due to her failing health.

I hope I have enticed you to research the life of Catherine Lucille Moore for yourself. She truly did help shape the face of science fiction.

The Wrap Up

Two women, relatively unknown to the modern reader, but upon whose work are built franchises. Pop culture owes these and other women a debt of gratitude. I hope this little glimpse, as brief as it was, will cause you to seek out other female writers that have fallen out of the public memory.

If you are interested in reading some of their works, I found Ann Radcliffe’s works on Amazon for my Kindle. Catherine L. Moore’s works are also available on Amazon. You can also find their books at thriftbooks.com.

Feel free to leave a comment if you have any more largely forgotten women writers you would like me to reintroduce to the world.

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