Where Do Ideas Come From?

by Adam Huddleston

Ah.  The ultimate question for all writers.  The granddaddy of them all.  Where do ideas come from?  Where can I go to get inspired to write?  How do the literary greats get their works started?

The answer, I suppose, differs from writer to writer.  In fact, I’m sure there are as many answers to that desperate question as there are writers in the world.  Where do I get my ideas from?  I’ll tell you.  But remember, this is coming from an author with only a handful (and small at that) of published works.

I get my ideas from what I see around me.  For example, although I eat better now, I used to spend quite a lot of time in fast food drive-thrus.  A few of my story starters arise from there.  Also, the eight-hour drive to visit family in east Texas (when the kiddos are actually quiet, and I can think straight) provides many opportunities to create story ideas.  I have two or three tales that center on interstate travel.  One about a ghost that haunts a specific exit ramp, the other about a man hired to clean off roadkill.  

Other ideas come from things I hear, whether while at work or from my family at home.  My next few blogs will center on those.

Happy writing!