Sunday, February 1, 2009

What do story ideas and hamsters have in common?

They're both nocturnal.

Plots, characters and settings slumber their way through daylight hours. Then at 3 am they wake me up partying hard - 'hey, look at us, we've got streamers, balloons, exotic locations, unbelievably clever twists and a few cliff-hangers! Come and play!'

Well, y'know, at 3am I can't even be persuaded to reach for the obligatory notebook at the side of the bed. And the last smidgeon of a story idea that now remains with me is something about a wronged wife being told by her ne'er-do-well husband that she looked like a white rhino.

I think it needs work before I send it off to TAB.

10 comments:

Pat Posner said...

Was the ne'er-do-well husband running round in an exercise wheel when he called her that?

Honeysuckle said...

Hi Pat, I know, nice man, eh? He was actually cleaning his motorbike on the kitchen floor.

Karen said...

I've given up trying to write down middle-of-the-night ideas, they never make sense in the morning!

I'd like to read that story when it's published though :o)

Kath McGurl said...

Well you've got the characters, a bit of plot and one line of dialogue. That's not bad for a night's work.

Honeysuckle said...

Hi Karen - should only be about 3 years till it makes it to full-blown story status, judging by my current rate...

Womag - you're kidding! I drift off hoping for a fully-fledged, correctly punctuated, interestingly titled story via dreamland every night. The one line of dialogue is the nearest I've come so far.

Penny A said...

If you find the answer to this problem, please let me know :-) Maybe a set of worrydolls might help... tell them your story and ask them to keep it safe!!

Casdok said...

I look forward to your best seller in 3 years!

I do the 3 am thing to.

Honeysuckle said...

Penny - worrydolls would make a great basis for a story...the adult equivalent of telling your teddybear.

Casdok - you have my sympathy if you don't sleep well; Friday afternoon I had to go to bed for an hour. How pathetic is that? We'll have to try Penny's worrydolls.

Unknown said...

I've given up on the 3 am ideas as I know mine never make sense in the morning. There has to be something in a bloke cleaning his motorbike on the kitchen floor, though. Mind you, I do write about murder. :o)

Honeysuckle said...

Hi Shirley - yes, I think it was shaping up that way. A murder, but a nice, light-hearted, non-threatening one, suitable for the womags.