A Third!

I got an idea for a third book proposal! Yippeee!

I used to be one of those writers who wondered how other writers got so many ideas. I mean really, where did they come from? Out of thin air? How can one incident spur on an entire novel?

My first book (the one that is sold and being written) came from a conversation with a friend about our favourite books and we realized that there was a hole. I decided to fill it.

The second idea came up in a conversation with my agent.

The third came today whiel I was bouncing my daughter on my knee and singing a song. One line struck me and I thought "gee, that would look good on a shirt." Driving later in the day I realized that you could write a whole book on the topic.

Or *I* could write a whole book on the topic! YAY for ideas!

Cultivating ideas takes work, just like cultivating a garden. I keep a running list of every single idea that pops into my head. I have a notepad right beside me and when an idea comes, I write it down. By doing this I've begun to take note of how good ideas sound, what elements they need, how I could tweak an idea and when to just let one go.

Sometimes it's the ones you let go that come back later, stronger and smarter. They just need to stew a little on the back burner.