I have always said I love to brainstorm ideas for books. I think that is the best part of writing. It is nice if you can have two or three people to bounce ideas off of. They don’t have to be writers but it’s nice to have at least one be a writer because a fellow author understands the complexities of putting a story together.
When you brainstorm if you can get someone who is an expert in the area you are writing to help and make suggestions, that’s a bonus. For my June 2006 Love Inspired Suspense, Hearts on the Line, I had the good fortune to be able to run some ideas past a hostage negotiator and homicide detective. I was thrilled! She gave me some great suggestions for a couple of the scenes in my book. And to top everything off, my heroine was the hostage negotiator and homicide detective.
When you brainstorm at first, let the ideas flow no matter now ridiculous they may sound. You never know what will spark another idea that will actually work. Write them down then go over them. Narrow the list down to the ones that interest you and you think will fit your story, then brainstorm some more on those.
After I brainstorm, I like to sleep on what I think will be a good scene or direction in the story. You would be surprised now much my subconsciousness will develop the idea even further. I love that! Then when I get into the story and the characters, I find that more of the story unfolds.
