The Fastest Way to Write Your Book

by Dave Haslett

  Again, this is just the thing you need when you’re trying to decide whether your character will pass or fail an exam or interview, whether the bank robbery he’s involved in will succeed or fail, or whether he’ll fall over and look foolish when he tries to impress the girl of his dreams.

  ideas4writers (ideas4writers.com)

  ideas4writers is the ideas and inspiration website for all writers. I founded it in 2002, and it’s undoubtedly the fastest way to find great ideas. It features a huge collection of over 5,000 ready-made ideas in thirty-five categories and genres. You can use them immediately, just as they are, or adapt them in any way you wish. Many of them come with examples that show you how you can use them in your own writing. You’ll also find lots of little-known tricks and techniques to help you get published, sell more books, and come up with brilliant ideas of your own.

  The thirty-five categories of ideas are available to buy as e-books, and they’ll be available in print too eventually. You’ll find a complete list of them at the back of this book – and you can get one for free as a bonus for buying it!

  We also produce The Date-A-Base Book series. This is an annual list of newsworthy and notable anniversaries for the year ahead. Each edition gives details of hundreds of anniversaries, including important events, discoveries and inventions, and famous births and deaths. You should be able to find plenty of ideas in these, especially if you write newspaper or magazine articles, or if you need ideas for TV or radio features. The Date-A-Base books are also wonderful for adding authentic background details to historical novels.

  Job shadowing

  If you manage to get a guided tour around a local company, it’s worth asking if you could spend a day with someone who works there. He’ll do his job as normal, and you’ll tag along and watch what happens. You’ll also get the chance to ask him questions and take plenty of notes. This is a terrific way of getting to know what the job is really about, and learning about the procedures, equipment, materials and technical terms. You can include these in your story to give it greater authenticity.

  You’ll also be able to get the person’s personal perspective:

  What is the job really like?

  What strange or funny experiences has he had?

  How did he get the job?

  What made him apply for it?

  Did he always want to do this job?

  Is it anything like he expected it to be?

  What other jobs has he had?

  What qualifications does he have?

  What training did he undergo?

  Would he prefer to be doing something else?

  Keywords and keyword generators

  There are several keyword generators available online. These can be extremely useful for generating ideas, especially if you already have a subject in mind. They’re intended for advertisers and websites owners who want to rank higher in search engine results, but they’re useful tools for writers too.

  Wordtracker is one of my favourites. Type in the subject you’re interested in and it produces a list of related topics and phrases. These can lead to all sorts of interesting ideas. And they’re ranked according to how many people searched for them recently, so you can see how popular they are.

  Other keyword generators can tell you how many web pages include a particular word or a similar phrase. This is a good indication of how many other people are writing about that subject. If you can find a topic that lots of people are searching for but few are writing about, you should be on to a winner.

  The more advanced keyword generators can seem complicated at first, and it might take you an hour or so to figure them out. But it’s worth persevering because of the fantastic ideas and information you can get from them. Search online for “keyword generator” or “keyword tool” and you’ll find lots of them. Most of them are free to use.

  Once you’ve found several keywords, try searching for them online. This will produce even more results. You’ll also notice that the search engine starts to suggest phrases and search terms once you’ve typed in the first word or two. These can lead to all sorts of ideas.

  Have a look at the advertisements that appear on the results page too. You can get some wonderful ideas from these.

  The search results and advertisements might lead you to useful organisations, products and services you could include in your book. Or the organisations might be interested in selling your book or working with you on a cross-promotion deal, where you promote their products and they promote your book in exchange.

  This is also a good way of keeping a watchful eye on any competing books, products and services other people are offering.

  Search for any promising-looking keywords on Amazon to see what books are available. If there aren’t any, is it because there’s no market for them, or is it a new subject that no one has written about yet? If there are lots, are they selling well? Could you compete with them? Could you write a better one? Or are there so many books on that subject already that it’s not worth bothering?

  If the bestselling books on that subject are selling really well and you have something new to say, it might still be worth writing the book. Your unique selling point (USP) will be the new information you’re offering but no one else is. People who are interested in the subject will buy your book to get the new information, even if they’ve already bought tons of similar books. You could even consider making your book exclusively about the new information. It might be a really short book, but that’s perfectly acceptable these days, as long as the content is valuable.

  Kicking-out time

  You’ll find a terrific source of ideas towards the end of the evening when the pubs and bars are closing. Pick a lively one and pop in for a drink or two. Then hang around in the background and watch and listen in case trouble starts to brew. This is especially likely on Friday and Saturday nights. Some people will have had far too many drinks, their inhibitions will disappear, and they’ll tell their so-called friends exactly what they think of them.

  These places can be a goldmine for characters, dialogue, scenes, settings, and other things – as long as you don’t mind experiencing the sharper edge of life.

  Librarians

  If you need ideas and information on a particular subject, visit your local library and ask the librarians for help. Get to know them. Make friends with them. They’re really nice people: intelligent and highly qualified. And, of course, they love books, just like you do. They aren’t there just to check the books in and out and stack the shelves. Reference librarians can be especially useful. They have a wealth of knowledge and they keep all sorts of interesting books hidden away in their storerooms.

  Look for ideas

  Do you look for ideas constantly? Whatever types of books you write, ideas are all around you. If you keep reminding yourself that you’re looking for ideas, you’re more likely to spot them. But if you go about your daily business without actively looking, you’ll miss lots of good ones.

  Say, for example, that a sporty-looking car passes you. The main character in my novel would drive one like that, you might think to yourself. Except his would be red, not black.

  Or you might see a woman dressed in a particular way. The heroine in your story might dress like that too – though perhaps a blue scarf would suit her better than a green one and she might wear a different style of hat.

  The things you see and hear around you give you a quick and easy starting point. Use what’s already there, then tweak it to make it your own.

  Look for the unusual too. You might not see anything unusual every day, but you should see something intriguing from time to time. When you spot something, think about the story behind it. What would this thing be? Is it a strange design or a weird invention? Is it in an unusual location? Is someone using it in an unusual way?

  You’re more likely to spot things when you’re out and about in the real world. But if you can’t go out, you could look for them on TV instead. Or you could sit by the window and w
atch what’s happening in the street. If you’re bedridden, a strategically placed video camera or security camera hooked up to a television will let you to keep an eye on what’s happening outside. Or search online for webcams that broadcast live street scenes and other views from interesting places.

  Memorable events

  Think about what happened yesterday, or a week ago, or a month ago, or a year ago, or when you were a child. If something has stayed in your mind for that long, there must be something interesting and memorable about it. Perhaps it deserves a place in your book.

  Misheard lyrics and conversations

  It’s worth listening out for people who get things slightly wrong. They might tell a story but make mistakes, or sing along to a song but get some of the words wrong – sometimes with hilarious results. Listen for these mistakes and see if they spark any intriguing ideas in your mind.

  You might find these websites useful:

  Kiss This Guy: the archive of misheard lyrics

  Am I Right

  My friend Geoff Nelder (who co-wrote the book How to Win Short Story Competitions with me) is hard of hearing. While chatting to a friend on the phone, he thought she said someone was “ a ghost before he died”. It turned out that she’d said nothing of the sort. But Geoff was so intrigued by the idea that he immediately wrote a short story about it – and sold it that same day.

  Newspapers and magazines

  If you read newspapers thoroughly, you’ll find that each page is bursting with ideas, stories and background material you can use in your book.

  Look at the smaller items – the single-paragraph stories, fillers, and quirky human-interest pieces – rather than the main features.

  Some professional writers can get a book commissioned by simply phoning their editors and reading out a newspaper article they saw. Fortunately, they’ll be too busy plotting their new novel, screenplay or self-help guide to bother with the masses of ideas you can find just a few pages further on in the same newspaper.

  Clip out every item that interests you and keep it in a file. It’s a good idea to stick each item to a sheet of paper and write the date on it, together with the name of the newspaper it came from and any ideas it triggers.

  Browse through your collection of clippings whenever you need some inspiration. As you read them, add any new ideas that occur to you. Eventually you’ll come up with a way of using each one of them in a book. Or you might find a way of linking several of them together.

  Most newspapers publish online editions. It’s worth visiting a few of these each day when you’re looking for ideas. To make this easier, add each newspaper’s website to your web browser’s Bookmarks or Favourites list.

  It’s also worth looking for interesting articles in online newspapers from other parts of the country, and from other countries. They don’t even need to be in English: copy the website address into an online translation service such as Google Translate and it will rewrite each page in English. It won’t be perfect, but you’ll be able to get the gist of each article.

  When I’m looking for ideas, I like to read the sections of my local newspaper that I don’t usually bother with: the jobs pages, business news, church and community news, planning applications, legal notices, sports pages, family announcements, weddings, classified ads, and so on. What ideas do they trigger? Could you use any of them in your book?

  What about the newspapers and magazines you don’t usually read? What do your friends, other family members and colleagues read or subscribe to? Ask if you could borrow a few copies. They can be fantastic sources of ideas and background information for your book. You’ll find ideas for clothing and fashion; homes and gardens; careers, lifestyles and hobbies; personal problems and solutions; and lots more.

  Specialist magazines can provide authentic technical information and terminology. It’s always worth seeking out an edition or two connected with the subject or theme of your book. If you aren’t completely familiar with the subject, or you don’t understand some of the material, make sure someone knowledgeable checks what you’ve written before it’s published. You’ll probably find some useful contacts for this sort of thing within the magazine.

  If you come across a particularly interesting article, consider researching the subject in more depth and writing a book about it.

  When you visit a place for the first time, buy a copy of the local newspaper and bring it home so you can refer to it later. It will be full of local information and interesting details you can use in your book.

  Old folks

  Members of the older generation often have amazing stories to tell – if only people would listen to them. But no one wants to hear them rambling on, so their adventures often go unrecorded.

  Talk to your older relatives and ask them about their lives, and particularly about their more unusual experiences. Go to a hospital, retirement home or nursing home and befriend someone who never gets any visitors. As he learns to trust you, he might share secrets he’s carried with him all his life but never told anyone else.

  If he tells you a story that you want to use in your book, make sure you get his permission first. He’ll probably be delighted, but on the other hand it might be a personal thing that he wants to keep private. It’s important to check. You could always change it if necessary, so it’s inspired by his story but can’t be recognised as his.

  Opposites

  Once you’ve come up with an idea, try thinking about the exact opposite of it as well. It’s a quick and easy way of doubling your collection of ideas.

  For example, you might decide to write about that shiny new sports car that passed you in the street the other day. Think about its opposite properties: old, slow, broken down, rusty and so on. What might cause it to get into such a state: an accident, a breakdown, theft, neglect, vandalism, fire…? Did someone tamper with it? Did the owner die and leave it to someone who didn’t care for it?

  What if someone finds an ancient sports car rotting in a barn and thinks it might have taken part in an historic race? Perhaps he could restore it to its original condition and race it again … if only he could persuade the present owner to sell it to him, find or make enough spare parts, and prove it really is the famous car. You instantly have a fascinating plot or sub-plot for your novel.

  Other uses

  Think about the other uses an object might have. Let’s consider a tree, for example. It could be:

  A home for birds, squirrels, tree frogs and insects.

  A climbing frame or swing for children.

  Wood for a timber merchant.

  Raw materials for a paper merchant.

  A hiding place from people/animals/aliens/predatory plants.

  Fuel for a fire or stove.

  Shelter from the rain.

  Shelter from lions, tigers, wolves or bears that are chasing you.

  Food for some animals.

  Food and income for a fruit or rubber farmer.

  A job for a tree surgeon or lumberjack.

  A meeting place or a landmark.

  Medicine, in the case of certain trees.

  Material for a beaver’s dam.

  A sacred object.

  Inspiration for an artist.

  And so on.

  Look at the objects around you. What else might someone use them for, other than their “proper” purpose? Try making a list, then use your imagination to expand it.

  Can you see any connections between the ideas on your list? Do those connections trigger any ideas for characters, scenes or stories – or chapters or topics in a non-fiction book?

  By the time you’ve finished, you’ll probably be buzzing with ideas.

  Overheard conversation

  Sometimes you just can’t believe what you’re hearing. You might catch the end of a conversation and hear something completely out of context. The most mundane discussion about, let’s say washing powder, could easily turn into an amazing story about three ladies who are involved in a drug-smuggling ring.
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  It helps if you have a lively mind, of course!

  People watching

  This is one of the best – and fastest – ways of finding characters for your stories. Sit in a café, railway station, bus station, airport, ferry terminal, or anywhere where there are lots of people around, and make notes about who you see. You’ll see people carrying strange objects. You’ll see people in a mad rush, panicking, too busy to be polite, pushing others aside. You’ll have no trouble spotting great characters for your novel, and you’ll probably get some interesting plot ideas along the way too.

  It won’t take you long to compile an amazing cast of characters. And since this is such a quick and easy way of finding them, it’s worth spending a few more minutes concentrating on different aspects of their personalities.

  Characters have “character” – they aren’t just short or tall, fat or thin, young or old, beautiful or ugly. Look for the people who stand out; they make the best characters. Look at the way they walk, talk, argue, approach someone they know, approach someone they don’t know, greet someone they haven’t seen for a while, say goodbye to someone they’re fond of, and so on.

  Ask yourself questions, such as:

  What are they doing there?

  Where are they going?

  Who are they meeting?