People often ask writers how they get their ideas. I’ve read and listened to many author interviews, and most say that a character or place comes to them first, and they create the story from there. That’s never been the case for me. I’ve always needed to choose the structure first; that’s what inspires me, and then I brainstorm until I find a topic and/or characters that fit the structure.

For my novel Waist and work-in-progress Blizzard, I started with the desire to write historical fiction based on real events from multiple perspectives. Then I chose an event to write around, and then created characters based on my research about society during that time period. The process was organic, but it didn’t come with a jolt of inspiration. Crafting the idea took work.

For my latest nonfiction project, I began with the desire to blog a book after reading Nina Amir’s How To Blog A Book, which I picked up at my favorite local bookstore on a whim in mid-December. I knew I didn’t want to blog a novel because fiction is so changeable from draft to draft, but I felt my experience blogging here and writing articles for other publications had given me the skills and confidence I need for a blogged nonfiction book. The next step was deciding what I wanted to write about. It needed to be:

1. A topic that could keep my attention for several months or even years
2. Something that could be researched
3. A unique take on that research
4. Something that would be of interest to publishers
5. A topic I would be proud to have associated with my work.

I thought about all the nonfiction books/blogs that I love and tried to find a common element. I wrote words on sticky notes and put them on a whiteboard, trying to find connections:

I did that process several times, with post-its but also with paper and pen. When I had it narrowed down a little more, I switched to mind-mapping with my potential topic idea in the center. I started looking for available domain names; I didn’t want to choose a title and be unable to get the website to fit. I found one that resonated, and that title became the center circle in my mind-map. I did several whiteboard brainstorm sessions during breaks at school, where my whiteboard is much bigger (though covered in a music staff).

I started a Scrivener file and began creating tabs whenever I thought of them: post topic ideas, sentence fragments to introduce the topic, places to research. I googled my topic and found several websites that spoke to my topic but not with the exact angle I’m planning (a good sign). I uploaded articles and PDF files of my brainstorming sessions into the file. I bought the domain name. I set up a professional web hosting service that bundled the new website with Words From The Sowul. (Have you noticed that this website is loading faster? Pro level, baby!)

My next step is to create the website with the help of a designer. While that’s going on, I’ll start writing blog posts. I’ll be writing them in Scrivener and then copying them into WordPress. Even though I really like writing in the blog itself, I need to keep the posts in Scrivener if I want to compile them later into a book format.

I’m so excited. I’m so ready for this. And I’d be happy to share more of my process with anyone else who has the seed of a book idea. All you need is that seed; you feed it and nurture it until it begins to take shape.

In other news, check out my latest Be Well, Write Well post for DIY MFA! It’s called “7 Ways to Re-Kindle Your Passion For Writing.” It will help you keep the fires going for any art, hobby or relationship while in the midst of winter.