Into the Fire

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Passionate: right or wrong. Writes love stories with a passion. Raw Romantic Redemptive

What if . . . ?

“What if?” is a question I’ve trained myself not to ask even though it’s the source question for many a writer’s novel beginnings. Used to put scenarios together and added to other stirring questions, the “what if” inquiry gets creative minds to thinking. Not so with mine.

 

“What if” leads to fearful places in my life. I can always imagine the worst-case scenario without any prompting from questions such as this. I can see tragedies in motion picture clarity without even trying. Why in the state of this world would I even want to ask “What if” for me or for a made up character who is just short of being alive to me?

 

And I know this “What if” question lends itself to the “conflict, conflict, conflict” factor of writing. How can I make it even worse for my character? Well, I’m not sold on this means of creating, and I think with certain genres conflict can be unreasonable and overloaded.

 

My stories come to me via characters that literally come to life in an instant. My ninth novel which is on hold at the present time claimed its existence from an old song by The Marshall Tucker Band which I hadn’t listened to in years. One day I decided to find it on YouTube for who knows why. I decided I had to create the kind of guy who could live those lyrics. I didn’t ask “What if?” It’s not my way.

 

I’m curious now. Do you use the question “What if . . . ?” to further your creative efforts in a story?

 

God, you know it’s a question I can’t ask. One I try very hard to avoid. Thank you for looking out for me and helping me to learn more trust. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

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6 responses to “What if . . . ?”

  1. Mark H. Avatar
    Mark H.

    Absolutely I use that question! I need a good plot hook to get me fired up.

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  2. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    Yes, I can see that for you, Mark. Sometimes it comes down to action/plot vs. character-driven stories. Yet many character-driven novel writers use this question too.

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  3. A. J. Walker Avatar
    A. J. Walker

    Yes and no.
    My current WIP started as a “What if…?” but the original idea came from a song that I’ll share with my prayed for fans at some point when I get my site up and running.
    But the rest of my story ideas are actually somewhat character driven with the plot usually arising organically.
    I’ll only fall back on “What if?” if I get stuck but even then it feels kinda “gimmicky” to me.
    My writing approach is actually closer to yours: I get the idea (MC and the story) all at once. Then I may “What if?” supporting characters and sub plots if need be.

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  4. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    A merging of both methods makes sense, A. J.
    My ninth novel, on hold for the time being, is based on a song. Very cool that you’ve got a novel based on a song.
    My second novel’s title came from the chorus Famous One, and I included the lyrics to that chorus on the last page. Had to pay for that right but not much.

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  5. A. J. Walker Avatar
    A. J. Walker

    The song I chose won’t be quoted but it was the inspiration that got me thinking of the whole story.
    And it was actually a “What if?” triggered by the song. In my BC days, I really used to like the song but it proved to be a really good nugget to start what I hope will become a great series.

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  6. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    The song that inspired my ninth novel also came from a song in my BC days. Not days I’m proud of, and the protagonist is at that point in his life where he’s starting to consider “regret”.
    I love learning the background to people’s writing.

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