Book Writing Help - 7 Tips to Finding Ideas For Your Book

Ready to start your novel but having a little trouble finding ideas for your story? Need a little book writing help? Here are some ideas to get you going.

1. Keep a writer's notebook with you at all times and write down any ideas that come to you. This is important because ideas can occur at any time. Don't forget to keep one by your bed because you will often think of a great idea just before falling asleep or when you wake up. If you don't jot these down they may be gone forever.

2. Jotting down notes while driving is a bad idea so carry a small voice recorder with you to record any ideas you have while in the car. You'll be very surprised how fast these ideas will add up and you will find some gems.

3. Listen to conversations around you. Go to a coffee house or cafe and sit at a table, sip your coffee, and pay attention to what people are saying. Bring your laptop along and write down things you hear. Lots of ideas have been born this way.

3. Browse through the bookstore or library and read the summaries of novels. Don't plagiarize, but use these for inspiration. Jot these down in your notebook.

4. Brainstorm with a friend or a group of friends, or you can do this solo. Just start writing down everything that comes to mind no matter how crazy, i.e. words, phrases, sentences. For example, start with a word, any word, even a color, and just write down everything that you can think of associated with that word.

5. As you are going about your daily activities, try to come up with stories for people you see. Give them a name and imagine what their life is like, where they are going, what problems they may have. This exercise is a great way to generate ideas.

6. Study the newspaper. You can use the paper for every story idea you will ever need. There are hundreds upon thousands of them every single day in every paper in every city. But don't forget to notate them in your notebook so you won't forget.

7. You have probably heard it said that "there is nothing new under the sun." This is true with novels. Don't try and find a plot that has never before been done because you will not be successful. The best help and advice for your book is to put your own twist on an old idea. Take any mundane situation you can think of and ask "what if," and then ask again and again. This is how novels happen.

No matter how you collect your ideas, just be sure you are not sitting and waiting for inspiration to strike like lightning. The more effort you put into finding ideas, the more ideas you will find. Just looking for book writing help as you are doing is a great first step.

Ready to get started on your novel? Have you tried book writing software?