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There's a Story in There Somewhere.

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I posted this on my blog recently, but thought it might be useful here, so I'm reposting it. Hope people find it helpful. smile This is less about how to write per se, and more about how to get the gears turning when you don't know what to write *about*. How does it pertain to dirty stories in particular? Trust me...an erotic photo or two works perfectly for this...

This is another "how I do things" post. Specifically, how to get the wheels turning when I can't think of a story, or I just need a little inspiration.

(Also: I am not taking credit for any of these photos. They're images I've collected over the years, and unless marked otherwise, I don't have the names of the photographers. I will gladly remove or credit upon request.)

I've mentioned before that I often use images of people as a starting point for my characters. In fact, I really can't write a story without having a photo of a person to represent each major character; just one of my quirks, I guess. But it isn't just people. Pretty much any picture has the potential to spark a story. Sometimes, I'll see an image, and I think, "There's a story in there somewhere." It's the writer's job to find that story.

Sometimes it's a setting.



Play with that in your mind. Put a couple of characters in that photo, and let the wheels turn. Why are they there? What dangers do they face? How will they get out? Do they want to get out?

Just look at this image (by Jerry Reynolds Photography):



The architecture. The surrounding landscape. The atmosphere. Oh yeah, there's a story there.

And of course, sometimes pictures of people are good for this too. Look at a picture of one or two people, and ask yourself what's going on.



In this still from Walk The Line, anyone who's seen the movie knows what's going on and why, but put that aside for a minute and look at the picture outside of its context. Ignore the movie and the names (even though it's Joaquin Phoenix, who is liquid-freaking-distraction), and just look at the man and woman and the tension between them. He's moving in for a kiss, she's reluctant. Why? What led them up to this point? Is she hesitating because she really isn't interested in him, or is there something else holding her back?

Another example is this still from Women Talking Dirty...



Now, it's not like I need an excuse to stare at a picture of James Purefoy (have I mentioned how much I love my job?), but this is as good a reason as any. Why is he at the door? Whose apartment/office/lair/bedroom/recording studio is it? Why does he have that particular expression? Does he want to be there? Does he have to be there? Is this the last place in the universe he should be?

In a way, it's kind of like asking yourself why Mona Lisa is smiling.



It's anyone's guess, but for the writer, it doesn't matter why she's really smiling. Forget the facts. Forget the speculation. Look at the picture and ask yourself why. Maybe da Vinci cracked a joke at an opportune moment. Maybe his fly is open and she's trying not to laugh. What's going through her mind? Where was she before she sat for the painting, and where will she go afterward? Does she want to sit for this painting? Are she and da Vinci shooting the breeze while he paints? Answer those questions. Run with those answers. There's your story.

But it can be even more basic than settings and people. Quite frankly, I find that the less the picture shows, the better. After all, the less I know, the more I get to make up.



At first glance, it's just a picture of some red wine spilled on the carpet. Oooooh, exciting. But think about it for a minute. Then another minute. Whose hand was it in before it spilled? Did the cat bump it off the coffee table, or did someone drop it upon receiving some unexpected news? Was it knocked over in a moment or passion, or a moment of anger? It's just a glass of wine, but somehow, it ended up on the carpet.

Basically, it boils down to looking at an image of anyone, anything, or anywhere, and seeing where your mind takes you. Find the story no one else sees in that image. Don't just look at the picture and see the pretty face or the stunning view...look for the dots, and look for ways to connect them.

And speaking of wine and somehow ending up somewhere, I think we can all agree...



...there's a story in there somewhere.
Lori
L. A. Witt (gay male erotic romance)
Lauren Gallagher (heterosexual erotic romance)
Twitter: GallagherWitt
My Website * My Blog * Marginally Unhinged (my webcomic)

"Service with a Smirk, that's you." - Morgan Hawke
Ooooooh! GOOD Article!
-- I use pictures for inspiration myself. Right here on LUSH there's a huge picture gallery with tons of men and women in interesting situations that simply beg for stories.
Morgan Hawke
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Purveyor of fine Smut.
Morgan Hawke's DarkErotica ~ My Website
DarkErotica Blog ~ My Writers' blog

"If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough."
Albert Einstein
Quote by GallagherWitt
I've mentioned before that I often use images of people as a starting point for my characters. In fact, I really can't write a story without having a photo of a person to represent each major character; just one of my quirks, I guess.


Oh, it's not just you. I tend to form a strong image in my head and then go out and find images that fit that image. I have whole folders full of images for my characters.

I have spent an embarrassing amount of time looking at celeb photos on http://www.listal.com/actors
Quote by MorganHawke
Ooooooh! GOOD Article!
-- I use pictures for inspiration myself. Right here on LUSH there's a huge picture gallery with tons of men and women in interesting situations that simply beg for stories.


Thanks!! And yeah, galleries like that are a freaking gold mine for stories. I've been gathering pictures for so long, I have about 12,000 pics on my computer (all obsessively sorted so I can find almost anything on a moment's notice). There's ALWAYS a story in there somewhere.
Lori
L. A. Witt (gay male erotic romance)
Lauren Gallagher (heterosexual erotic romance)
Twitter: GallagherWitt
My Website * My Blog * Marginally Unhinged (my webcomic)

"Service with a Smirk, that's you." - Morgan Hawke
Quote by Mistress_of_words
Quote by GallagherWitt
I've mentioned before that I often use images of people as a starting point for my characters. In fact, I really can't write a story without having a photo of a person to represent each major character; just one of my quirks, I guess.


Oh, it's not just you. I tend to form a strong image in my head and then go out and find images that fit that image. I have whole folders full of images for my characters.

I have spent an embarrassing amount of time looking at celeb photos on http://www.listal.com/actors


Oh, I've been there too. Plenty of times. I mean, I have my celeb crushes anyway, but my "celebrities" folder on my computer is appallingly huge. LOL Between that and the stuff I find on Tumblr, I have looooooads of potential characters and situations.
Lori
L. A. Witt (gay male erotic romance)
Lauren Gallagher (heterosexual erotic romance)
Twitter: GallagherWitt
My Website * My Blog * Marginally Unhinged (my webcomic)

"Service with a Smirk, that's you." - Morgan Hawke
I start with a picture. Then I write the story with some changed elements. So then I have to draw a new picture. Which prompts a new story......
Don't let them haters get you down. You are you. And YOU are beautiful!

Latest: My Oddesy 2 - Liam
They say A picture is worth A thousand words, so you may be on to something. I tend to go with the Paul Simon theory. ( I know they'd never match my sweet little imagination, and every thing looks worse in black & white)
Do you think the story is more about what you see in the pictures, i.e. what's happening, or what you imagine the people are feeling within the scene? Or what's the right balance with those aspects? That's something I can't figure out.
I base my stories on true events, detail is sometimes changed to suit the story but the basics are true.
Quote by Rally
Do you think the story is more about what you see in the pictures, i.e. what's happening, or what you imagine the people are feeling within the scene? Or what's the right balance with those aspects? That's something I can't figure out.


It's surprisingly difficult to describe where story ideas come from. They seem to just appear. I have used photos on-line as an inspiration for some characters, but they are usually quite different from from the people in the pictures - assuming there is a description at all. I have used people I actually know, but often they are secondary characters. Some version of myself may be the narrator, but he's often not that close to the real me - he's much more assertive. (How much of Charles Bukowski is in Henry Chinaski?)

The settings are usually quite prosaic - offices, schools, houses in the New York Tri-State area, sometimes going back several decades. Once it a while it will just be some generic place in modern America. I did have one set on another planet in the future. It's not on this site because it was based on an old Twilight Zone episode, and fan fiction doesn't fly on this site at all.
Duplicate post deleted. The site was kind of glitchy that evening.