"The greatest terror a child can have is that he is not loved, and rejection is the hell he fears. I think everyone in the world to a large or small extent has felt rejection, and with the crime, guilt-and there is the story of humankind. One child, refused the love he craves, kicks the cat and hides his secret guilt; and another steals so that money will make him loved; and the third conquers the wold-and always the guilt and revenge and more guilt."
-John Steinbeck
Most writers on book tours or in writers' workshops are asked where they get their ideas and stories. The paragraph above written by John Steinbeck holds many ideas and story ideas for novels and short stories. Certainly, Steinbeck made us of them in "East of Eden" and other things he wrote. One writer I know has a great deal of trouble coming up with story ideas and another does not. It all depends. I am one of the lucky ones in that I never have trouble coming up with plots. One friend said that Phillip Dick was never at a loss for plots but unfortunately he was always at a loss of salable plots and books. Now that he is gone and in no need for money, his stories and novels are very hot. The films based on his books are often classics like "The Blade Runner".
So where does the stories come from? I have no idea where others come from, but mine come from the daydreams, fantasies and dreams that I have. Where do they come from? Gee, I don't know. When I first discovered Sherlock Holmes in the old Basil Rathbone movies on television when my mother was gone in the afternoon, I looked up the real Sherlock Holmes in Arthur Conan Doyle in the library. I loved those short stories and made up more in my head when I read all of them but with a role in them for a person who acted and looked just like me. Then I dropped that person and just wanted to be more like Sherlock Holmes himself. I got a lot of murder mysteries from those daydreams. The hero became more and more like another character and less and less like Sherlock Holmes. Holmes became my own creation. I had dropped Dr. Watson. I did learn that when you write the story, you had to have another character the detective could talk to. I just changed who he talked to and discovered why all great detectives usually had partners. How else does the reader know what is happening?
To me, it is fun to play with emotions. Love is fun and many novelists have fun with that one. Guilt is another one that Steinbeck used very effectively as many others have through the years. All of the emotions are ripe for stories such as jealousy, greed, and such. Certainly Shakespeare made use of them very effectively. How to portray them on the page or the stage is something a writer or playwright is particularly gifted in doing. What is easy to me may not be so easy to another. I have a friend who is a pharmacist and he has no difficulty performing his duties while I think it is amazing he can even remember what family certain drug groups belong. I think anyone can learn to write well but to construct a good plot is something else.
In summary, some writers are outstanding while others are alright. Some write books that will remain in people's minds for the rest of their lives while others end up forgotten on a shelf. Some writers write difficult prose but compelling plots while others write wonderful books with weak plots. I don't think there is an answer on where the stories come from anymore than a computer program can generate good stories (God, I hope not.). Still, I think it is interesting to think about it.
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