Guest post – Witches, Spiders, and Schemes by Elizabeth Pantley

Witches, Spiders, and Schemes by Elizabeth Pantley

Where Do Book Ideas Grow?

I write books in two genres: parenting and mysteries. That means the world offers me endless ideas and inspiration. No matter where I am, book ideas grow. Every day brings ideas for characters, plots and real-life scenarios. 

Watching parents and children interact always provides insight, ideas, and stories for my parenting series. The fiction writer in me sees plot ideas, intriguing settings, and quirky character traits every day. 

Writing mysteries has changed the way I look at the world. It leads me to inspect what’s around me in a whole new way. In the past, I would read the paper and skim past certain articles. Who wants to read about a dead body found in the park? Well . . . mystery writers, that’s who! Now when I see that heading, I eagerly read to learn the who-done-it, the how-done-it, and the who-found-it! Mysteries are better if the storyline has some sense of possibility. It could really happen, so your story becomes more believable and more easily understood. Even in a magical community, if the reader finds the story possible, they can become more engrossed in solving the crime right along with the protagonist. So, the daily news stories I used to avoid become great research for the next scene or the next book.

Creating characters in fiction is the most fun I’ve had with writing. I’ll often use a person from my life experiences, a great movie, or a fascinating book, and plant the seeds of a character. Then, very quickly this person becomes real and begins to grow into a whole new being. As the story evolves, so does the character. Their personality and individual traits bloom on the page until they become very real. 

Settings for my books often have their roots in life and cinema, also. It’s easier to base a setting on a real place as a starting point. From there you can remodel the location to suit the series, the story and the characters. The setting for my Destiny Falls series originated in the islands of the Pacific Northwest. The gorgeous settings, the mysterious fog, and the interesting bays and inlets made for a great beginning to a magical world. 

Book ideas start in life and often take a flying leap off the board from there. It is fun to examine the starting point of an idea and compare it to the completed work. Often you can still see the origin there, but sometimes the book has carried the idea off to a whole new fictional world. 

Learn more about Elizabeth Pantley at https://www.nocrysolution.com/books/. Want more author news? If so, click here to read my Behind the Story interviews from your favorite authors.