Writing Magazine

A fantastic idea

Anyone who’s been to a reasonable number of writing events will have heard the immortal question at a Q&A – ‘where do you get your ideas from?’ For a lot of authors that’s not an easy answer – and sadly there’s not a secret website or a magic spell to cast that can provide them. If only it were that simple.

While it does get asked an awful lot, it is a valid question. Ideas are ultimately the stock-in-trade of the writer. If there’s no idea, then there’s no story, and nothing to write about. Some people have too many – and indeed there is such a thing – while some people just don’t have enough, or can struggle for a long time without one.

It’s a question I’ve often found floated to writers of fantasy fiction – which makes sense too. These are not tales grounded in the world around us, but incredible voyages into settings often born completely of the writer’s imagination. That’s no simple thing to

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from Writing Magazine

Writing Magazine3 min read
Get Published
In the 1970s and 80s horror fiction was huge, the genre dominated by bestselling titles by Stephen King and James Herbert, writes Gary Dalkin. Shelves were filled with books by Ramsey Campbell, Shaun Hutson, Brian Lumley, Mark Morris, Stephen Laws a
Writing Magazine1 min readComposition & Creative Writing
Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition 2024
Win a £600 first prize in the contest that will be judged by Paul Stephenson. Enter original, unpublished poems up to 50 lines in the 26th Ware Open Poetry Competition. The prizes are £600, £300 and £150. There is also a special Sonnet Prize of £150
Writing Magazine4 min read
What A ***!!!**!*
A strange thing happened last week. I was lost for words. Happily, it didn’t last long. The reason I was dumbfounded was that I came across a publisher who found a new way of being a chiselling shithead. Now, to be fair to traditional publishers who

Related Books & Audiobooks