What if Your Characters Came to Life?
Photo courtesy of IMDB
I absolutely love the movie “Ruby Sparks.” Anyone who writes should watch this movie. I so identify with the main character, Calvin. Sometimes he’s wallowing in despair, thinking that every idea he comes up with is complete junk.
Other times, he’s racing up his typewriter, fingers flying over the keys so he can capture the scene in his head. There are SO many times when I was like, “Ahh! I know exactly what the feels like.”
Anyway, “Ruby Sparks” is all about this frustrated writer who starts writing about his dream girl, Ruby. He’s a bit freaked out to discover that he’s falling in love with this character.
“I can’t fall in love with her, she isn’t real.”
Well one day, Ruby shows up. And is very, very real.
What a WONDERFUL concept! Ahh! I love ideas like these. All great stories can be reduced to fantastic what if questions. Even Stephen King says so in his book, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft..
(In fact, I was a bit miffed when I read that in his book. I thought I was the person who came up with the “what if” idea. Am now torn between being flattered that the talented Stephen King and I think alike, and being pissed off that he ripped off my idea decades ago).
I dare you to try it! Just think of your favorite books (or movies, whatever) and reduce them to a single “what if” question.
Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella: What if you bumped your head, and when you came to, you woke up to a completely new life with the body you’e always wanted, a rich millionaire husband, a fantastic job, and no memory of how you got there? What if your new dream life wasn’t what it seemed?
The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom: What if you felt like your life had been a total waste, and when you died, five people in heaven explain your life really was important?
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon: What if you were a nurse from the 1940s and were transported back in time to Scotland, 1743? What if your modern medical knowledge made people think you were a witch, and were forced to marry a stranger to be protected?
Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James: What if you were into BDSM and fell in love with someone who wasn’t? (Say what you may about FSOG, but the fact remains that this is an intriguing “what if” question).
So here’s what I want to you to do:
1) Watch Ruby Sparks (it is so so SO good). It was on NetFlix, last time I checked.
2) Think about your favorite story. What “what if” question inspired it?
3) Do you have any of your own “what if” questions? Anything that would make a great story? Well what are you waiting for! Go on and write that book!
Happy writing
– Chelsey
