Where did that idea come from?
By Mike Jastrzebski
This morning I realized that it was time for me to do another post. The problem was that I had no idea what to write about. Then it came to me, like many ideas do, out of the misty fiords of my mind.
As a writer I am often asked where my ideas come from. The idea for Key Lime Blues
came about while Mary and I were living on Rough Draft in Key West's Garrison Bight mooring field. I was living on a 36 foot islander sailboat in the mooring field in Key West. My protagonist, Wes Darling, lives on a 36-foot Islander sailboat in the mooring field in Key West. I met a lot of odd and unique characters in Key West. Wes meets a lot of odd and unique characters in Key West. A coincidence or miraculous insight? I'll let you be the judge of that.
As for The Storm Killer
, that was a little different. I had written several books that had not sold so I wanted to do something different. My criteria were that the book be a mystery/thriller, and a little different than other books I'd written. I always wanted to write a historical novel and the idea began to ferment up in that fiord. I liked the idea of including a historical figure in the book, hence the appearance of Ernest Hemingway. That meant I could include Key West, but would a mystery set entirely in 1935 Key West draw in readers? I wasn't too sure. Then I heard the song Orange Blossom Special and I realized that it was only a few days by train from New York to Key West and the book began to take shape.
Here's the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain's version of The Orange Blossom Special.
I've been approached on more than one occasion by acquaintances who claim to have this great idea for a book; they just need someone to write it for them. Of course we would split any profit from the sales, after all it was his idea. All I had to do is write the darn thing. I just smile and say, "You know, ideas just come to me. Sometimes in a dream, sometimes while I'm walking, sometimes even when I'm watching TV. No it's not the ideas that are a problem; it's putting the damn words down on paper I have trouble with.
How about all you writers out there? Is it harder to find an idea to write about, or finding the words to express that idea in a coherent fashion?
