Suds, Studs, and Stories: Where Authors Get Their Ideas

It came to me in the shower between shampooing and conditioning.

Some authors have stories of ideas coming to them on a subway or while taking a walk in the beautiful wilderness. There are stories of inspiration in people and real life events.

For me, though, Without You floated to me amidst the shower’s steam as I was thinking about life, love, and what it all meant.

I had just signed my contract for my first novel, Voice of Innocence. I felt accomplished, nervous, anxious, and thrilled at the same time. The big “What if I got a book published?” was answered. The what if had become more of a “Now what?”

As I was lathering my hair (Paul Mitchell, by the way), I started thinking about doing the unthinkable: writing another book. I now had proven to myself I could do it. I could write an entire novel. More than that, I could write something others might want to read. So, I thought, if I were to write another novel, what would it be about?

I thought of Jenna’s character first, probably because she is the most like me. Rational and a go-getter, she tries to think with her head over her heart. She plans her life out, strives toward self-improvement, and wants to do everything right. Risk taking isn’t in her vocabulary. And of course, I knew she would own a mastiff named Henry (obviously, right?).

I had been wanting to write about marriage for a long time. Not marriage as an end result like it is portrayed in so many novels, but real marriage. Marriage that is sometimes frustrating and infuriating. Marriage full of both passion and anger, love and frustration. Because real marriage isn’t picture perfect. It is, quite frankly, sometimes a mess. From this idea game Jenna, a woman married to a hunky, seemingly perfect husband. Everything’s going well for them, except for one little problem—she’s feeling bored in her marriage, drowned by the monotony of everyday living.

I also got to thinking, though, that as much as being married is a struggle, the single life isn’t a picnic, either. I’ve seen friends worry about being forever alone, and that’s really where the idea for Violet came from. I pictured a quirky redhead who was outgoing, spunky, and charismatic—yet she couldn’t figure out love.

As different as the two women are, I felt like they had common ground in their struggles and what they wanted out of life. From there came the plotline, the details, and the story that I’m getting ready to introduce to you in a few short weeks.

By the time I had worked out the characters that first day, my skin was beginning to prune. But I didn’t care. Without You was taking shape in my mind, and I couldn’t wait to start weaving the tale.

I knew I would write again, knew I wouldn’t be a proverbial “one hit wonder.” The girl who swore she would just be happy if one book got published in her lifetime decided to try again, see where this new concept would go.

And now I’m less than a month away from holding Without You in my hands. The idea that started as a mental “what if” game in the shower has become reality. I can’t wait to share these characters with you, characters who really sprung from a place of truth, a place of reality, and a place with some shampoo bubbles.

Lindsay Detwiler, Without You and Voice of Innocence

Visit me on Facebook