One of the questions I get asked regularly is, where do you get your ideas from? As trite as it might sound, the answer is everywhere and anywhere. If I take a look at the books in The Texan Quartet, they were inspired by very different things.
- The idea for What Goes on Tour came to me while watching music videos and seeing Marilyn Manson in his wonderful makeup. I wondered why some people have on-stage personas and before I knew it Adrian was born.
- All that Sparkles was inspired by a snippet of a dream I remembered, where I knew the couple had to keep their liaison secret from her father.
- While I was writing All that Sparkles, I was thinking about George’s story and trying to figure out who would suit him. Then I was writing a scene where one of Christian’s pro bono clients walked in and I knew instantly she was perfect for George in Under the Covers.
- It was a similar case for Into The Fire. I was writing the scene in Under the Covers where the girls go out to dinner. My fingers typed about the reclusive chef who owned the restaurant and I knew Piper would want to discover more about him.
I actually have a whole notebook full of ideas. Some are sparked by dreams, others by a documentary or something else I’ve seen on television or I’ll be inspired by lyrics in a song or something I’ve read. I also get ideas from locations or things I’ve done.
This picture was taken on a trip to New Zealand. My husband and I had hired a campervan and were touring around the north island. We stopped at this gorgeous caravan park. The creek encircled the park on three sides and everything was so green and peaceful. The colours of the hills changed as the sun set and the light faded.
It was such a beautiful setting and I know I have to use it in a book one day. It will become as much of a character as the hero and heroine. I have a vague idea of what the plot will be, but I’ll let it sit there and percolate until it’s time for me to write it.
So as you can see, ideas are all around if you know what to look for.
