How to find an idea for a plot: the Hollywood screenwriter answers

The hardest thing in any business is to start. Eric Bork, a Hollywood screenwriter and winner of television and film awards, believes that 60% of the success of a literary work depends on the original idea. In his book Where Fantastic Ideas Live and How to Capture the Best Ideas for a Screenplay or Novel, he tells aspiring writers how to find and implement a truly worthwhile idea. The life hacker publishes the chapter "Getting down to business" with the permission of the publishing house "MIF".

I understand that it is very difficult to come up with an idea that would meet all of our criteria. This is why it is so difficult for aspiring writers to break through and succeed, and why breakthroughs are so generously rewarded. It's not that the film and television industries are closed to outsiders. It's not about connections or dating. It's not about what is quoted on the market. It's not even about the dialogue, not about the description, not about the plot structure - at least not only about them. Yes, all of these factors play a role. But the most important thing for any author is the idea of a story worth writing. This is even more important than the creative process itself. And even authors who find scenes, dialogue, and plot structure easy are not always easy to find good ideas.

And yet you can't do without them.

Where do ideas come from?

The eternal question - where to get good ideas (and whether my ideas can be considered at least relatively suitable) - has been tormenting me for a long time. This is probably why I wrote this book. Over time, I realized that most of the ideas that seem to me (or others) to be a great start for a movie or TV series are actually missing a few key elements - and it's not always possible to redo them.

It just needs to be taken for granted. This happens to all authors. It is impossible to hit the bull's-eye over and over again. Any of us will easily remember the cult film, TV series or novel, which turned out to be one of the few creative successes of its creator (or even the only one). Do not expect that ideas will spill out of you and each will turn into a successful project. Most authors make mistakes more often than they guess. But we continue to work due to an internal need.

If we talk about the search for ideas and their source, we must not forget that this process also has a certain mysterious dimension, which, it seems, is not subject to the rational principle. You can't just take seven key elements According to the author, the idea behind the plot should be complex, recognizable, original, believable, fateful, exciting and meaningful. These criteria are discussed in more detail in the book "Where Fantastic Ideas Live". - Approx. ed. and "from scratch" come up with an idea that would contain all of them. Rather, we apply these criteria to ideas that we already have in order to assess their potential and give them the desired shape. But first, you need the criteria to be applied to something.

Most of the creative process is precisely the search for ideas (at least just ideas for the next scene, line, etc.). Ideas are needed at any stage.

In my experience, ideas come just when I manage to turn off the analytic mode. To do this, as a rule, you need to stop stressing and come into a more relaxed and inquisitive attitude: asking questions and listening to answers. Sometimes inspiration comes to me during a long walk, or while driving, or in general in the shower. Paradoxically, my main skill at work is being able to distract myself and let my thoughts flow freely.

Another way to get into creative mode is to brainstorm when you need to solve a specific problem or fill in a gap. I am asking a specific narrow question, the answer to which would help me get ahead in my work. If I immediately formulate the right question and dismiss myself (read: trust my instincts and the subconscious), the answers usually come naturally. If necessary, I begin to sketch out possible answers - without pausing to evaluate them - until ten or twenty options have accumulated. As a rule, something interesting looms by this point, unless I interfere with myself with a critical analysis.

Ideas for the plot

What if I have no idea what I would like to write about, but I know that I want to write at least something? In such cases, I listen to myself and try to notice what interests me. Reading other people's work and observing life, I notice stories that inspire and make me want to do something like this myself, as well as topics that I would like to explore. What excites me the most? What's exciting? What's annoying? Does it touch? Are you happy? I carefully monitor all my reactions.

I even have a special sign on my computer: in each column there are jumbled notes and sketches about what I could one day write about. One column is devoted to people: professions, everyday situations, types of potential heroes. In another column, we collected facts and topics related to the life of all mankind. The third column is about different areas and activities. The fourth is about things and places.

At first glance, many observations seem to be mere trifles, but it is impossible to guess in advance what the idea for a new plot will grow from. One fruitful technique is to imagine an extreme, extreme version of a situation that we often encounter in our daily life. (For example, an epic bachelor party like The Hangover in Vegas.) Or the most unexpected, funniest, brand new version of anything. Indeed, most often, a fascinating plot is based not on everyday routine, but on a much brighter, richer and tempting picture of life.

Another useful technique is to add seemingly completely different, even incompatible elements and see what happens. When looking for a topic for a new script, I sometimes set aside fifteen minutes a day and try to come up with five ideas during that time. Impossible, you say? With the right approach, it is quite possible. I take something from one column, combine it with something from the other, and try to find an idea.

Gradually, I move from top to bottom in each column, thinking about how I can combine the first selected element with the rest and where it will lead. "If you write a story about aliens and baseball, what would it be like?" And further: “What about aliens and genetic medicine? Maybe aliens and hippie activists? " There may be hundreds of positions on my list, to which I will assign "aliens" this way and that. Most combinations will fail.

But you would be surprised to know what original ideas this process generates from time to time. Two or three lines are enough - and now there is a reserve for the future.

The next day I can start with baseball and play with new combinations: baseball and medicine, baseball and hippies, etc. Each element of the plate can be paired with any other and see what happens.

You shouldn't spend a lot of time on such games - it's just an easy workout for the brain. I look at each pair for a few seconds and, if a possible plot problem comes to mind, I sketch out a rough logline. And then I move on until I complete the daily "norm".

If I do this exercise for only one month, at least only on weekdays, then the output is a hundred ideas. I review them from time to time. It is possible that none of the hundred will be useful to me. Or maybe it will come in handy. And it is possible that I will notice general themes that will lead me to a new thought.

These are probably the best tips I can give from my own experience.

Notice what you enjoy, what is interesting in life and in fictional stories. Write down observations.
Train yourself to generate ideas. Set aside time for this regularly (a little).
Develop some kind of brainstorming tool or system to make it easier to make associative connections between different elements of a potential story.
Do not correct, do not evaluate, do not try to come up with everything at once. Just assess the possibilities and jot down quick notes.
Decide on your genre preferences. Explore your favorite genres and make them part of the creative process. (But don't forget about other possibilities as well.)
Put aside urgent thoughts and questions and wait for the answer to come by itself (most often at the most unexpected moment). Treat your creativity like a game.
Switch regularly to activities that often come up with creative ideas, such as driving, walking, or cycling.
Last but not least, try to understand properly the seven components that make a design viable. Let you develop the reflex to apply these criteria to every idea that comes to mind.

Again, your goal is to debug the regular process of generating, recording, and further developing ideas. Don't jump on the first topic that sparks your interest. After all, now you know that the main task of the author is not so much to write as to decide what to write about: to choose the very “idea”.

Talent is not the main thing

In the world of literature and cinema, fierce competition reigns. Thousands of people want to make a living through creativity, but just a few succeed. Only those who are able to prove the commercial value of their projects are admitted to the club of professional authors. Therefore, many people think that here it is either given or not given: there are chosen ones - they are talented and therefore successful, but there are … all the rest.

I really liked the way Akiva Goldsman said this during the 2007-2008 writers' strike. At that time he was one of the first in his craft (winner of the Oscar for the script for the film A Beautiful Mind). Goldsman recalled that for many years in a row he was advised to quit - they say, nothing will come of it, he is not given a good writing. And what is the secret of his success? He never quit.

There is profound wisdom in this simple statement. I don't know if there is an innate talent. Some people learn the craft faster and easier than others. But in most cases, our first opuses (and even the first sketches for those scripts that we write, gaining experience) are by no means good in the sense that few people want to read them and work with them seriously.

From my point of view, the notorious talent (that is, the quality that allows the author to succeed) is a fusion of diligence and practice, and not an innate ability.

Each of us, when working on each new project, goes a long way of development. First, we write something in which, with all the desire, you will not discern traces of talent (the public certainly will not find this opus exciting, believable, or fresh). In the end, through trial and error, we get a job that many are ready to recognize as talented.

When I was working on the first official order - a script for one of the episodes of the series "From Earth to the Moon" - my curators, frankly, were not happy with the first versions that I showed them. They did not see anything particularly talented there (although, obviously, I had some abilities, since I was entrusted with this job). Over and over again, the script was returned to me with criticisms, and I tried again and again to accommodate them.

Finally, I passed the version, in which, according to my estimates, less than ten percent was redone compared to the previous one (which one it was in a row, I no longer remember). But the quantity, apparently, turned into quality, and the new scenario was approved. And suddenly I was recognized, if not talented, then quite suitable for work on this project. My script was suddenly good and I was asked to edit scripts for other episodes. Does this mean that I suddenly had a talent that was not there before? Unlikely.

The transition from the self-feeling “I have no talent” to the self-feeling “I have talent” is ensured not due to innate qualities or abilities, but due to a special attitude to work and a willingness to constantly, persistently polish the most important writing skill - the ability to convey one's thought to others people and influence their emotions.

Each of us can learn this - there would be patience and determination. I advise you to guess less whether you have the ability or not. Forget this question. You have everything.

Success is achieved not by the one to whom the talent is given, but by the one who knows what to do with it.

A book about where fantastic plot ideas live

Eric Bork is the recipient of two Emmy Awards and two Golden Globes for scripting several episodes of the series From Earth to the Moon and Brothers in Arms. He has worked with NBC, Fox, Universal Pictures, HBO, Warner Bros., Sony Pictures, 20th Century Fox, and has collaborated with Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg and Jerry Bruckheimer. His book Where Fantastic Ideas Live and How to Catch the Best of Them for a Screenplay or a Novel uses classic cinematic examples to explain how to take the very first and yet most difficult and important step in writing a screenplay - coming up with an idea. Bork identifies the problems that can form the basis of the future plot, and suggests how to use them correctly.