Coming up with an idea to the my novel
I’m trying to write a novel, but my problem isn’t really with writing itself, it’s with building the ideas around it.
I know it’s normal for core ideas to change a lot during the process, and that the final version will probably go through many drafts. That part doesn’t bother me.
What I struggle with is creating the supporting ideas and the “structural pillars” of the story. Every day I spend around 30 minutes just thinking and mentally exhausting myself trying to build the foundation of the novel before actually writing it.
A lot of people say: “Just start writing with whatever you have.”
I tried that more than once, but it genuinely doesn’t work for me at all. When I write without having those supporting pillars first, the writing stops sounding like me. It doesn’t serve the meaning or atmosphere I’m trying to create, and it feels empty and unsatisfying.
I also don’t feel it’s logical for me personally to write a story without having enough structure to keep me going in the first place.
Maybe this approach works for people with very high spontaneous creativity — people who can naturally generate ideas while writing. But I think I’m different. I’m good at expressing feelings and wording things in a way that communicates what I mean, but I struggle with inventing creative supporting ideas that actually serve the message or emotional meaning I want the story to convey.
Does anyone else write like this?