The Perks of a Dream

I get most of my story ideas from dreams or songs. I have vivid dreams and unfortunately, nightmares. Thank goodness I don't have many of those. My last manuscript was based entirely on a dream. Even the hero's name was in my dream. I just had to fill in the details and add some romance.

The story I'm working on now, Life After, came from a dream and a song. I dreamed one night that I was part of a race of evolved people living away from the rest of the world in the mountains. Weird huh? But I woke up thinking, "There's a story in there somewhere." After writing it down, I put it away.

One day while cleaning the kitchen, I heard Beyonce singing "Church Bells." It's a remake of an Etta James song about a woman who watches the man she loves marry someone else. I don't know why, but I felt like it belonged in Life After.

I've got several stories started and set aside on my laptop. Every last one of them has been inspired by a dream or a song. I think psychiatrists say dreams are a way to subconsciously work out issues. Well color me happy, my issues help me do something I love. No matter how strange my dreams or nightmares may be, there's usually a story in there somewhere.

Comments

  1. I see one thing wrong with your dream! The romance wasn't part of it. LOL Congrats on turning a dream into a dream! A finished mss.

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  2. Shawn!
    Terry Spear came by our blog! How cool is that???
    I like songs for inspiration, too.

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  3. Hey - that's pretty cool. I've never turned a dream into a book, but now I'm going to try. Though, last night I dreamt I got in a car wreck--the governor of our state smashed into me. Not sure what that means. :)

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  4. I love your story! My answer is yes, I dream books all the time. Two are published so far - Captured - an SFR - and My Everything, a romance/suspense. These are my two most popular books with readers. Interesting.

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  5. Yeah Terry the romance part would have been nice.

    Hey there D'Ann isn't it great? Thanks for stopping by.

    Rebecca, You can turn that inot a book too! You never know...

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  6. hey there Julia, looks like we have something in common. Only I'm not published. Yet :)

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  7. Maybe we need our dreams to hear our muse. Perhaps the bustle and noise of "real life" drowns out their voices?

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  8. Maeve,
    Interesting concept. You could be on to something.

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  9. I still have 2 pages I scribbled down of a complete story when I woke up from a dream at age 19. Maybe, just maybe I'll do something with them!

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  10. Sure you should, Christi. You could have real gem on your hands.

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  11. I'm a big believer in dreams -- have started a couple of different stories from dreams. I've never based a book on a song, but I do make WIP playlists filled with songs that I think fit the mood of the book...but that is an interesting take, too.

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  12. Most of the time a song gives me a scene or idea,but not a whole story.

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