Creating Stories from Nothing
Death of the Dandelion
So this morning I went out for a walk with my beautiful Husky, Lily. She was very excited, but not as excited as I was when I saw the pillowy head of a dandelion, full of seeds ready to be swept away across the lawns of all my neighbors (and maybe beyond).
Now, as to why I was excited. In the spring of 2025, I realized that I didn’t see as many dandelions as I was used to seeing, hardly any. What happened to all the pretty yellow dandies? I asked myself. Turns out, things like herbicides, runoff, and weather can affect how well they come up.
So, knowing that dandelions we’re doomed (a bit dramatic, why not) I plucked the head of seeds, and got to work planting them. I treated them as if they were the last dandelion seeds on earth, and it made me think, What if? What if dandelions went extinct?
Now there’s a good idea for a novel. One man realizes dandelions are going extinct, so he spends his days trying to keep them alive. Everything’s going well till PLOT TWIST his greenhouse burns down. Maybe it was done by Big Herbicide because dandelions were the only plant to resist their products, or because the plants have hidden potential, or maybe it’s a seeping virus or fungi that starts with dandelions but latches onto others!
A lot of possibilities, but also just the tip of an idea that could turn into a story. But, that’s kinda the point. You can find stories everywhere, they aren’t difficult to make up, you just have to make the time. I’ll do it right now, as I sit in this library. Across from me is the newly built Makerspace. What happens if the machines inside become sentient? Maybe the laser cutter turns on when it’s not supposed to and cuts off someones hand! Maybe that’s just the beginning, and I turn to look out the window to my left and see cars start up by themselves and start ramming the library trying to get me! See, that was easy (I say as I basically rip off Stephen King’s Trucks. Was I the only one that liked that movie? Maximum Overdrive. Sorry, rambling.)
Many people, myself included for a time, will wait for the muse to strike them. Well, friend, I’m here to tell you that you need to become your own muse. Intention is everything, and if your brain isn’t setting that intention to come up with story ideas, then there’s a good chance you won’t come up with any. The only exception I’ve found is being bored. Being bored seems to make my mind race with all kinds of ideas, then I pluck the ones I like from the soup floating above my head. Although I do concede that everyone’s different, and what works for me may not work for them.
This didn’t finish my novel, didn’t make me good, but it did make me better.