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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/7930
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

> But coming up with the idea in the first place was just a happy accident.

You are far from alone. Every time I've sat down and said to myself "Okay, think of an idea for a new story," I inevitably sit there for an hour then give up with a blank page. People (or at least I) just don't work that way.

So what I've done is find a way to make coming up with ideas routine. I've found that by decoupling the "think of an idea" from "and write a story about it", both parts become easier. When there is no pressure for your idea to be anything but a brief what-if, you allow yourself to be much more creative.

I do this by setting myself a goal of roughly 3-4 ideas per week. I will sit down, open up a blank document and a few specific websites. I'll open up Google News and Reddit Random and maybe a few other things, and just write down single words that jump off the page at me, with no particular goal in mind. When I get 5-10 words, I'll open up Flicker Explore and look for 3-5 pictures that grab me. Without fail, every single time, when I smash the words against the pictures, I'll get a small what-if nugget of an idea that falls out. I write 250-500 words on the subject, then file it away in a big directory with all the others, then promptly forget about it.

When the day comes that I say to myself I'd like to write a new story, I don't have to stare out the window anymore hoping for inspiration. Instead, I open up the directory that is chock full of dozens/hundreds of ideas I've _already had_ (this is the important part!) and pick one, or two, or a handful. On their own maybe they aren't very good, but with time, a fresh perspective, and in aggregate, I always find something to inspire a new, full, story.

Hope that helps! Just remember that you aren't lacking for ideas, you're just looking for them at the wrong time & place.

Original score: 7