“I’m bored” is usually a complaint but, for writers, this can be a great tool.
When you allow yourself to stop and “be bored” you mind starts to wonder, new ideas form, you can daydream, invent, and cook up interesting character ideas.
One part of the day I look forward to is my own private story time. As I get into bed, and lay there waiting for sleep to happen, I make stuff up and tell myself a story. Usually it is more world building and character exploration than any solid narrative. A scene here, an encounter idea there, and so forth.
The pay off comes much later.
For example, today I realised it had been a few days since I did any creative writing. I opened a new document and set out to write a short story. Without any ideas whatsoever.
One of my big idea characters is a wizard with lots of Doctor Who inspiration and a good does of “wouldn’t it be cool if…”.
Before I knew it I had written, “I met a wizard in the park the other day.” And behold a story was born.
I knew what the wizard looked and dressed like because I’ve spent months on and off thinking about him. The first person perspective gave me another character who quickly acquired a dog, a sister and a deceased parent.
Three pages later and I have a story I am proud of with an (implied) twist, a possitive moral, and a hopeful world view. There is also a reference only my sister will understand. That’s in there just for her enjoyment.
My point is this – allow yourself to be bored once in a while. You never know when you might need to draw on your daydreams to bring an interesting character to a story.
