By Donna L.H. Smith
Art Linkletter used to
say, “Kids say the darn-dest things.” A few years ago, when I decided to write
a novel, I asked myself, “What on earth could I write a novel about?”
Within a very short
time, a confounding idea popped into my head, only a phrase actually. “Gunfight
at Hyde Park.” I knew it was something from an obscure history lesson from my
hometown in Kansas, something I learned about in fifth grade. I had to Google it
to re-learn the details.
Honestly, I hadn’t
thought about that history lesson in probably fifty years. I remembered nothing
about it, except that phrase. How in the world can I work in a story, to
include the beginning of a series of gunfights over a ten–day period that
killed and wounded more people than at the OK Corral––for the climax?
Two guys named Billy
Bailey and Mike McCloskey started the whole mess. Ten days later, a young,
sickly fellow by the name of James Riley was the last person to be involved. He
was on McCloskey’s side. He killed someone, someone on Bailey’s side, and then
disappeared from the face of the earth. Nothing was ever heard about him again.
I began to weave a story
about a spoiled, immature rich girl from Missouri coming to a newly
established, wild Kansas railroad town to tutor the children of Santa Fe
Railroad executives. And since I love romantic triangles, she met two very
different men, eventually falling for one who would get in the way of a stray
bullet from the beginnings of the gunfights. Throw in a contentious town
political election, and let the gunfights begin.
For most of those, I
read, there were two reasons a young woman launched out on her own, and she was
forced to: 1) her father died, 2) her father was a jerk, and she had to escape
a horrible arranged marriage. I wanted her circumstances to be different. I’ve
probably read 150 historical romances in the last three years. Therefore, her
loving father “requires” her to work for a year before marriage, to teach her fiscal
responsibility and hopefully, develop some maturity.
Many other story ideas
come to mind. How can I possibly write them all? They come to me in all kinds
of ways. I’ll be watching a movie or something on television, and I’ll think,
“Hmmm. That idea might have possibilities if I change this or that.” Or “I’ve
not seen anything quite like that before. I like it. How could I use or change
that and still be intriguing?”
Those little light bulb
moments where we think “Aha!” is something we should pay attention to. We never
know whether our next idea might just make a best seller.
Where do your ideas come
from? What sorts of unusual scenarios come to your mind?
__________________________________________________________________
Donna L.H. Smith is a
Kansas prairie girl transplanted to Lancaster County, PA, writing on and off
for forty years, including broadcast journalism, newspapers and magazines,
marketing and public relations. She writes historical romance and love stories
and serves as the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) Pennsylvania
State Chapter President and Area Coordinator. Her novel, Meghan’s Choice was a semi-finalist in Operation 1st Novel
2015, and placed in two categories of the 2015 Blue Ridge Advanced Novelist
Retreat. She speaks at writers’ conference workshops, and leads women’s
retreats. Her website is http://donnalhsmith.com where she blogs
about writing and other things. She’s also involved in Almost an Author as a
monthly contributor with The Writer’s PenCase. She can be found on Facebook: and her author page, Twitter, and LinkedIN.
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