[From the Archive] When Good Ideas Go Bad
Good ideas can sometimes go very, very bad. This is happening to me right now. There’s an anthology I wanted to submit to, had a great idea. Started to work on it, and it’s crashed and burned horribly.
First, I probably screwed up in setting it aside until closer to submission date instead of completing it when I first had the idea. That’s what several people did, and it was a good plan for them. My “reasoning” (i.e., excuse) at the time was that I had too many things on my “To Do” list. It happens.
Then, when I was reminded about the submission period, I went back to the idea – which is still a good idea for the anthology – until I tried to write it. It’s now on its third incarnation and won’t get past the first 100 -200 words or so. And I only have about 10 days to get it come together, or abandon it altogether.
Here’s the thing. It happens. Brilliant ideas can go south because a fantastic idea doesn’t always translate to a great story. No matter how much you might want it to. Ideas don’t always translate to stories period. Even if you have the whole plot planned out, outlined, what have you, the story might not come together. I might draw some criticism here, but I say if you give the idea a really good shot (or multiple shots) and it doesn’t come together, let it go. Don’t force it.
I contend you can tell when a story is forced. When the writer wrote it because they were committed and either didn’t like the theme/idea or had their attention really focused elsewhere. The forced story will come off that way, and if you’re established with an attentive fan base, they’ll know when you’re “phoning it in”. That’s not good for anyone. You don’t want to give your readers less than your best, even if that means abandoning an idea. It sucks, but in the case of Kenny Rogers’ The Gambler, “You gotta know when to hold ’em; know when to fold ’em.”