I finally filled a notebook with 100 story ideas and it feels strange

I started keeping a small black notebook in my bag about eight months ago, just to jot down quick prompts when they hit me. I never really counted them, but this morning I flipped through and realized I had exactly one hundred little ideas written down. Some are just a line, like 'a librarian who can smell lies,' and others are a bit longer, like a full scene about someone finding a door in their attic that wasn't there yesterday. Hitting that round number made me stop. It's not that I wrote a hundred stories, it's that I have a hundred seeds and now I don't know what to plant first. It feels more overwhelming than exciting, like I've been collecting shells but never built the sandcastle. Has anyone else hit a big prompt count and felt stuck on what to actually start writing?

3 comments

3 Comments

angelapalmer3mo ago

Pick one and start, or you never will.

stellac971mo ago

Pick one and start" is the way to go, trust me. I've been stuck trying to decide between two options before and ended up getting nothing done for weeks. Just grab the first one that feels right and adjust later if you have to.

ross.kelly3mo ago

Actually, sometimes you need to pick two.