I've been writing for a long time now and while writing I have been able to pick up many skills . By learning I've been able to improve the process of how I come up with my ideas. I'm hoping that I can give you insight into my process of how I create my ideas so that you can create ideas that can captivate your readers and ideas that you also enjoy writing.
When it comes to coming up with ideas the environment that you are in is very important and taking in a lot of other media can help you think of concepts from those mediums. This can help you think of how you can put a unique spin on those ideas. I always find that going to different locations and watching things that I don't usually watch help me come up with new ideas.
I recommend that when you are coming up with an idea that has been done by other people that you think about how you could put your own spin on the idea because how you write that idea is how you are going to make it unique to yourself because no idea is original it's how you take that idea make your own. If you have no idea what your plot is I would recommend working on your character and then building the plot around your character.
For my story's a backbone I use is The Hero's Journey since it helps me plan my story out and it makes it seem more cohesive. Mapping your story into points can help you know how you can get from point to point and it helps you understand how you could improve your story.
This is a diagram about The Hero's Journey. It can help the audience connect to your character. It gives a sense of familiarity to your audience when watching your film or reading your story since a lot of writers use this theory for their stories. Before you use The Hero's Journey you need to think about how your protagonist is going to grow through your story. Knowing how your character grows is a very important part to The Hero's Journey.
In conclusion this is how I plan my ideas. By using The Hero's Journey it can help you connect your story beats together and it can help a writer through or even prevent writers block. I hope this gives you all an incite into how I plan my stories. Maybe even how you can use it to plan or improve your story.
References
Wikipedia.Illustration of the hero's journey [Online]. [19/08/2020]. Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero%27s_journey
(2018). Hero's Journey 101: Definition and Step-by-Step Guide (With Checklist!) [online]. reedsyblog. [Date viewed]. Available from: https://blog.reedsy.com/heros-journey/