Write What you Drive

Driving is the perfect time to record ideas for books because so much happens. You're seeing not only what you are doing, and what is happening to you, you also see what others are doing and what is happening to them.

Last night I was driving along my merry way, on a four lane road through town. As I slowed to turn right, a truck came up from my left, swerved to the far right of his lane - towards me - and then back to the far left side of his own lane.

"Hey," I exclaimed, without thinking. "My lane!" I tend to get possessive about the lane I'm driving in. If someone else wants to be in the same spot I'm in, they'll have to buy me a new truck, and I want an upgrade. I slowed and made my right turn, then stopped on the side road. The truck continued on for another block, turned left into a parking lot, drove half a block through the lot parallel with the road, then turned back onto the road and headed south, in the opposite direction.

What was he thinking? I'll never know what was really going on, but what a great scene for a book. Here are some potential ideas from that one 20-second incident:

- a failed homicide attempt where the hit man tried to cover his tracks

- a homicide attempt where the killer realizes he just can't do it

- a distracted driver distracts the Main Character, thus causing him or her to be late or forget something

- the erratic driver is drunk or drugged, or under some other type of spell

- the driver was text messaging his girlfriend on his cell phone and distractedly pulled to the right

None of them are earth shattering - I've saved the juicy ones for myself ;) - but you can see where they can be useful. You'll never look at driving to the store for milk the same way again.