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swamped with your own ideas that you hardly have time to keep up with them, let alone work on someone else's. This is true of all writers. You may have come up with the greatest story concept since the dawn of time, but it's ok to share this with your peer and review groups because they're all also working on their greatest ideas ever, and are not interested in stealing yours.

The point here is, you need to find a circle of writers that you're comfortable with and share your ideas with them. With the advent of the internet, it's not even that important that you ever meet these people in person. Forums like absolutewrite.com/forums provide excellent places to request (and give) critiques of story ideas, edits of pages, and general hashing out of story details. If you prefer the personal touch, but can't find a writing group at your local Borders or Barnes and Noble, then invest a little money and join a creative writing class at the local community or state college. The instructors there will know where to find like-minded writers, and you may find the stimulus of assigned classwork motivating for your own writing.

Rule 3: Let go, Luke. Trust your instincts.

As you continue writing, and developing, and strengthening your storytelling instincts, you're going to hit on story ideas that resonate with your soul. When you find these, jump on them. Find out what universal human truth is at the heart of the idea. Take it and make it yours. This is *your* story, and only you are uniquely capable of writing it. No one but Kafka could make his Metamorphosis story. No one but Orson Scott Card could have created Ender Wiggin.

If it turns out that your story doesn't resonate with other people, then you're either not in tune with the universe, or your story isn't in tune with the idea. Either way, this is a crucial part of the learning process. You work on the story until it sings. You tune yourself to the truths that are out there, and find ways to tell them in new and exciting ways. This is what it means to write, and to be a writer.

Now stop dilly-dallying, and get writing!

Learn more about this author, David Clary.
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