People always say that inspiration can come in the strangest of places. Well last week I had it in probably one of the most uninspirational places you can get, the California DMV.
Brendon had to take his road test to get his driver’s license. Yes, even if you have a license in Canada you have to take the road test, because Canada is a foreign country. Silly in that the roads and rules are the same, but those are the rules. So since I’m the official licensed driver of the family at this point, I had to drive to and be present for Brendon’s road test. Even though he still had his BC license and could legally drive home after failing the test, which he didn’t. So I gave up my morning to hang out at the DMV.
Between the crying babies, the robotic recording shouting off relief in the form of numbers for the next impatiently waiting person, and the overwhelming sense of frustration permeating the air, I somehow got inspired. Several plot forwarding events jumped into my head. One right after another. Boom. Boom. Boom. The ideas had nothing to do with what was going on in the room, except for one thing. They all had to do with conflict. And those of us who have experienced a day at the California DMV, there is much conflict to be found there.
Conflict is what keeps you interested in a story. If the characters have nothing to worry about, then it’s most likely you’ll wind up writing a rather dull story about happy people. If it wasn’t for conflict, shows like Survivor, the Real World, and the Apprentice wouldn’t be popular. Diana Gabaldon, author of the Outlander series, said that she’s always trying to think up of hot water that she can throw her characters into.
Well, seems I’ve found my inspiration point for whenever I’m having writers block. I’ll just head on over to the DMV and hang out there for the day. With all the arguments and a general atmosphere of malaise, it’s no wonder it inspires hot water for my characters.
