Do you have a story idea but you have no idea where to start? Do you only have a vague concept or image in your mind, and you're having trouble forming it into a story? Well, have I got the tips for you or what?

The answer is yes. Yes, I do.

As a writer and a lover of fiction myself, I have been in the same position. Oftentimes, I have a very general idea for a story, but it never comes to fruition because I don't spend the time to develop it. Being in a short story writing class this semester has forced me to do so, and I now can say that it is not as scary as it seems. In fact, developing a story has become one of my favorite parts of the writing process. Here are some fun, not-so-daunting ways to help you develop your story idea.

1. Outline

Outlining is probably the most common strategy for developing a story. It involves writing down ideas in an organized fashion so that the author has a visual representation of the story. It's a lot easier to being writing a story when you have something to refer to, rather than just pulling ideas from your mind. It also allows the author to read over his/her ideas to make sure that every hole is filled in and every piece of a story is covered.

I just use a piece of paper and a pen, but if that doesn't keep your attention, writing it on a chalkboard or dry-erase board might help. The structure of the outline is up to you; it can be a chart, diagram, bulleted list, etc. Try new things and find what works for you!

2. Journal

This strategy is for those authors who have nothing but a concept or theme to start with, and need help formulating things such as the characters, plot, conflict, resolution, etc. This involves writing a little bit every day – or at some other rate – in a notebook or journal. Pick something that you will want to write in; if you pick a plain, black spiral notebook, I can't image wanting to write in that unless plain is your style! Try to choose something that catches your eye.

Then, pick a time to write at a regular rate and an amount to write. For example, you could choose to write a short paragraph every day, or a page once a week. Start with your concept in mind and write whatever comes to mind after that. The hope is that you will find something that intrigues you about that concept as you are writing, and then you will find something that you specifically want to explore through that.

3. Draw

This strategy is for the authors who have nothing but an image in their minds, whether it be of a character, location, or object. Sketching whatever it is out will both clarify the image and help you learn more about your idea as you draw. Take a look into your mind's eye – go wild and draw anything that comes to mind. After you've sketched out that original image, I bet you'll find that you've got more ideas to draw out! And, if it helps, draw arrows and write captions on your drawing so that you can refer to these drawings as you write. For example, you could draw a character, point an arrow at their hair, and write “always messy.” Or point to a piece of jewelry and write “given to by grandmother.”

If you're not artistically talented, like myself, and you think sketching will just make you more confused because the result will not be what you imagined – like myself – turn to a video game such as The Sims for help. I have The Sims 4 and I've used it before to design my characters. You could also use it to design buildings. It's much easier than attempting to draw it and also really fun!

4. Write music

This strategy is for the authors who are musically talented and have a specific emotion that they want to explore, but don't know where to start. Music is a pretty emotional art form; exploring an emotion through music might bring up elements to that emotion that hadn't been thought of before. Journaling could also be used as a supplement to this strategy to comment on the piece of music and further develop the emotion as a theme.

If you're not musically talented – again, like myself – listening to music could work just as well. Are you thinking about something sad? Put on some Adele, Ed Sheeran, Bon Iver, Frank Ocean, or Drake. The music will make you feel the emotion yourself, and you'll come to understand it better.

5. Sleep

This may sound silly, but I am very serious about this. If you want to write well, you need to sleep well. After you've done some outlining, journaling, drawing, or writing music, let your mind rest and reflect on everything you've done. You will feel refreshed and ready to write in the morning. Besides, a lot of writers have said that their story ideas came from dreams. What have you got to lose?

I hope these tips work for you, writers! But this is just the pre-writing stage. What's left after you've done any of these is to sit yourself down and make yourself write. Or you can stand and write – whatever works. If you don't have any ideas and you want to write, but can't think of anything, check out this article on the previous stage: the pre-idea stage, as I like to call it.

Remember to give yourself enough time to get your ideas out before you begin writing. Good luck!