Twin Talk Tuesday

We've all been there. You're going along, thinking you have the bestest WiP EVER. Then, you see it. Your idea. Sitting on the shelves in Barnes and Noble. Written by someone else. Or maybe it's a movie coming out this year. Or a T.V. show you just saw. The point is, we've all been there. We've all felt the despair that our brilliant, one-of-a-kind idea has been snatched up and sold by someone else.

Never fear, my friends. We could spend a whole post telling you that ideas, while important, are only as good as their execution. That even similar sounding stories will be completely different in the end. But you guys know this already. And besides, it's much funner to SHOW you.

Renee: Today we are going to illustrate how execution is everything. We're going to take the exact same idea and each write our own synopses for it.

Diana-Now realize that we are identical twins. We grew up in the exact same house. We read the same books. Saw the same movies.

Renee: Have a creepy, psychic connection. . .

Diana: Exactly. So if there were ever two people who could potentially write identical stories, it would be us.

Renee: I'm very interested to see how it turns out, actually.

Diana: I hope we don't disprove our whole point.

Renee: Only one way to find out. Okay, so we need an idea.

Diana: Hmm. *thinking*

Renee: *brainstorming*

Diana: I know! How about a girl who can turn herself into Jello?

Renee: Pure genius.

Diana: I try.

Renee: Perfect. That's our idea. A girl who can turn herself into Jello. Go forth and write your synopsis. Meet you back here in a bit. In the meantime, enjoy this visual inspiration.

*TIME PASSES*

Renee: Okay, I'm ready! VERY interested to see what we came up with. Here's mine:

Hello, Jello

In a family where everyone has special powers, Matilda Waters got the short end of the stick. Her brother can fly. Her sister walks through walls. Matilda? She can turn into strawberry jello.

When her family is captured by a secret government agency, Matilda is left behind. Apparently she’s not the only one who sees her power as useless. Distraught, Matilda seeks out the help of the Hinklesons, a fellow power-wielding family. But they’ve been captured as well. Only Andrew Hinkleson, their dark, dangerous foster child, is left. Matilda fears all is lost, until Andrew reveals that he also has a special power. He can turn himself into a corn dog.

Together, Matilda and Andrew form a mock catering company, and manage to land a job catering the secret government agency’s annual summer picnic. On the menu—corn dogs and jello, baby. Revenge never tasted so sweet.

Diana: Brilliant.

Renee: *bashful shrug* Aww, come on. Let's hear yours.

Diana: Cursed

For Alice Mint, having a mother who is a beautiful enchantress has many perks. She always has whatever she wants, lives in a beautiful home, and has lots of “help” with her schoolwork at the mortal high school she attends. Life seems perfect.

Then, one day, one of her mother’s jilted lovers puts a powerful curse on Alice so that she won't become like her mother. He curses Alice that if she makes a boy fall in love with her, she will turn into Jell-o. Literally. That poses an interesting problem for Alice, who is an enchantress-in-training.

Alice teams up with Jake, a handsome young Lifter (someone who steals powers from Warlocks), to find the Warlock who put the spell on her and break the curse. The only problem is Alice is falling fast for Jake and she can see in his eyes that his feelings are growing. Can she break the curse in time? Or will she spend the rest of her life as a tasty dessert?

Renee: HA! That's really good, actually. WRITE IT.

Diana: Maybe I should, maybe I should.

Renee: Well, we've proved our point! Look how different those two stories are. And they both came from the exact same, very specific story idea.

Diana: It really should put any fears to rest. The stories WILL be different. It's all about execution.

Renee: Amen, sister.

So there you have it. Nothing to worry about. Just ignore that book/movie/T.V. show, and keep working on your brilliant idea.