Idea List #9

 

And the hits just keep on coming!  A good idea is one that rocks and rolls for you – take and make it your own.  As always, these ideas are in the “What if…” format – that is, add the phrase “what if” in front of every idea.  Enjoy!

 

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A blimp seemed to be following you?

 

A guy woke up one morning, and remembered nothing about where he was (a bedroom in an exotic locale), and finds out that he has lost the past three years - the last thing he remembers was his investment banking job of three years ago?  He has apparently been up to something, everybody knows him, he has three girlfriends, and the local toughs are out for him.  Now, all he has to do is figure out what=s going on.

 

A mindless bunch of zombies suddenly started chasing you down the hall?

 

A plain Southern woman is found to be a scientific genius.  Her desire is to be able to go to college and use her mind.  Everybody around her, except her grandmother, thinks she=s nuts.

 

A Roman senator knew of a plot to destroy the emperor whom he despises?  What does he do?

 

A stray object the size of a planet passed near earth and changed our orbit?

 

A very small lizard invaded a very jaded (or cynical) New York?

 

Aliens judged us by the t.v. shows we beamed into space?

 

All movies and t.v. shows were cgi?

 

An assassin lost his mind and began planning a hit, believing he had been paid for it when he hadn't?

 

Because of some plague no more babies could be born?  What would mankind do?

 

CSA leaders, realizing the war was lost, managed to infiltrate the U.S. government, and their descendants are still active today?

 

Every time you woke up, you were in a different time/place?

 

Humans abandoned the earth, but centuries later an exploration group came back?  What would be different?  What if tribal people had been left?  What would their societies be like?  There could be a great deal of conflict if they see the explorers as humans coming back to reclaim their heritage.  They could consider these explorers as Athe Forsakers@ of their legends (and they would be right), and refuse to have anything to do with them.  What if humanity is coming back to Earth to get something left behind, or find the key to curing some illness that is affecting all of humanity?

 

It was proven that Asiatic peoples were not the first in the Western Hemisphere?  What would be the story of the first Caucasoid that came over?  How would that truth affect American Indians and attitudes toward them?

 

Man was not and had never been the dominant form of life on this planet?  Who is?  Maybe the Aaliens@?

 

People started giving you money for no apparent reason?

 

Silver had some type of magical properties?

 

Somehow you were turned into a tree?

 

Someone abducted you and forced you to have a baby?

 

Somewhere, in one of a newly manufactured and wildly popular car line, was a bomb?  And the planter had killed himself?

 

The ANew Morality@ took over?  How would it be carried out?  Who would oppose it, and how?

 

The earth spoke?  What would it say, and to whom?  A small plot - scientists have gathered information that the earth is going to speak, and all are anxiously awaiting its pronouncement.  The time comes, and everybody hears AGet off.@

 

The president began exhibiting aberrant behaviors?  What would Congress do?  What if the president was diagnosed with Alzheimers while in office?  What if the president could not be convinced that something was wrong?

 

The Spanish Inquisition was still active?

 

The United States erupted into another Civil War?  Who would be the sides, and what would it be about?  You can figure that Washington and Oregon states would be neutral, and would be the place where people tried to escape to and where illegal arms shipments would find entre into the opposing factions.

 

The Vice President was in possession of information that would force the current President to resign?  If he releases the information, he will be accused of using the info to get the office.  If he doesn=t, he=ll be covering up criminal activity.

 

There was a World Series stalker?  For every game he killed somebody, in a way that reflected that particular game.

 

There was magic available to those who tried?  What if only a few knew, torn between those who used it selfishly and those who used it for good?

 

There were Athreshold@ events in time, events that if changed, change everything?  (This makes sense in chaos theory.)  That would, of course, mean that most events are non-threshold events - if non-threshold events are changed, nothing much happens; the change is buried in the chaos.  But the butterfly effect would postulate that every change, no matter how small, ultimately can (and will) have a large effect.

 

Wars were settled by video games, or by some sort of athletic contest?

 

White slavers captured a girl, but they picked one with the heart to fight back and the muscle and skills to back it up?

 

You built an android out of nanites?

 

You could breathe underwater?

 

You could change the physical appearance of people around you?  What would life be like once people found out you could do this?

 

You could control the media, making the media people do whatever you wanted to?  The power you would have would be unlimited.  You could destroy any one or any thing.  Getting someone elected president?  Piece of cake.  In the 21^st century America, whoever controls the media controls the US, and quite probably the world.

 

You could grant the people you met three wishes?  What if you took to the road with this ability, Arabian Nights meets Route 66 with a little swing thrown in for good measure?

 

You could never be wrong - every answer you gave automatically became right, whether you wanted it to or not?

 

You couldn’t read?

 

You discovered the fountain of youth?  What would it be like (and where would it be)?  What cost would there be to using it?

 

You discovered your girl friend (or boy friend) was a genie?

 

You found a lost set of keys, you didn't know who they belonged to, but someone was trying to kill you for them?

 

You found out that the Templars were never really disbanded, but on the Pope=s orders went underground?  Why would this happen?  What would they be up to now?

 

You found out your coworker was having an affair?

 

You found yourself the focus of a cult, who believed your every word was holy writ?  What if it was all a scam?  What if it was totally, absolutely real?  What if you began to believe that what you said really was divine?

 

You had a big, hairy dog following you around wherever you went?

 

You had a diskette that held either the future or the destruction of the world computing system, perhaps the potential of a virus so fast and powerful it would destroy every computer and hookup line in the world, necessitating a complete recreation of the world=s interconnected computers?  Call it the Sledgehammer Virus.

 

You had a fool-proof way to steal coins from a vending machine?

 

You had a modern-day Frankenstein?  How would he recreate his subject (though the use of  nanotechnology)?  How will his creation react?

 

You had eaten a magical pizza?

 

You had perfect balance?

 

You had the ultimate green thumb; you could make any plant (or crop) or any size grow and thrive?  How could this be used in a bad way?

 

You had to design the perfect, utopian future society?  Now, tell what=s wrong with it, and how you can make a story out of it.

 

You had to solve a mystery?  No one is usually that altruistic.  What if, however, you absolutely had to solve the crime before the cops showed up?  How does Joe Average deal with this situation?  Especially if J.A. is not a take charge guy.  You=ve got eight hours - you=d better get after it.  You can have one confederate, two tops.  Think of all the suspicion, distrust, lies, and general Astay out of it@ you=d have to face.

 

You kept growing as you got older?

 

You kept switching back and forth between a world of magic and dragons and so on, and this world?  What role do you have in each?  Where will you decide to live?  Picture a cop in one, a warrior in the other?  How are you switching back and forth?

 

You returned to your home town to discover everyone thought you were dead?

 

You struck gold in your back pasture?

 

You told the story of the unknown soldier=s mother?

 

You were a famous Italian chef, but had to spend a week working in a famous French restaurant?

 

You were a genius, a gifted child prodigy who fulfilled the promise, but your parents were both mentally retarded?

 

You were a master code breaker?  What if you were kidnaped to break some important code?  What if this was set during World War II?

 

You were a private detective who basically made a living by being a police consultant on cases they couldn=t (or wouldn=t) solve?  How do you get along with the people on the force who don=t like you?

 

You were a spy, the best of your kind, and you were a woman?

 

You were addicted to some drug?  What would it be like when you tried to quit?  Why did you start in the first place?  How has your life changed since you became addicted, and are you aware of that change?  How would your life change if you quit using it?  How would you combat the cravings for that drug?

 

You were an artist, but could no longer express yourself in your chosen medium because of some physical problem?  What would you do?

 

You were an elf, or a faerie?

 

You were given one chance to talk to every person on the planet, all at the same time?  What if you blew it?

 

You were instructed to give a million dollars to someone?  You could not give it to someone who would give it back to you.  The story would be about the search for someone to give it to.

 

You were invisible?  What would life be like?  What would you do?  How would you live?  What if you could become invisible at will?  How would that change what you would do?  What if you could make things around you invisible?

 

You were permanently grounded; electricity couldn=t hurt you?  Wouldn=t that be a surprise if you were on death row?  What if you were on death row, knew you couldn=t be electrocuted, and the courts in that state changed the method of execution to lethal injection?

 

You were somehow allergic to flourescent light?

 

You were the only adult, marooned with a group of children on some deserted tropical island?  Having read The Lord of the Flies, and understanding Blue Lagoon, there must be a way to set up these children into a sort of civil society.  Brainwashing would have to be the name of the game for a while.  What sort of punishments could you impose upon this society?  How would you prepare them for your inevitable (and hopefully not soon) demise?

 

You wrote a APhantom@ novel?

 

You wrote a history of Memphis?

 

You wrote a mystery involving a snake?

 

You wrote a novel called AThe Forlorn Hope@?

 

You wrote a Sherlock Holmes story paralleled with a modern story, both woven together?  They could be reading the manuscript and reacting to it, or there could be a crime that parallels, or it could be a modern continuation to Watson=s story.

 

You wrote a story around the word Aunderworld@?

 

Your car could talk?

 

Your dog was trying to kill you?

 

Your life was the subject of an Internet news group?  If you lived in a big city, people could be spying on you, then discussing your life with others in the group.

 

AThe Adventure of the Mis-Dyed Shoes@?  You could have a high-school character that=s a bit like Sherlock Holmes.

 

Goats ruled the world?

 

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The Idea Link website and related links created by Brian S. Miller.  Last update: June 31, 2004.