A common refrain I hear from writers is that they have an idea, but it’s too much like ___________ (fill in the blank with whatever book, movie, show you like). Or writers hoard ideas like a dragon sitting on gold, convinced that someone is about to steal them. Both of these beliefs hurt you as a writer because they are grounded in fear.
I stumbled onto a Reddit thread recently that compared stories or films with similar plotlines that had been executed into wildly different stories.
Plot: “Tom Hanks’ flight doesn’t go well.”Stories: Apollo 13, Cast Away, Terminal, and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. (Source: Reddit, golfandpie)
Plot: “Overprotective, single father falls into dangerous situations in search of abducted child.”Stories: Finding Nemo and Taken. (Source: Reddit, AndySocks)
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