: How do I turn a "screensaver" into an actual story? I am capable of dreaming up interesting settings and even placing things in a world, but I have trouble dreaming up characters and plot.

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We write best what we love most. For me, I love people and pay a lot of attention to them, but not a lot of attention to places and things, so my characters are strong, but my settings and descriptions are weak.

Since you have the opposite problem, I'd suggest spending some concentrated time observing people closely, talking to them, listening to their stories, and trying to understand them at a deep level --both strangers and friends. After doing that for a while, your characters should start to become deeper and richer.

As far as plots, reading a lot of myths and folk and fairy tales from all around the world is a good way to get a feel for plot at the most basic, essential level.

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I had the same problem when I was a kid, and I solved it by understanding the concept of Action.

In your stories you have people (characters). It's not a story until they DO something, and this something changes something else.

So put a guy in your amazing setting, and let something happen to him, or make him do something. And remember that stories are built on but. Rick is a skilled scavenger, but one day he gets arrested by the corporation. Jenny wants to become a jet pilot but she gets kicked out of the academy. B3X7 is a dutiful droid, but it discovers to have feelings.

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My high school teacher gave us some writing assignments that forced us to focus on short scenes. She would give us a picture (usually of a painting) where you could see one person, or more, halfway through an action. Then we simply had to imagine who that person was and what was happening. This technique produced some interesting short stories and helped us to think about the motivations of the character we were just meeting. I think it might help you focus on plot and character and get the hang of it.

For example, take this painting by Norman Rockwell. Just look at it and start writing the words that fit the scene. Let the characters, their wishes and their emotions bring forth the plot: does the fight lead any of the characters to rethink their marriage?

Or this one by William Mulready. What could be in that letter? What will the woman do in response to it?

Personally, I think it's best to do these exercises with paintings as the figures are imagined. Working with photos can lead one to focus on the real story and real people. But if you prefer photos, then by all means. I do advise to choose images that allow the story to have action (in the sense there is a situation that requires the character to act, rather than sit back and reflect).

Most paintings I use are a bit dated (not to say a lot), but sometimes, if we swap the clothes for modern ones and swap, say, the letter for a tablet (email), you can make the situation contemporary. And there are also paintings that refer to our modern age, like this one by Robert Lenkiewicz. But you can also take the painting and give it a steampunk or fantasy feel by imagining different clothes. Paintings like this one by Robert Griffing always give me a sense of adventure.

Or you can just pick an adventure themed painting like this one by Jakub Rozalski.

Remember the key thing about this exercise is to have one person (or more) in the middle of action. Don't start with setting but with dialogue or action and let the setting become clear as the plot progresses. Some images will only allow for a short story, but some can grow into long novels if you let them.

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