Thread: Writing a novel about dreams and such, any ideas?

I can draw parallels between this idea and the movies "vanilla sky" and "the matrix". You may want to watch/re-watch these movies to help inspire some ideas, but you are also going to want to make sure your story has is own identity. While you're at it, also watch "waking life".

These stories all have general similarities:
- Character at some point is unaware of their "dream" situation
- Character has epiphany
- Epiphany changes characters direction

These cornerstones by themselves will not be enough to make a great story. You will need to do some interpersonal exploration and really pin down what it is about lucid dreaming that you are drawn to...and then use this as a spring board for your story.

For example, if you are simply intrigued by the novelty of lucid dreaming (i.e how "cool" it is), write a story about a person who (after they realize they are in a coma) find themselves exploring exciting, comedic, and sexual pursuits while in their dream world.

If you are interested in the philosophic implications of lucid dreaming, you will need to create a story about (for example) a man who falls into a coma, some how becomes attached to his dream life, has the epiphany, and then is torn between which two worlds are real/more important/etc.

There are a multitude of ways to go, but the missing aspect here seems to be your first hand experience. These ideas will come naturally if you have enough of your own personal LD experiences, feelings, and thoughts to draw from. If you do not, your story will no doubt suffer from this lack of realism and detail....making your story seem sophomoric and contrived. "The devil is in the details...", as they say. The best stories, even fiction, are all inspired by truth.

In short, LD more.