The Empty Page
After THE END: Finding My Next Novel
Every book ends. And then comes the terrifying silence. That's what all writers face when one story ends and the search for the next begins.
Writers often describe writing like it's a continuous river, one story flowing seamlessly into the next. But in truth? It's more like standing in an empty field, wondering which way to turn. Some writers fear such moments. As for me? After facing this more than a dozen times, I’ve learned to embrace it after finally figuring out how and where to look for the next story.
The Thread That Runs Through Every Novel
Every writer has themes they can't stop exploring. Mine revolve around love gone bad. I constantly find myself wondering: Why do so many relationships fail? How well do we really know our lovers and spouses? How do we recover from a bad relationship? This thread runs through many of my novels—from Sisters and Lovers to Big Girls Don't Cry to PG County. My latest two, You Never Know and Chloe, revisit this theme with a healthy dose of secrets, lies, and death. I'm sure my next novel will too.
The Art of "What If?"
Ideas for stories about romantic connections that spiral into chaos, and sometimes even murder, are fairly easy to find if you know where to look. I often encounter brief tales or snippets in the news, on TV, or while chatting with family, friends, and associates. Once I find an especially intriguing idea, I go through my "what if" process, imagining what might happen if things took an even darker or more deadly turn.
After catching a recent Netflix adaptation of Daphne du Maurier's classic Rebecca—originally filmed in 1940 and directed by Alfred Hitchcock—I reviewed the novel. I was intrigued by its themes of social class divisions and haunting pasts intruding into present lives. I could envision many ways to approach them from the perspective of the black community.
This led to my latest novel, Chloe: A Novel of Secrets and Lies. As usual, I started with a what-if question—or questions—that wouldn't let me go: What if a woman meets and marries beyond her dreams—and means—only to realize she doesn't actually know her husband at all—and that he may have done something unspeakable to his ex-wife? What if she suspects he might do the same to her if she doesn’t measure up? These what-if questions kept circling back, demanding exploration.
Moving on to the Gathering Phase
So you can see that finding the next book idea isn't passive as some may believe. It's an active investigation. While waiting for Chloe to hit the shelves, I'm in my "gathering phase" for the next novel. I'm immersing myself in suspense books and TV shows, daydreaming, and deep thinking. I'm letting my curiosity run wild, knowing that a story is taking shape.
At this time, fragments of ideas often surface at unexpected moments—during morning coffee, in traffic, or just as I'm drifting off to sleep. My most reliable tool in this phase is simple note-taking with no expectations attached. No pressure to turn anything into a novel. Just pure, unfiltered observation and reflection. The notes end up on my laptop, as scraps of paper, or in the notebook I keep handy by my nightstand.
In these scattered notes, you'll find:
Strange love stories I've encountered
Questions about why love and romance so often go wrong
Random research that might lead somewhere interesting
When the Story Idea Finally Hits
When the right idea arrives, it's rarely a lightbulb moment for me. Instead, it comes on slowly as pieces start fitting together. It feels more like recognition—like something that's waiting for me to notice it. This raw idea still needs to be fine-tuned and developed, but there's excitement in knowing I'm on the right track.
So, aspiring writers seeking your next story, remember: don't wait for ideas to find you. Actively seek them out, letting your curiosity guide you. Pay attention to events that make you stop and wonder "What if?" Most importantly, notice the questions that keep pulling you back.
Your next—or first—idea for a novel will emerge from those persistent thoughts and questions that refuse to let you go. Trust the process and a story will find you.