Evolution of Ideas

Ideas are bullet proof. They are also an intangible, immaterial vapor of ever-changing stuff and are unreliable unless committed to paper (digital or otherwise.)

We’ve all had shower thoughts, brief snaps of realization while on the toilet, and/or hazy recollections in that state of mind between sleep and insomnia; those sparkling little beads of genius that, in a moment, have passed from out brains and have shattered into a million little pieces that we can only vaguely remember.

We’ve all also had more than a few deep-rooted ideas, mild obsessions that pop into the forefront at seemingly random times that we may entertain for an hour or so before putting it back on the shelf. Little do you know, phantom at the keyboard, that every single time you revisit that idea it has changed. It may not be a significant change, it might just be a little inconsequential difference that you can’t even notice even if you tried; an adjective perhaps, or maybe a few errant inches. Recognize, though, that there is change every time you recall an idea, a project, a DnD module and that you shall inevitably arrive at a destination far removed from the original spark of inspiration. You can chart the changes by writing down the details whenever the idea strikes you; after a few weeks you’ll see a dramatic change.

Here’s an example from my own book of ideas: The Nightwatcher. The Nightwatcher was a series of short stories I had written (and delisted) that was primarily about the titular Nightwatcher Caleb, an agent of the Sable Church of Breaking Dawn. It was dark, brooding, and more than a little horrendous Lovecraftian with massive swords, twisted sorcery, and esoteric descriptions (thud and blunder.) It had originally started out as a more intimate story about a father trying to raise his daughter during a Dark Ages Zombie Apocalypse and was, with all sincerity, … well…

The Nightwatcher had a third mutation or, more accurately, a thorough gutting and cannibalizing. The Song of the Storm King started as the backstory of a bit character I thought was interesting, a sellsword named Wren who had a violent encounter with Caleb when they were children. Wren mutated into Garrett ap Uthar who was called Wren because he could play the lute. Garrett ap Uthar mutated into Garrett ap Uthur, gained a sword by the name of Stormbringer, yada yada yada, so on and so forth, etc. Month’s later I ended up with Garrett the Fox, heir of the Stormcrown and the mantle of the Storm King, and exists in The Nightwatcher setting after it had been stripped of it’s Lovecraftian dressings and the Sable Church became less omnipotent. It was a complete 180 (take my word for it, I’ve kept notes) with Garrett becoming the main focus and Caleb becoming a bit character, a sociopathic hitman at the beck and call of the Sable Church.

Another example of an idea mutating in a bizarre (ha) fashion is JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. What’s remarkable about JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is that it is an amorphous set of ideas stapled together while still being committed to paper. It started with vampires in the 1800s and progressed into, well, this. It’s more complicated than that, of course, but the manga is an intricate weave of ideas that build on top of each other and eventually implode into it’s own reboot … twice. It is a magnificent beast, thirty years of loving labor, something any creator can admire for it’s sheer density and consistency.

Just keep this in mind.