A Meme-ish Day

Isn't there a saying that everyone has at least one book in them?  Well, I honestly don't think I've got one in me.  Not a novella, or a poem, not even a haiku.  However, BooksPlease has tagged me for a meme: Ten Signs a Book Has Been Written by Me, so I'm willing to play along.  Where do author's get their inspiration?  From past experiences?  Are there just characters and stories inside their minds yelling to be let out?  My book likely will resemble something I'd like to read, since I am firmly on the other side of the divide:

1. My book would have a female protagonist.  I don't think I could write a convincing male character.
2. She'd be a strong and intelligent heroine.
3. It would probably be set in the past.  Perhaps a wartime setting?  Maybe I'd go further back.  Something Victorian maybe.
4. It would be set somewhere in Europe.
5. The heroine would have to deal with all sorts of trials and tribulations, because if it was a happy, easy story, where would the fun be in that?
6. She might have a romantic interest, but they'd be separated, because there's nothing like a bit of emotional anguish to keep you reading.  Nothing racy, though, just implied.
7. There'd be lots of atmosphere.  You would have a definite feeling of time and place and you'd feel as though you were escaping into another time and leaving the present behind while you were reading the story.
8. There would be a few different plotlines--nothing too confusing, but enough to keep you interested.
9. Since this is my fantasy...it would of course be written very well.  I love the way Joanne Harris writes, so it might be similar, but still my own style.
10. I'm sorry to tell you, however, though it would be a satisfying ending I'm afraid I would have to leave some loose ends so you would be compelled to buy my next book!

Alas, I won't be writing this book, but I bet I can find someone else who has written one just like it!  Please feel free to play along!

I like Shelly's Booked by 3 questions for February, too.  Here are a few "Book Memories":

1. Do you associate particular books with the places you read them or events of the time you read them?   Actually I do.  For instance when I was in Austria I patronized a little used bookstore.  New books were really expensive there, so I had to choose from the used books and the selection was pretty limited.  I read lots of Stephen King.  I read Rita Mae Brown's Rubyfruit Jungle.  I read Betty Mahmoody's Not Without My Daughter (one of the few books I actually bought new), Margaret Atwood's Surfacing, some book I don't remember the title of--a nonfiction book about a young couple who made a suicide pact and killed themselves in a closed garage via the exhaust fumes from a car.  Okay, so I told you there was limited selection and to this day I still remember that story.  I was just about to begin Simone de Beauvoir's The Second Sex when it was time to return home.  I never did get the book read.  I have similar recollections of books from other times and places in my life.
2. Do you remember the books you read or do they fade quickly? Or do you remember some better than others? How about remember details like character names, not just overall plot? I'm terrible with characters names.  I forget them very quickly, I'm sorry to say.  I'm better with major plotlines.  If I particularly liked a book it tends to stay with me longer, but eventually many of the books I've read fade from memory.  I've reread books before where I feel like I'm reading them for the first time as I've forgotten so many details.  I hate this, but I guess there's only so much room in my head.
3. Have you ever forgotten you've read/own a book and borrowed/bought it again?  Yes.  I've done this on several occasions.  Usually they end up on Bookmooch if they were bought used.   I've also borrowed books that I forgot I owned.  Most recently I borrowed a Mary McCarthy novel from the library, and then discovered it on my bookshelves when I was cleaning this past weekend.  Now I tend to be very careful when buying older novels.  I won't buy them for fear I already have them.  Usually in that case I won't have it and then will be annoyed I didn't buy it!   

Comments

[Jaimie]

Great answers on the meme. I think you would write a great Victorian novel!
I forget character names all the time. I also forget solutions and who killed who, which actually works in my favor as I can read the book again!
I have a couple of doubles on my shelves as well. I'm glad I'm not the only one because it just seems the strangest thing when it happens!

[Jeane]

I actually enjoy the fact that I forget most of what I read in a book after a while. I remember at least that I loved it, and then revisit it as if it's a new book. Different things come to my attention each time I re-read something. It's like visiting an old vacation spot you haven't been to in a long time, feeling comfortable and happy and enjoying seeing all the changes that happened while you were away.

[Danielle]

Jaimie--I think it would be fun to write something Victorian-ish. That's probably the period I would choose, but I think I'd prefer to read a Victorian novel than write one! I also forget mystery solutions, too. It's sort of amazing how quickly details start fading when I've finished a book.
Jeane--Usually that is the one big thing that will stick with me with a book--the feeling that I really liked something or that I didn't. Sometimes when I am rereading it comes as a surprise. I have in mind the story, but all the little details seem so new. I guess that's part of the enjoyment of rereading--rediscovering the story.

[Kay]

Danielle, I think your fantasy book sounds intriguing (sort of sounds like Deanna Raybourn's two - LOL!). Let me know if you do write it so I can be one of the first to read it!!!

P.S. I'm terrible about buying books and then getting home and finding them on my shelf. I feel so guilty!!

[BooksPlease]

I don't think I have a book in me either! I like your idea of having loose ends - it sounds as though you may have a book in there somewhere?

I often forget I've bought a particular book, most annoying and like Kay I feel guilty when I do. Even more annoying though is buying a book, starting to read it and finding I do have it - but it's been republished with a different title.

[Litlove]

Great memes, Danielle. No, I could never write male characters either. I barely understand them in reality. And I'm coming up to reading the Betty Manmoody, so it will be interesting to see how much of it you remember when I come to post on it :)

[Dorothy W.]

I'd love to read your book! I'm going to do this meme soon I think. It's kind of fun to imagine my own book, even though I know I won't write it.

[Shelly]

I enjoyed reading your answers. Thanks for playing. :)

[Isabel]

Can you do an inventory in the winter?

[tara]

I am with you - I cannot see me ever writing a book - I think to be a writer, you must be compelled to write and have some idea of the story you want to tell. Not me. Your book sounds good, though!

[Andi]

Wow, I haven't seen the Ten Signs meme yet. What fun! And very original.

I would definitely read your book, by the way. :)

[Matt]

Your fantasy book sounds very interesting and intriguing. It would be great if you can make it a reality! :) Loose ends are fine as long as they are not completely unresolved.

[iliana]

Well, I'd definitely read your fantasy book - it sounds like a story I'd love! :)

[Danielle]

Kay--Buying duplicate books makes me feel like I'm getting forgetful!! :) I hate that feeling. I was sort of thinking of Deanna Raybourn's novels--they're obviously still fresh in my mind.
BooksPlease--I think any book I'd write would end of being derivative of books I've already read and enjoyed. How do authors come up with something fresh and new?! And publishers do that a lot with academic titles--you think you are getting a new edition, but it ends up being the same book with maybe a new two page preface--bit of a rip off if you ask me!!
Litlove--I only have the vaguest memory of the Mahmoody book. I also saw the movie when I was in Austria (very bad of me--I should be immersing myself in German, but nearly every weekend I went to American movies!!!). I am looking forward to reading what you think of the book. From what I recall it was a pretty harrowing experience!
Dorothy--I wish I was creative enough to write, but I just don't think I could do it. Maybe NF would be easier? I'm curious what sort of book you would write, too.
Shelly--Those were great questions! Thanks for posting them.
Isabel--I'm working on getting all my books into LibraryThing, but it is a hassle to drag them from my book room downstairs--upstairs to my computer. I could at least search my books by author that way. That's the closest I think I'll have to an inventory.
Tara--I think writers do feel compelled, too. I think characters must feel like an extension of themselves. I can't imagine what it would be like. I
m only glad that there are lots of people gifted enough to write, so I can buy their books!
Andi--Thanks. If it ever happens--I will let you know! :) This was a fun way to think about books.
Matt--Those loose ends can be annoying, can't they?! I would only leave a few--it would still be a satisfying ending, perhaps more of a preview of things to come, so you'd want to read more.
Iliana--It's definitely a story I'd enjoy reading, too!