It All Starts with a Kernel

It All Starts with a Kernel

It is a truth of the ages, all great things start with a small kernel.





A dim flicker of inspiration. We all have them. Sitting in traffic, watching TV, listening to music, reading a magazine, exercising...it can happen anywhere and to anyone. The difference between us, as individuals, is which kernel gets our attention.





I have kernels for lots of things, not just the drama of human nature. I have, on occasion, envisioned a new product, an inspired painting, a breakthrough clothing design, a fresh marketing idea, or deep realizations about religion, war or politics.





For me, it is the kernel that becomes the eruption of a scene playing out in my head that gets my heart racing in excitement. Usually sparked by a song lyric or a melody, it will fade in and out of my mind and then finally materialize.





Once I have that image, that scene, It becomes the embryo of my novel, slowly developing and evolving until it is ready to be birthed onto the page. In my most recent novel, Trust Me, the kernel was the image of two people, deeply in love, but forced into separation. They come together in the dark of the night, unable to hold back their feelings. Swept into a powerful embrace as they say goodbye. This image was the driving force for the entire novel, and yet in the end the actual scene was cutout of the book.





The book has since been written, re-written, commented on, submitted, rejected, and considered. I have recently latched onto a new kernel and am nurturing it into fruition. At this juncture, it could take me to any number of places. Just depends on where the characters decide they want to go...but that is a conversation for another time.





It makes you wonder what other's kernels were like? How did the kernel for Jaws erupt in Spielberg's mind, the music of Phantom for Webber, the Danny for King, or the Stewie for McFarlane? When was the last time you had a kernel and what did you do with it?