My Story I'm Writing is Too Similar to Another! What Do I Do?!

My Story I’m Writing is Too Similar to Another! What Do I Do?!

Is there a feeling worse than when you’re in the middle of writing your story, and you see something eerily similar to what you’re writing?

What do you do?

People tend to say, “it’s okay. No story is really original.” And “it’s about how you write it and what you bring that’s new to the table.” But that doesn’t really cover the fact that we’ve put so much work into it and now it feels like it might have been a waste of time.

I had this happen to me recently. I was in the middle of a story that’s been rattling around in my head for years. Was finally putting some real work into it. I loved the challenges and twists I had imagined.

And then one day a major movie came out: “Endgame.”

I was so disappointed because this movie was huge and one of the major things I loved about my story was in this movie that now THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE was watching. 😱

(Okay, maybe just earth beings…)

Without a moment’s notice I felt like anyone who read my book would be like, “this is just a copy of endgame.”

And I’d be like, “No! I started writing this before that movie came out! I swear!.” And they’d walk away not believing me.

Oh the torment I suffered in those moments.

And all that to say, I know how it feels.

But it’s okay.

Take a deep breath. Let it out. Remain calm.

Hopefully these tips will help you.

You can now stop doubting your creativity.

What just happened? My idea just came out and I thought it was unique. Now everyone will just think I’m a rip off.

But let’s turn this doubting psychology on its head.

An idea just like yours had uniquely come into the world and the world loved it.

Do you get what I’m saying?

You know the saying, “great minds think alike.”

Your mind and this other creator’s mind came up with the same great idea.

So now you don’t have to constantly struggle with doubting your own ideas.

You have been given a great mind for creating things.

Now “the early bird does get the worm.” So for next time, don’t doubt your ideas. And when they come, move quickly and strike first.

Get your story out there and into the world and just see what happens.

Don’t doubt the creativity you’ve been given.

Keep creating anyway.

One of the best ways to turn critics away is to keep on creating and ignore them. Many successful people do this every day.

“Those that are loud are not always smart.”

Smart people keep creating and are kind to others. Dumb people are mean spirited and don’t create much. They mostly look to destroy which in turn ends up destroying their own happiness. It’s a really sad cycle.

Don’t be like them. Ignore them. Try to help some. But definitely keep creating.

If people loved one story, they’ll love stories like it.

Most often, a good idea is just a good idea.

Some people may say “rip off!” But for the thousands that will just enjoy the story for what it is, you’re better off to ignore the time wasting nay-sayers and finish the darn thing.

Why do so many people continue to consume vampire and werewolf stories? “It’s so unoriginal.” They say.

Because they were great monster ideas that can be used over and over again and people still find it entertaining and interesting.

So if anything, if your idea is succeeding somewhere else you can almost bet that yours will do well with a large audience too.

Now you can make the idea better.

Since it came out and you saw it and others saw it. You can actually survey people.

What did you think about that movie?

Did you like it when they did that one thing?

Did it come across cheesy when they did this?

What would make it better?

Questions like that can be really telling. Since you’re still in the middle of your story you have time to tweak things a little to make your version even better and more crowd pleasing.

People that have succeeded on a grand scale have stories that are eerily similar to theirs.

J. K. Rowling and The Good Witch for one.

Any Dracula story.

The Mummy.

Many successful stories we have today are just remakes of older stories.

All the Cinderellas.

Star Trek.

Star Wars.

Ocean’s Eleven.

Wicked and The Wizard of Oz.

It goes to show, just because ours is similar doesn’t mean it’ll flop. If anything it means it might do better than we think.

It’s actually an advantage when trying to publish.

Did you know one of the headlines for Jurassic Park?

It said something like, “It’s the Jaws of the dinosaurs!”

This type of headline will make any Jaws fans want to see it.

So if you can say something like, “Fans of the Narnia series will love this.” It proves there’s a market for your story. Agents will be more interested in checking it out.

People actively look for books, movies, and TV shows that are similar to what they’ve seen and loved.

Think about your own media consumption.

Ever been looking for a new show on Netflix in the “because you watched this” category? 😏

Exactly.

Final Thoughts:

If something came out that is similar to your story and it did well, just be confident that you had a great idea as well.

Now take time to ask people about it and what could make it even more entertaining. Tweak your story so that it still has the major great ideas but is told in a better way.

Know and feel confident in the fact that there is already a market out there that is not primed and looking for your story because it is similar to something they’ve already enjoyed and love.

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Hope this helps!

Happy writing!

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My Story I’m Writing is Too Similar to Another! What Do I Do?!