Since this is National Novel Writing Month ( Thread here ), I’ve been thinking about ideas that I just can’t quite bring to fruition. Not because I’m an idiot, but more for lack of the specific skill set required to make it happen. I have a couple of invention ideas kicking around, two or three short stories and a novelette, an idea for a new computer game…and a few other tidbits here and there. But I just lack the knowledge to actually make it work. Writing for example. Sure I have a basic outline of the plot and characters, but there is a lot more needed to make an actual story from that. But since I don’t know what I don’t know…I can start a short story but always have difficult making it read on paper the way it sounds in my head. There are probably classes I could take, or online tutorials that would help me with that, but I don’t really have that type of free time. Plus, let’s face it…even once I get it written it’s a long step from there to getting it published.
Same with some of my invention ideas. Mostly I’m good at taking existing technology and putting it together in different ways…it’s actually similar to what I do in my day to day job. But while I probably have enough detail to get a patent for one or two of them, we’ve had countless threads about how difficult it is as an individual to get a patent. And my company doesn’t really have any vested interest in the types of technology I have in mind. So it just sits on my mental drawing board and waits for me to see someone else come up with it and make a mint.
So what about you other dopers? What sorts of ideas do you have that you’re just not quite good enough to get done? Or just don’t have the time to pursue? Or can get it done but then have no way of doing anything with it?
I’ll throw my computer game idea out there as an example. I enjoy a good Real Time Strategy game now and then. But since I tend to just play the single player stuff and not the built in campaigns I’m always disappointed at how fast they go. You get your guys moving, collect resources…rush to advance as far as you can as fast as you can, then try to wipe the other player out. Most RTS games are a variant on “Conquer the World” or “Conquer the Galaxy”, which is really the same thing in a different map environment. So I thought…“Why not do both…start from the Bronze Age or whatever…conquer your world…then have the game move on to a Conquer the galaxy type of play” So I kicked the idea around for a few days and came up with I think 5 different types of beings, with 4 or 5 various groups within each of those. So you have multiple ‘races’ to play and different ways of playing each race. All with a different technology base and evolution. But I’m not an actual game developer…I can’t really do anything more with it. I’m also not any sort of artist…so I can’t draw what any of these things look like. I know in my head what they look like, but that’s about as far as I can get. Sure I can spend some more time and flesh this out so that I go through each age and think of advances and technologies for each one…but why? I have other things I need to spend my time on. So the file gathers cyber dust on my memory stick until I eventually forget about it.
Anyone else care to share?
