“There are seven basic plots in all of storytelling. Shakespeare reused all of them. Nobody told Shakespeare he wasn’t original. Stop Googling ‘has this been done before’ and start writing YOUR version.”
— L.A. Walton, The Book Maven
I know you’ve done it. You had a brilliant idea—a story concept, a business plan, a podcast pitch, a song topic—and the FIRST thing you did was Google it to see if someone else had already done it. And when you found something even remotely similar, you thought, ‘Well, never mind.’ And the idea died right there on the search results page.
Stop. Doing. This.
The Originality Myth
Here’s a truth that will either terrify or liberate you: there are no truly original ideas. There are only original EXECUTIONS. Every love story has been told. Every hero’s journey has been walked. Every business concept has been attempted. What makes something original is not the WHAT. It’s the WHO. And the WHO is you.
| ‘Unoriginal’ Concept | Original Execution |
| Wizard goes to school. | Harry Potter (and it changed children’s literature forever). |
| Teenagers fight to the death. | The Hunger Games (and it launched a global conversation). |
| Ship hits an iceberg. | Titanic (and it became the highest-grossing film of its era). |
| Detective solves crimes. | Literally thousands of beloved, unique mystery series. |
| Person starts a business. | Your version, with your story, for your audience. |
| Writer writes about writing. | This blog you’re reading right now. See? It works. |
What Actually Makes Your Idea Unique
- Your specific life experience. Nobody has lived your life. That perspective is unreplicable.
- Your voice. The way you string words together is as unique as your fingerprint.
- Your audience. The people who need YOUR version of this idea haven’t found it yet because you haven’t created it yet.
- Your timing. The world is different now than when someone else explored this topic. Your version is current.
- Your combination of influences. The unique blend of everything you’ve read, watched, lived, and loved.
Your Move, Creative
Close the Google tab. Open your creative project. Write the idea the way only you can write it. With your humor, your pain, your perspective, your rhythm. That’s your originality. That’s your superpower. That’s what the world is waiting for.
Stop letting your stories stay stuck.
