As a writer, I look for conflict—or potential for conflict—in big and little situations. I draw on such things for my characters. Tonight I noticed an interesting one: foodie vs. teenage boys.
Elizabeth’s culinary delights don’t exactly thrill her brothers. It isn’t just that she uses ingredients that they are convinced they don’t like, or that she likes to plate the food in interesting ways. Many times it comes down to the amount of food allotted to each person.
She made salmon cakes tonight. She never makes them the same way twice. Tonight, they had an Asian flair. There were two for each person. The boys actually like these. They were happy. Until about 15 minutes after they’d finished their dinner. Next thing I knew, they were cooking one of the cheap-o pizzas I keep in the freezer for those occasions when everyone is on their own for dinner.
Ah, well. Either she’ll find a husband who appreciates her efforts to please his palette or she’ll learn that a man—or a teenaged boy—mostly wants something to fill his stomach. And if it tastes good? That’s a bonus.
Author, Editor, Reader
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Your daughter cooks? How fun. My MC in my newest book cooks, and I use it as a source of conflict because her young cousin won’t eat anything she makes, and the MC sees it as rejection. So, you’re right–there are story ideas everywhere. And those salmon cakes sound delicious!