Ideas help!

[raeve721]

Let me start real quick with a little note. Please do not bash me, or tell me I need to do more research or plan my story out better. I'm simply posting this looking for some outside ideas because I've hit a little roadblock. Please don't tell me I need more research because my examples suck. My examples are there so you can get an idea as to what I'm referring. Thanks in advance!

I've been working on a story and I need some help smoothing out some major flaws! This is a fantasy story, taking place in the present time but in alternate dimensions.

First, my main character can cast spells, although she is a novice. I need something that's like...a limit to her casting. Like in DBZ when spells can be cast as long as the caster can hold their breath. Something similar to that but not so tacky as how long they can keep their eyes open or anything like that.

second, There is a war of sorts going on. My main character is protecting someone who unknowingly possesses memories locked deep within their mind that the enemy desperately wishes to obtain. Problem is, I don't know what my enemies goal should be, what should these memories be that they want so badly? I plan on my planet having a sort of life source that casters can tap into when performing magic, so it could be something to do with that, but maybe theres an ethical issue with it, thus the memories being hidden (like FMA, where creating a philosophers stone can give you immortality or bring people back to life, but you have to kill millions to do it, etc)

any help, comments or suggestions would be so greatly appreciated!
(Also, in addition to my little note at the top, I realize you may not understand much about my story. That's not because I don't have more to it or because it needs more depth, It's simply because I don't want everyone to know everything about this story yet)

[Calidore]

I can understand you wanting to keep details of the story to yourself, but between the lack of information and all the "please don't"s, how do you expect people to somehow come up with workable ideas that you, who has all this information, can't? Do you see the problem?

It looks like you're starting to work out the first question yourself in the body of your second. I don't know whether you're stopping and asking outsiders because of a lack of confidence or because it's starting to feel too "big", but keep going with your train(s) of thought. If you end up with a list of possibilities that all work for you and for the story, then show the list to people and ask what they like.

The answer to your second question is harder, and my initial reaction is one of your "please don't"s: Plan the story out, not "better", but more thoroughly. A solution may come from developing your society or your characters in more detail. That solution may also end up taking a different form than the buried-memories trope. Since you don't actually have a memory in mind, would I be right in guessing that you're using that one simply because you like it? Nothing wrong with that in itself, but if you're already hitting a dead end before you even get started on that road, you may want to reconsider using it in the first place.

I think many problems in plotting come from writers trying to impose their will on a story that has its own ideas; try letting the story and characters lead you for a bit and see where they go.

[Aylinn]

First, my main character can cast spells, although she is a novice. I need something that's like...a limit to her casting. Like in DBZ when spells can be cast as long as the caster can hold their breath. Something similar to that but not so tacky as how long they can keep their eyes open or anything like that.
Why don't you go for the simplest solutions?
- she cannot because she is a novice; or
- no one can cast a spell for a long period of time, because it is too tiring.