Write Away

For me, I think it's almost always characters. Usually not just one, but probably two or three characters whose dynamics I begin to imagine. Sometimes this makes for a tough story - when I actually start storyboarding, it is pretty much from scratch, though I try to come up with situations that challenge the personalities and dynamics of my characters.

Probably secondary isn't quite a story, but a setting. I imagine the world and the atmosphere of a culture. So few of my stories take place in the real world, largely because I enjoy creating fictional societies so much.

I think only one of my stories was actually developed plot-first, and though I think that one definitely has the most concise and interesting story, that's the one I struggle the most with in developing my characters.