I've been asked what I do to come up with stories and prepare for the writing process. It's not complicated for me. I make a few notes about characters and their family and friends. If I have to do any research I will make notes on what I find. Other than that I let the story play out as I write it. I like the feeling of not knowing what will happen until it comes to me. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night with the idea of what will happen next in the story line, other times it comes as I type. I know a ton of writers plot out every single aspect of their story, but that just doesn't work for me. I guess it's the same as reading a book, I look forward to writing the next page, just like I would stay up all night reading to see how the story ends.