Write a Fantasy Novel? Me?!

For the last several days my mind is overflowing with thoughts revolving around a story idea for a fantasy fiction novel. How bizarre. I mean sure, I’ve made up stories in my head, but never anything this elaborate or detailed, and never anything that was so insistent about coming out of my head. It’s already beginning to show signs of obsession.

I’ve always been an avid reader and, for as long as I can remember, journaling is a way to get my thoughts down on paper so to stop the constant circling in my thoughts, but I’ve honestly never considered the idea of writing fiction. When I do write down my thoughts, they are typically deep thoughts on how the universe works or random thoughts on the daily happenings in my world. I may imagine pieces of stories sometimes, but my creativity typically comes out in the form of hand-crafting rather than writing (though I do write poetry on occasion).

When I was a kid and first enthralled with fiction works, I vaguely remember coming up with a scene here or there mostly influenced by the characters in whatever I’d just read though the scene was completely my own – that’s about it. I never thought through an entire possible story line, plot, character development, etc. and I’ve never felt driven to write any of it down.

Now suddenly I have this story idea that kinda won’t go away. A scene comes to mind and circles and circles until I write it down. Some character development comes to mind, evolves and revolves until I make notes on it. I recognize some influence from several other writers and series’, but this is completely my own story concept. The creativity running here is so insistent it is actually keeping me awake at night until I finally write down the latest thoughts, and then I wake with more! A brand new journal my mother recently sent me is already close to half-way filled with the tiny scrawl usually reserved for anxious or angry thoughts – in other words, something insistent to come out right now! In fact, I doubt anybody could read it but me, much less make sense of it.

I’ve even tried watching television or reading something else, if for no other reason than to give my wrist a break. But, as soon as I pause, the time when I would normally reflect on what I’ve just watched or read, in floods this story instead along with a sort of vague irritation like how dare you ignore me!

As I’ve read other writers’ thoughts on story writing, I’m guessing this is not the usual way of things. I mean, even though I already have pages and pages dedicated to this one story concept, there’s no order to it. Some pages are dialog but without the accompanying scene development even though the scene plays out entirely in my own mind complete with body language and props. The idea that some writers have to submit chapters for review while the story is in process would probably make me run screaming from it all! There is no rhyme or reason to my notes yet beyond how I view it all in my head. So far there isn’t even a beginning to the story, just bits and pieces of middle and a somewhat vague idea of a climax. It’s even occurred to me that with the elaborate plot already developed, and ideas for character development, it will probably have to be broken into a series…. if it ever solidifies into an actually story.

Is this even remotely normal? Thoughts? Suggestions? Please?