Prompting writing ideas and activities
I usually have a list of books waiting to be written. I rarely have whole plots for any of them, just a scene or an idea that's stuck in my head and won't leave until I turn it into someone's story. Occasionally, though, I draw a blank. Nothing I have planned appeals to me and I want something new to think about.
That's when I start playing games. I give myself writing exercises to do that trigger plot bunnies. Here are a few that always work for me. They're very quick and simple - no more than ten minutes each, tops.
Activity One:
Choose a word, a plant and an emotion at random. Use all three in a sentence, then begin asking questions about the character.
Example:Word: firmPlant: rosemaryEmotion: grief
I wrote three sentences. Each one has the potential to grow into a story.
1. Her tears of grief dampened the soil as she patted it firmly around the rosemary.2. The rosemary scent of his clothing churned the grief roiling inside her, refusing to allow any firm resolution into her mind.3. Rosemary’s eyes glistened with new grief, her lips firm in the face of it.
Activity Two:
I don't watch much TV or watch movies very often, but we have a significant collection of movies on DVD at home. I browse the titles and ask myself questions about different scenarios that would fit those titles. These questions are often philosophical or logical and bring me to story scenarios in a totally different way to the first activity.
Example:
Does the dog wag the tail or does the tail wag the dog. Something that seems true may not be due to perceptions of the viewers. How do you tell the difference? What special skills would be required to discern the difference between truth and projected image?
What things in this world are accepted as truths? List.
How might these things be different if perception is altered?
Think Matrix and throw in a few Tribbles just for fun.
Activity three:
This is one of my favourites. Walk through a crowded room. It could be at a party where you know most of the people (or none of them), it could be in a shopping centre, the theatre or a restaurant. The location doesn't matter. What matters is that you walk slowly and listen. Once you've done a circuit, try to remember four or five sentences you've heard and write them down. The trick is to get individual sentences from different people in different social groups.
Example:
"I'm in the sweet spot."
"Fifteen! How can they justify that?"
"Of course she does a much better job of it."
"Who the hell did they get to paint that?"
Now, weave those sentences into a story. I'm imagining painting restoration or forgery, or perhaps interior designer turned embezzler. The possibilities are almost endless. Just for interest's sake, those sentences were lifted from patrons at the theatre.
That's when I start playing games. I give myself writing exercises to do that trigger plot bunnies. Here are a few that always work for me. They're very quick and simple - no more than ten minutes each, tops.
Activity One:
Choose a word, a plant and an emotion at random. Use all three in a sentence, then begin asking questions about the character.
Example:Word: firmPlant: rosemaryEmotion: grief
I wrote three sentences. Each one has the potential to grow into a story.
1. Her tears of grief dampened the soil as she patted it firmly around the rosemary.2. The rosemary scent of his clothing churned the grief roiling inside her, refusing to allow any firm resolution into her mind.3. Rosemary’s eyes glistened with new grief, her lips firm in the face of it.
Activity Two:
I don't watch much TV or watch movies very often, but we have a significant collection of movies on DVD at home. I browse the titles and ask myself questions about different scenarios that would fit those titles. These questions are often philosophical or logical and bring me to story scenarios in a totally different way to the first activity.
Example:
Does the dog wag the tail or does the tail wag the dog. Something that seems true may not be due to perceptions of the viewers. How do you tell the difference? What special skills would be required to discern the difference between truth and projected image?
What things in this world are accepted as truths? List.
How might these things be different if perception is altered?
Think Matrix and throw in a few Tribbles just for fun.
Activity three:
This is one of my favourites. Walk through a crowded room. It could be at a party where you know most of the people (or none of them), it could be in a shopping centre, the theatre or a restaurant. The location doesn't matter. What matters is that you walk slowly and listen. Once you've done a circuit, try to remember four or five sentences you've heard and write them down. The trick is to get individual sentences from different people in different social groups.
Example:
"I'm in the sweet spot."
"Fifteen! How can they justify that?"
"Of course she does a much better job of it."
"Who the hell did they get to paint that?"
Now, weave those sentences into a story. I'm imagining painting restoration or forgery, or perhaps interior designer turned embezzler. The possibilities are almost endless. Just for interest's sake, those sentences were lifted from patrons at the theatre.
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