The first topic of discussion was idea generation, and this has always been a weak point for me. I want to write but finding things to write about? That’s the hard part.
In the past, I’ve used methods like mindmapping, which involves just writing things down in a giant spider diagram, but I still struggle. I quite like using prompts, but I feel like I can’t use them for anything I may publish because I’d be idea stealing.
A method used in the course I’ve not touched before is the fiction square. This involved writing down ideas for a character, setting, goal, conflict and consequence in a table. You can choose as many of each as you like. Nothing had to fit together necessarily, as the idea is to choose things from each column and see what thoughts they spark.
This was surprisingly successful for me. I found that thinking of aspects of a story one at a time was easier. You could also adjust the things you write down to include things like a genre, a villain, an important object etc.
Tip: If you are still stuck, try using Story Cubes to get some ideas. These are especially appealing to fellow nerds who love dice.
I did have a rough idea of what I wanted to do already, but this really helped me hone my thoughts and think about broader ideas, rather than just adventurers who are rubbish at adventuring go on adventures.
With my idea broadened a little I was ready to start thinking about the specifics, although I’d need to wait a week to get to that part.
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