Hey Writer!
This is the second lesson of my free writing course, the Fawn’s Formula. This lesson is a chance to put your creative juices to use- whether the river in your mind is all dried up or it’s overflowing with too many ideas. Let’s dive right in!
Idea 1: Writer’s Block
Sometimes you have so many ideas brewing for a story. But the moment you open up the blank document, you have no idea how to go about writing.
Why does this happen? We often assume it’s because we aren’t creative or we have some innate flaw preventing us from writing. But have you considered the idea that it may be too open-ended?
Yes, you may have the idea for the story. Yes, you may already know how it should end. But where’s the rest? How should the characters be? How should the plot build to the climax?
Sometimes, we just need constraints. It may seem counterintuitive to add constraints when you’re struggling to express your creativity, but constraints get rid of distracting ideas and let you focus on each idea individually.
One of my favorite exercises to begin writing when I feel overwhelmed with ideas is the 5 word exercise. You heard it! This exercise is exactly what it sounds like- constraining your writing to 5 randomly generated word-topics.
Exercise 1: The 5 word exercise
- Choose one of the three “nutrients” from Lesson 1- Plot, Characters, or Style
- Enter a random word generator website and generate 5 random words (I like to use https://randomwordgenerator.com/)
- Based on the “nutrient” you chose, answer the following prompt:
- Plot: Write a plot for your story incorporating the 5 words, using one word each for the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
- Character: Write a character description that incorporates personality traits and appearance based on the 5 words.
- Style: Write a mini-story using the 5 words. You can either Incorporate a couple of lines of dialogue and description OR Use 2 words as inspiration for the tone, 2 for the character’s dialogue style, and the last for the emotion you want to evoke in the story.
Once you’ve completed the exercise, think about what you wrote. Do you think the constraints helped or hindered your creativity? Were you able to explore new characters, plots, or styles that you haven’t encountered in other stories you’ve read or watched?
Conclusion
By the end of this lesson, you’ll have a better understanding of how to use constraints to construct creative stories. This exercise can be especially helpful when you have an idea for a story but don’t know where to start.
If you’d like to learn more exercises for overcoming writer’s block, check out my post: 4 Effective Tips to Break Writer’s Block.
The next lesson builds on this one, helping you harness the power of dreams and daydreams for creativity. Ready to jump in? Let’s go!
Here is Lesson 3.
This course is still in progress, with a new lesson coming out each week. If you would like an email update for when a new lesson is available, fill out the form below!
