Writing Hint #45: Using your imagination
“A lady’s imagination is very rapid: it jumps from admiration to love. From love to matrimony. It a moment.” Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin.
I am writing this post in my daughter’s office. She is a avid Jane Austin devotee. The above quote she has on a bookmark pinned to her notice board in front of her desk. It started me thinking.
Now let me set the scene:
- I am not going to write about “admiration.”
- I am not going to write about “love.”
- I am not going to write about “matrimony.”
Instead, it was the part about imagination I wish to address. Imagination is very rapid. We can have great leaps of the imagination that can take us soaring with the eagles, flying through the stars or swimming with the whales.
Imagination is the stuff of writing. Without imagination, writers are in a barren land. Without imagination readers would have no reason to read. Imagination is the land of mystery, it is the mighty ocean of the mind, it is the vast expanse of infinity. And we can access our imagination in an instant.
Writers and the imagination
Now for some practical hints about using the imagination.
Writers can tap into this vast storeroom of the imagination to come up with ideas for their stories, novels and poems. Learn to draw from life and all that you come in contact with for the seeds of stories. Always be looking, looking, seeking those gems of ideas that will spring into life as a story. How do writers do this? Let me tell you some ways you can do it.
- People: We meet or see people every day. Sit in a shopping mall and observe the people you see. Choose one of them. Jot down a few ideas about the person. Use your imagination to create a character. Where do they live? Why are they here? Where are they going? What are they worried (or happy) about? Let your imagination run riot.
- Photographs: Pick up a newspaper or magazine. Choose a photo – any photo. Don’t be too fussy; any photo will do. Now let your imagination run wild. (Do not read the caption or the story it accompanies; it will narrow your imagination.) Let your imagination come up with suggestions about a story involving the scene featured in the photo. For example, a photo shows a fisherman sitting in a boat. Who is this man? What problems have driven him to seek the solitude of fishing alone? Why is he looking so anxious?
- News headlines: Skim through a newspaper. Choose one headline; don’t read the article. Let your imagination loose so that it can come up with a story idea as a response to that headline. For example, the headline is about a boy genius entering university at age twelve.Your imagination jumps to thinking you are that boy. How did you get there? What happens to you at university? How do you cope with the rejections of your peers who think you are a freak?
- Household object: Go for a walk around your home. Choose any object that grabs your imagination. Come up with a story idea revolving around the object. For example, you pick up a pair of scissors.Your imagination leaps to murder. How did this murderous weapon come into your home? How are you involved?
- Listen for sounds: On a walk you stop to listen to the sounds around you. The wind is moaning through the trees. Let you imagination take you to a land of mourning, a place of tears and much distress. Why do you feel so sad? Who or what has died, been lost, destroyed or ruined forever?
Look for writing ideas everywhere. In the ordinary things of life. In the mundane objects and experiences. In the commonplace and familiar. And then let your imagination loose.
Good writing.
Write while the heat is in you
“Write while the heat is in you. The writer who postpones the recording of his thoughts uses an iron which has cooled to burn a hole with. He cannot inflame the minds of his audience.” Henry David Thoreau.
I have found that it is important to always carry a small notebook. There have been times when I have had a brilliant thought (or so it seemed at the time) only to forget it because I had not written it down immediately.
I usually carry a small notebook in my shirt pocket. This serves a number of general purposes as well as a help with my writing. Some of these uses include:
- To record a list of the birds I see (so I can write about them on my blog called Trevor’s Birding).
- To list any shopping I need to do.
- To list places I want to go.
- To write down story ideas.
- To list ideas for blog articles.
- To write short poems or haiku.
- To record the names and contact details of people I meet.
- To record feelings, ideas, experiences so I don’t forget those first impressions.
- To list things to do.
- To list things to remember.
When you have a good idea, write it down. Don’t trust it to memory.
Good writing.
Setting goals for your writing
“One way to have more successes is to set yourself more modest goals.” Ashleigh Brilliant.
While this is a somewhat flippant and whimsical approach to goal setting, I do not fully agree with it. I find that so many people do not achieve anything of significance in their lives because they set no goals. Or they may set some goals but never seriously attempt to achieve them. And near the end of their lives they just wonder what happened and where their lives went.
On the other hand, some people set goals that are lofty, admirable and worthy of pursuing. Then they get discouraged because they cannot attain those goals. They had an unrealistic level of their own abilities.
Set realistic goals
I prefer instead to work hard at setting – and then achieving – realistic goals. Know thyself – analyse your goals and be honest with yourself, acknowledging your strengths and being aware of weaknesses. Take into account times and circumstances which can drastically impinge upon your goals. Know through trial and error what you can achieve. And then work hard at achieving your goals.
Writing goals
I have three crucial goals regarding my writing:
- I set firm targets for the number of hours of writing I do each week, month and year.
- I set firm targets for the number of words I write each week, month and year.
- I set firm goals for the number of blog posts I write each month.
I do not always achieve these goals, but I sure work hard at reaching them. Sometimes there are major interruptions, like recently when I was asked to work full time in a relieving capacity for three weeks. You have to work around life events and their demands.
Stretch yourself
I prefer not to set modest goals, as Ashleigh Brilliant suggests in the quote above. I would much rather set realistic goals that I know I can achieve if I work hard at them – and they stretch me a little. The satisfaction of achievement is therefore much sweeter.
Good writing.
Just a thought – about cups and words
“We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out.”
~ Ray Bradbury
I’ve never thought of myself as a cup.
Until now.
Life is constantly filling us with experiences, images, ideas, thoughts, emotions and a constant barrage of words, spoken and written. From that amazing hotchpotch stew can come “the beautiful stuff” that can inspire, amuse, instruct, entertain and even bring tears to the eyes of the reader.
What a wonderful privilege to be a writer.
And what an awesome challenge for the writer serious about the craft.
Good writing.
The importance of reading
“The man who doesn’t read good books has no advantage over the man who can’t read them.” Mark Twain.
If you don’t read you are missing out on a great way of learning as well as a wonderful way of improving your life. Books can instruct, inform, entertain, motivate and inspire. This is a simple and relatively inexpensive (if you join a library) method of growing as a person. Drawing on the wisdom of the ages, books cover every subject you can imagine.
Writing and the importance of reading:
For writers, reading is essential. Reading a wide range of authors in a wide range of genre is a very effective way of helping your development as a writer. All the different styles of writing, the range of voices used and the techniques employed by published authors will help develop your own style and voice.
Develop the habit of reading. Resolve to never let a day go by without reading something.
For me though, there remains just one problem – finding the time to read all the books I would love to read.