CBI Challenge Module 15 – Exercise 3: Getting Unstuck

Jul 20th, 2010 | By Jon Bard | Category: The CBI Challenge

Note to guests:  this is part of our ongoing step-by-step writing course The CBI Challenge, which is included in membership to Children’s Book Insider and The CBI Clubhouse.  Each month, we have a variety of articles and exercises tied to the current step in the course.  This exercise is part of the modlule "Sharpen Your Strengths", which focuses on making the most of your strong areas and correcting your weak ones.  For more info about the CBI Challenge, watch our video here.  To join the CBI Clubhouse and get instant access to the entire course, click here.

 



Sometimes we get stuck developing a character, creating a setting, or deciding what happens next in the plot. Here are two exercises to help open the flow of ideas. These are excerpted from the newly-released 3rd edition of Brainstorming Workshop by Katherine Ploeger. For more exercises like this, go to http://write4kids.com/indepth.html


           

          CLUSTERING

Clustering is a diagramming method for gathering and organizing ideas that you do on paper, a brainstorming method both visual and organized.  While brainstorming, you place new ideas near related ones on the diagram.  You are also using previous entries to stimulate more thinking.

 

             STEPS

                Step 1

Begin with an idea you want to explore.  Put that word in a circle in the center of the page.  Then branch off from that circle as ideas come to you.  Each new circle can become a jumping off point for even more ideas.  Often your ideas become more specific as you branch off farther from the center.  You may find that the outer branches represent subtopics of your main idea.

Align the placement of your ideas to each level of generality, with the more general ideas (larger in scope) nearer the center of the diagram and the more specific or detailed ideas at the outer edges.

                Step 2

When you have filled a page with connected circles, or when you have exhausted your ideas, examine your clusters for groups of ideas or examples you can use. 

Place these in an outline or put the ideas in columns with headings labeling the group each idea belongs to.  Remember to keep to the level of generality for each idea, with the larger ideas being closer to the left margin than the details, which are indented, perhaps a few times.

You may also use this technique to break down a huge topic.  You will be looking for a subtopic large and small enough to do in the time allotted or desired. 

You may use various methods with this technique:

·                    Cluster with circles and branches, as described above.

·                    Ask yourself questions about each: WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, WHY, HOW

·                    Use each branch to write a question or phrase about the topic or issue in the circle.

·                    Take your circles and branches and ask yoCluster with each character in a smaller circle around the main circle (the topic or issue you want to examine), with traits or behaviors or questions on the branches and circles.

You can also explore mind mapping.  The Internet is full of websites that offer descriptions of the process, worksheets, and even software to facilitate this technique.

 

          VISIONING/DAYDREAMING

Visioning or daydreaming can help you generate details for your writing or solutions to problems by allowing you to explore an idea at length, within your imagination.  You can play with consequences and outcomes without experiencing them in real life.  You can envision various scenarios to find the one that best meets your need for the project or story. 

             STEPS

                Step 1

Find a quiet and comfortable place where you can relax (but not fall asleep), a place at which you will be undisturbed for at least half an hour.  You might also want to do this exercise after waking in the morning, but before you get up.  With your still relaxed and slightly drowsy, shift focus to a character or story issue.  Allow yourself 15 to 30 minutes to get into the issue or scene within your mind.  You may wish to concentrate on something you will write that day, or something you want to explore, details that you will later add to your notes.

                Step 2

Think about what might be.  Explore the topic, wander around the fictional setting, run various scenarios to see the ways that the characters or participants behave in any given situation. 

                Step 3

Once you have completed visioning, quickly write down everything you saw.  Jot these down in words or phrases, not complete sentences.  Put as many words down as possible, using enough words to remind you of your vision.  The faster you can get these ideas down, the more ideas you will actually record. 

                Step 4

After writing down all of the important aspects of your vision, sit back, relax, and let your mind clear.  Take each note written and let it go to another step.  What might be the consequences, ramifications, or next steps about this note?  Let your mind flow, jotting down ideas – even silly ones – without judgment.  Evaluate ideas later. 

You might want to record your ideas on a digital recorder, so you can focus on the details of the vision and not on the process of actually writing them down.

 

             Some Visions to Try with Fiction:

Envision the beginning of your story, in full detail, with dialogue.  Then envision the ending, or several possible endings to see which one feels the best.

Envision yourself as the villain or bad guy.  Remember that they are human (usually), and feel justified in their actions.  Even a murderer commits the crime out of some feeling of being right, if only for a moment.

Envision yourself as your main character confronted with an important scene in the story.  How does the character react?  What other possible reactions might better contribute to conflict and tension within the story?

Envision the general setting of the story.  What do the houses look like, the city or village, or the transportation methods.  Look for telling details useful for the story.

Envision the minor characters that walk through the setting.  Why are they there?  How can they contribute to the story?  Who can play minor adversarial roles, creating more tension and conflict for the main character? 

 

             Some Visions to Try with Nonfiction:

Envision the setting of your topic or issue, a place where people are involved with your issue.  Look at typical and atypical behaviors, reactions, problems and solutions, needs, things people avoid.  Explore the issue with as much detail and depth as possible.

 

Related posts:

  1. CBI Challenge Module 12 – “Show, Don’t Tell” Exercise # 2
  2. CBI Challenge, Module 10 Exercise, Part 1 – Brainstorming
  3. CBI Challenge 13 – Point of View Exercise #2
  4. Module 15 – Exercise 1: Learn to Judge if Your Protagonist is Worth Writing About
  5. CBI Challenge, Module 10 Exercise, Part 2 – Creating an Outline

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