can't help telling stories
I hate traditional outlining. I think lots of people found it hard to deal with during those teacher-enforced research paper projects in school.
Still, we need organizing tools when we write. I tend to use spreadsheet software to keep track of my characters and events in longer fiction. Kira Brady has another approach.
How to Plot a Novel: The Plotting Board Method | Kira Brady
http://kirabrady.com/2012/09/24/how-to-plot-a-novel-the-plotting-board-method/
Seeking a different perspective? Consider author Virginia Morrell’s revelations about animal minds.
Try a prompt: write a sketch from a parakeet’s point of view. Or a chimpanzee’s.
What Are Animals Really Thinking? Author Explores Hidden World
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/02/140223-morell-animal-wise-animals-science-book-award/
Occasionally we read a story with a disabled character. The first one we meet may be Captain Hook. Ahab, another sailor, lost a leg to Moby Dick.
How does a disability – long-term or temporary (think “Rear Window”) – make a difference in a character’s behavior? What does he or she do to compensate? To overcome? To forget? What does he or she add to your story’s tone?
This piece points out some advantages to consider before you discount adding a disabled character.
Hiring Employees With Disabilities | Entrepreneur.com
http://m.entrepreneur.com/article/231731
Marketplace is the only business news I try to listen to, so when book publishing came up as a topic the other day, I had to listen. Here’s the transcript.
Meet Sylvia Day: The steamy baroness of book deals | Marketplace.org
http://www.marketplace.org/topics/business/big-book/meet-sylvia-day-steamy-baroness-book-deals
Think about this the next time you have “writer’s block.”
Or try talking fruit as a prompt.
The Neuroscience Of Imagination | Fast Company | Business + Innovation
http://m.fastcompany.com/3026510/dialed/the-neuroscience-of-imagination
sharon p. lynn 