How To Have Great Ideas
Writing out ideas is the best way to develop good ones. It's draining and it doesn't always happen. Writing helps you organize your thoughts, which can then help you find new ones that are even better. A trick that works well is to put a sentence in an empty text box and leave it there for a day or two: after writing more in this box, read the sentence aloud to yourself while explaining the thing you were thinking about. Suddenly, your brain might spark up an idea!
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• Keep an idea journal. A journal is the best way to come up with good ideas – recorded thoughts or drawings can spark new ones. Also, if you're going to write a novel or get a job, you should be keeping an idea journal, because you're allowed to write whatever you want in it! The Art of Manliness has one , as did Leo Tolstoy!
• Look for new ideas everywhere. Play, observe people, listen to your gut (and study how your gut works), and keep asking why (and then look for the answers).
• Look for trends and patterns in nature. Take a walk in the woods and look for new things to draw or record – that's how we develop our skills. Look at the books of your field, pick out some ideas that seem interesting, and tell yourself why you think they are interesting.
• Keep an idea log. Record your ideas in a notebook, but not the way you record facts: write them down as if they were characters in a story, with action, dialogue, setting…
• Think small. If you can't come up with an idea, try to come up with an idea for something small. It's easier to expand on something small and make it bigger than it is to start with a blank page and make something entirely new.
• Don't force it. If you can't think of anything, don't force yourself to write down ideas. Do other things: run, play games, clean your house, sleep… Just be sure to get back to thinking of ideas at some point soon!
• Come up with ideas when you're tired or bored – those are the best times for them!
• Ask "what if?" – this is a great way to come up with new ideas. What if you could erase the sun? What if we made a new world out of mud? What if your phone had all the capabilities of a computer, but wasn't electronic?
• Take notes. Make notes on what you've been reading. Then, come up with ideas. This is especially good for writers or whoever does book reviews: it's better to think about something for a long time and then write about it than to quickly outline an idea, which will probably never get anywhere.
• Go to parties and just talk. The conversations are always interesting; the people are usually friendly if you're respectful, and by being quiet and listening you might make a new friend (or feel better about yourself because you're not talking all the time).
• Take a creative writing class. You can learn to write short stories in all sorts of ways: just look at what your friends are doing and see if there is something you can do in your way, too.
• Read more books and think more about things that interest you. Reading will help your ideas develop. Think of all the things that interest you – who, what, when, where – then think of how those things could play into one big idea…!
• Go out on a "reading walk". You can go to a bookstore, or look for the book in video and see if you can quote any of it (you know, the part where the author is shouting at you!), or just randomly pick up a book and read it for fun. This also works for reading blogs – trust me, ideas will come!
• Daydream. Sometimes daydreaming is okay! Don't try to solve complicated puzzles inside your head – just let yourself be dreaming. You might find ideas popping out of nowhere – don't sweat it if they don't have an immediate association with anything you're thinking about right now.
• Write little poems or stories. Write deliberately about something small and then write more deliberately about it.
• Read other books on a similar topic. If you read something that's related to the subject you're thinking about, go back and read the book again – maybe now it will spark an idea! Or, see if there's something in the book you can use to come up with new ideas of your own.
• Write down a few favorite quotes. Then think of how they could relate to your idea.
• Go to the library and skim the shelves – what looks interesting? Come up with an idea that explains why it's interesting.
• Keep a notebook with you when you go out so you can jot down ideas as soon as they come to you.
• See if there is a related field that could spark new ideas for yours. For example: if you're writing a novel, maybe there are some ideas from writing poetry or short stories that can help your novel!
• Read another book on the subject: non-fiction, fiction, poetry… whatever. Then try to make connections between this book and your idea.
• Look at the things around you and think why they're cool or interesting.
• Make sure you're honest with yourself about what you really want to do. If you would rather be a video game designer, then don't try to force yourself to become a writer (or vice-versa).
• Think of things that interest you, then think about them: how did they come about? Where did the author learn about them? How could things have been different for this person?
• Take notes on as many patterns and trends as you can – this exercise can help you come up with new ideas when it's time to start writing.
• Take a writing class. Classes are a great way to learn how to write and to think about things in new ways.
Conclusion:
So, that's how you come up with ideas – hopefully I've helped you to think of at least a few ways to do so! I would love to hear your ideas on how to come up with new ideas.
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How To Have Great Ideas