Gnu Writer Speaks: Playground of the Mind

Want to write some fiction?  Don’t know how to start?  Here’s a suggestion: play.

I picked up a book by James N. Frey called ‘How to Write a Damn Good Thriller’.  Actually, I am personally into action/adventures which are different from thrillers but, I found something valuable in his book.  He provided a stream-of-consciousness monolog about how to play with his plots and characters.  It was liberating.  He would start with an idea for a plot and, after pursuing it a while, would go, ‘No, that’s not going the right direction or that’s not fun so why don’t we go over here and see where this path leads.’  Same with development of his characters.  The protagonist is a plumber, no, let’s say she is a psychotherapist.  His monolog showed some free thinking and experimentation, all mind games, all without consequences other than to probe possibilities.  Eventually, decisions must be made, of course, so the plot and characters actually do lead somewhere of interest.  But, the point is that juggling all sorts of possibilities will uncover richer connections and situations that can lead to a more interesting novel, short story or poem.

Elemental?  Sure.  But, do we do it?  Probably not as much as we should.