New classes began this week for several venues in which I teach—college level writing skills, creative and nonfiction writing, and storytelling with my elementary students. No matter the age or level of the writer, before you can write, you need ideas.
Ideas are all around us, but many new writers need to train themselves to recognize ideas. Yes, being open to ideas from our experiences comes with time. This is also why journaling is beneficial. Before you decide to journal, though, spend some time answering questions.
What's on your mind? What do you wonder about? Record interesting bits of overheard conversation. Describe interesting people you meet or notice. As you write about what has happened in your life and record enjoyable experiences, it's easier to see potential ideas as they surface.
Another way to train your brain to notice ideas is to make a list every evening. What errands, events, incidents, people, activities, and places made up your day? Even if you only list two or three items each evening, by the end of the week you'll have a longer list to work with. Now, use three large index cards to categorize the list. Mark one card "characters," one "plot points," and the last card "details." Transfer items from your list to the appropriate card. For example, events and incidents go on "plot points" while sensory experiences and descriptors go on "details." Interesting people you've dealt with, from cashiers and bank tellers to rowdy kids, go on "characters." Jumbling items from all three cards will create prompts for story writing.
Continue organizing those ideas; the more ideas you collect, the easier it will be to translate them from experience to story idea.
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