Getting Those Creative Juices Flowing (Again)
by Karen L. Oberst
  You have written a well-done and useful article about a person or a company, finishing it just before the deadline. You give the person or company a final look at the article just before sending it in, and they say "No." For at least a moment, your mind falters, and goes blank.

After days of trying to arrange your schedule, you finally have time to spend on your great American novel. You sit down at the computer and stare at the blank screen.

You have a great idea for an article and query your editor about it. He says, "Sorry, we already have two articles on that topic coming up." Suddenly you need to come up with a new idea on the spur of the moment.

How can you get your creative juices flowing either after a rejection, or when you need to be getting words down on paper? Here are a few ideas for those dry times to jump-start your writing mode.

 Your mind has gone blank. Now what?

  Take a bus ride Take a bus ride. Observe your fellow passengers--buses are terrific places to people watch.
  • Are the man and the woman talking quietly, lovers who only have this time together?
  • Why did that man get on and ride for only two blocks before exiting again?
  • What is the tragedy that makes that young woman look so sad?
  • What possessed her to dress that way?
  • How does the driver feel about her job? Why would driving a bus be interesting? Scary? Boring?
  • How does life look and feel different from a bus than from a car?

  Write about your past, or the past of your family. You have a rich core of memories waiting to be tapped.
  • What do you remember about the first day of school?
  • When or how did you know you wanted to be a writer? Was it a sudden flash, or a lot of little things that led to your decision? Did you rather fall into it unexpectedly? If so, what made you stay with it?
  • Describe a crisis. Bring it back to your mind vividly. What did you hear, smell, see, or feel?
  • Picture in your mind a fight you had with your sibling(s). What did you fight about and why? What was the result?
  • How about your most memorable family vacation? Was it perfect? A disaster? Why?
  • What is the best or worst choice you ever made? How did it change your life? What would you do differently if you could go back to that time?
  • Reproduce your bedroom when you were a child. Did you decorate it, or did your parents? What did you like most? Least?
  • Describe a memorable elementary school scene. Did you ever get sent to the principle? Why? Did you have to stand out in the hall? Did you ever get hurt badly enough to be sent to the school nurse? Explore the feelings you had.
  • How long is it since you thought about your best childhood friend? Talk about what you liked about each other then. How did you lose touch, or how is your friendship different now?

    Think about your favorite non-writing job. What did you especially like about it? Why did you leave, or why are you still there? What was your least favorite job, and why? What was your favorite writing assignment?

    		•  Write about your past

      Muisc Music has the power to evoke powerful memories in us.
    • What is your favorite piece of music? Why do you like it?
    • What song can instantly send you back to your teenage years? Why?
    • Are there other songs that have associations for you because they accompanied a significant event?
    • Is there a song from a movie that can instantly bring back the feeling the movie aroused in you? What is the feeling? Are you glad to remember or not? Why?
    • A song you remember listening to while waiting for word in a hospital?
    • Think about what music type, singer, song, etc. is important to your parents or children. Why do you think this is?

      Food is another powerful summoner of memories.
    • What food can instantly make you feel better by thinking about it, seeing it, smelling it? Why?
    • What do you think about when seeing/smelling a chocolate chip cookie fresh from the oven? Baking bread? A steak and baked potato dinner? A fast food hamburger?
    • What did you always have to eat at your grandparents? What food makes you instantly think of your mother? Your father?
    • What is it that you especially enjoy about your favorite restaurant?
    • Does a restaurant have particular associations for you because of an event? Or a person?
    • Did you go to camp as a child, or go camping? If so, think of campfire food. Do hotdogs or s'mores have an especial association for you? Do they bring special camping memories?
    		Food

      "...get your creative juices flowing again..." These are only a few of the ideas you can use to get your creative juices flowing again after a shock, or being away from writing for a while. Use those that are helpful to you, and create your own. Happy writing!

    Copyright © 1999 by Karen L. Oberst

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