4 Tools To Use To Spark Creative Writing
Picture this; you sit down to write out a great story you have running inside your head but when you go to actually write it, nothing comes out. You know you have a great idea, but it does not seem to translate well from thought into physical words. Then comes the feeling of frustration because you have all these ideas. You just are not able to translate them. It can be quite annoying. Writing is something I greatly enjoy and I the notion of being unable to write down my thoughts. However, there are some tools that can be used to help put those ideas onto paper, or a computer. The following list is a few that I use on a regular basis and find useful. I hope that you might find a use for them as well.
Here are 4 tools and techniques to spark your creative writing skills:
1. Make a list of 20 nouns and verbs
Sometimes a simple solution is the best solution. Find a dictionary, whether online or a physical book. Pick random pages and make a list of twenty nouns and twenty verbs. In my case, I will make a list in the form of a school assignment I had in the first grade. Match a noun with a verb. In this situation, I add the step of creating a phrase out of the noun and verb. These sentences can be realistic, and sometimes they can be odd. Either way, it can help form a part of the story you want to tell and it can spread out from there.
2. Use a random sentence generator
In a similar way to the first possible tool, using a random sentence generator online can help. It creates different sentences, sometimes even paragraphs. You can use a general sentence generator with no discernable genre, or you can be incredibly specific, for example, a sci-fi sentence generator. I had used it on, and the first few sentences seemed normal and didn’t spark anything. Yet when I received the sentence ‘the day started out well enough before she had died’, it had caused an idea to form and I found I could write a short story about a ghost. It was quite fun for me.
3. People watching; writing dialogue as spoken
When writing dialogue, I struggle because I speak using an extensive vocabulary and that comes out in my writing. Though watching people at the mall, or overhearing conversations can allow you to learn how people speak. Sometimes there can be no context or the conversation can be a good debate. Everyone speaks differently, in their word choice, accents, and what they learned from schoolmates and family. Just listen to people and write down in the style of their speech.
4. Take song lyrics and make a short story out of it
This one is quite fun to do. A lot of artists who write their own songs are telling a story are sending a message, though that isn’t always the case. Songs are products of someone’s creativity. I like to make videos for fandoms I love, such as Stargate or Doctor Who, and I try my best to use the lyrics of a song to outline a story using video clips. I find it similar when writing things down or typing them. Each line of the song can be expanded into a full sentence or a paragraph. Some songs can create a short story or a story that can almost be classified as a novel. It can’t be done with every single song, but it can be fun to try. Some can create interesting stories.
There are a lot of ways to spark creativity and to also overcome writer’s block. Not everyone shares the same style or tools. These are the ones that I use most commonly and find the most creativity with. Gives these ones a try and see what you can create from them. You may even find some creative writing tools that aren’t included and work better for you.
Have fun with writing!
Opinions and Perspectives
I love the idea of using song lyrics as writing prompts! I've tried this with some of my favorite indie songs and it's amazing how much story potential you can find in just a few verses.
The noun and verb matching exercise seems a bit basic at first, but I tried it yesterday and ended up with some really unique combinations that sparked a whole new story idea.
People watching for dialogue practice is such an underrated tip. I've started keeping a small notebook with me at coffee shops to jot down interesting phrases I overhear.
Has anyone actually had success with random sentence generators? They always give me such weird outputs that don't really lead anywhere useful.
I actually found the random sentence generator incredibly helpful. It gave me a bizarre line about a talking cactus that turned into a really fun children's story.
These tools are great for getting started, but I find myself struggling to maintain momentum after the initial spark. Any suggestions for keeping the creativity flowing?
The song lyrics method really resonates with me. I turned Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah into a short story last month and it was surprisingly emotional to write.
My creative writing students love the noun-verb matching game. We turn it into a group activity and everyone shares their wildest combinations.
I wish the article had mentioned something about writing prompts from images. That's always been my go-to method for sparking creativity.
The people watching technique helped me realize how stilted my dialogue was. Real conversations are so much messier than what we usually write.
I tried all four methods and found the random sentence generator most helpful. It forces you to think outside your usual patterns.
Not sure about eavesdropping on people for dialogue practice. Feels a bit invasive to me.
The beauty of these tools is their simplicity. We often overthink the creative process when sometimes all we need is a simple push in the right direction.
Combining these methods can be really powerful. I use the noun-verb list with random sentences to create unique writing prompts.
The song lyrics approach seemed gimmicky at first, but it's actually a great way to study story structure and pacing.
I agree with the previous comment about ethical concerns with people watching, but you can always observe public interactions without being creepy about it.
These tools work well for fiction, but what about non-fiction writers? Any suggestions for adapting these techniques?
The random sentence generator saved me from writer's block last week. Sometimes you just need that strange prompt to get going.
I've found that the noun-verb exercise works best when you deliberately choose words that don't typically go together.
My writing group tried the song lyrics method with the same song and it was fascinating to see how differently each person interpreted it.
The article could have mentioned digital tools like writing software that incorporate some of these features automatically.
I appreciate how these methods can work for both beginning writers and more experienced ones. There's no skill floor or ceiling.
The people watching technique has improved my character development significantly. Real people are so much more complex than we imagine.
I've started combining the random sentence generator with historical events. Creates some really interesting alternate history scenarios.
Would love to see more examples of how others have used these tools successfully in their writing.
The noun-verb matching reminds me of magnetic poetry. Sometimes constraints can boost creativity rather than limit it.