Debby Dodds
I'm so inspired by everything. But I'll share an exercise I do with students. I call it "Harriet the Spy."
Take a notebook (old kind or digital) and go to a crowded place like a food court in a mall or a park. Write physical descriptions of people. Try to be minimalist with one person's description. Try to describe every detail with another. Surreptitiously eavesdrop on conversations. Write snippets down. Then imagine and write down the possible circumstances and outcomes of these conversations. Look at body language/movements, interactions, inanimate objects, etc. Write about it all.
What sparks a story?
Take a notebook (old kind or digital) and go to a crowded place like a food court in a mall or a park. Write physical descriptions of people. Try to be minimalist with one person's description. Try to describe every detail with another. Surreptitiously eavesdrop on conversations. Write snippets down. Then imagine and write down the possible circumstances and outcomes of these conversations. Look at body language/movements, interactions, inanimate objects, etc. Write about it all.
What sparks a story?
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