How to Brainstorm Ideas for a Novel

Step-by-Step Guide

1. 1

   Step 1: Respond to a writing prompt.

   One way to get your brain ready for writing is to respond to a writing prompt.
   
   You may come up with your own writing prompt or use an existing writing prompt.
   
   Writing prompts are a good way to develop plot or character in your novel.
   
   You may try responding to the prompt using the voice of a character or use the prompt to explore a plot point in your novel.Sometimes it can help you get inspired by putting on a certain style of music while you write.
   
   You may try putting on music in the background as you respond to the prompt to encourage your creativity.
   
   You can find lists of writing prompts on the Writing Prompts tumblr and the Daily Writing Prompts tumblr.
2. 2

   Step 2: Do a freewrite.

   You can get your creative juices flowing by doing a freewrite, which is an exercise where you sit down and write down whatever comes to mind.
   
   Freewrites are ideal if you are struggling to organize your thoughts and are not sure how to get started.You should have a quantitative goal for your freewrite, such as writing five pages in five minutes or writing continuously for ten minutes without stopping or pausing.
   
   Try not to read over what you are writing during the freewrite or edit it in any way.
   
   Instead, focus on writing your thoughts down and letting them run free on the page.
   
   Limit distractions.
   
   Try writing the freewrite on a piece of paper with a pen or pencil instead of on your computer.
   
   If you decide to do the freewrite on your computer, you should turn off your Internet connection and any other windows or tabs.
   
   This will help you focus on just the freewrite for the set amount of time. , You can also try doing a cubing writing exercise, where you look at one idea or topic from six different viewpoints.
   
   You should first think of a topic or subject and then approach it in six ways.
   
   You may use a broad topic like “wealth” or a specific subject like “millennial frustration.”Describe the topic.
   
   What is it? How would I describe the topic to someone who has never heard of it before? Compare the topic.
   
   What is the topic most like? What is it most unlike? Associate the topic.
   
   What does the topic make me think of? What is the first thing or things that pop into my mind when I think of the topic? Analyze the topic.
   
   What is made of? How is it made? Where is it made? Apply the topic.
   
   How is it used? Who uses and where do they use it? Argue for or against the topic.
   
   How can you support the topic? How can you oppose the topic? Why would you support or oppose it? , Listing ideas can help you identify possible story ideas and get you to think about how you might approach these ideas.
   
   Sit down and try to write out a list of potential novel ideas on a piece of paper.Make sure you list all of your ideas, even ones that sound ridiculous or silly.
   
   You may come up with an idea so absurd, you have to try to write a novel about it.
   
   You may then read over the list of ideas and highlight or star ideas that seem worth pursuing.
   
   You may then list more ideas under the ones you have highlighted or starred.
   
   You could then choose the idea that has the most notes and terms associated with it, as you clearly have a lot to say about it. , You can also try doing a mapping exercise, where you put down a key term on a piece of paper.
   
   Then, you write down other terms around it and draw lines connecting certain terms to each other.
   
   You can use different colored pens to connect the terms, circles, highlighters, or lines.Once you have a complete map of terms, you may look it over and see if any patterns or relationships between the terms emerge.
   
   You may then be able to use these connections as the basis for your novel idea.
3. 3

   Step 3: Try a cubing exercise.

4. 4

   Step 4: Make a list of potential novel ideas.

5. 5

   Step 5: Do a mapping exercise.

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