Developing ideas: Garth Nix
These ideas are offered as workshop adaptations of Garth Nix's '9 stage in writing a novel' (blog post 12.3.2014) You might also like to try the idea 9 in Quick writes: Longer structured exercises derived from Ernest Hemingway's famous six-word story: 'For sale: baby shoes, never worn'
(The first two exercises here were used to great success by NWP Wembley when the group met at the Barbican on Nov 16 2019.)
1. 9 snapshots (observations/ideas recorded in your journal) -
2. Now imagine a scene featuring one of the snapshots above; imagine an overarching mood or feeling (frustration, fascination, fear, anticipation, contentment), and write 9 sentences. As you mull over your ideas, let your mind track backwards, forwards, inwards and outwards from the chosen 'snapshot' - some questions which might excite more thoughts or story-patterning ...
3. The snapshot is accompanied by an illustration/film clip. What are the colours/angles/the sound effects/the mood music? What details are in the foreground - and what, in the background, has significance? What will be the consequences of this scene?
4. Revisit the same scene through the eyes of another character - if you have adopted first person move to third; if you have told this in the present, move to the past. The idea is to dig over the ground of your idea until you have a fine tilth, ready for the planting of a story.
5. Write a list of 9 other characters who might feature in this story - named characters are fine: 'Sofia Renato - a single mother of 2 children, living in the flat upstairs' ; unnamed characters are fine: 'the fisherman in his boat on the lake'.
6. Choose one character and list 9 things that they have in their pockets/ in their suitcase/ in their room; 9 places they have been to in their lives; 9 memories of significance (or collect 9 objects which will feature in the story ... or write a 9-line monologue by that character.)
7. Draw a map of a town/place in this story and find 9 names for roads, rivers, buildings,features and places first from the words you have used - and then from 9 related words: 'Rose Avenue', 'Disappointment alley', 'Whisper brook', 'The Rock building' ...
8. Now find an intersection/cross-roads/place that interests you on your map and write the conversation of 9 lines between two characters who meet there.
9. The book/novel is completed: write the blurb/ the introduction/the acknowledgements or the interview with the author.
10. Now devise the title(s) and 9 chapter headings.
Simon Wrigley
Outreach director
12.3.2014 (updated 22 Nov 2019)
(The first two exercises here were used to great success by NWP Wembley when the group met at the Barbican on Nov 16 2019.)
1. 9 snapshots (observations/ideas recorded in your journal) -
- a person's behaviour you've noted recently
- a distinctive sound that you've heard
- a piece of technology
- a scene from history/ the radio/TV/internet news
- words or a scene from a book that you've read/ a sign that you've seen
- something someone else has told you about
- something that you can imagine
- a landscape
- a town you've visited recently
2. Now imagine a scene featuring one of the snapshots above; imagine an overarching mood or feeling (frustration, fascination, fear, anticipation, contentment), and write 9 sentences. As you mull over your ideas, let your mind track backwards, forwards, inwards and outwards from the chosen 'snapshot' - some questions which might excite more thoughts or story-patterning ...
- what had happened the day/month before?
- how did this remind her of a scene from her childhood - or what her mother had said?
- how did this echo events in the 'real' world?
- how would this reappear, distorted, in his dreams?
- who 'took' the snapshot/ who saw or heard this and what were they doing/feeling at the time?
3. The snapshot is accompanied by an illustration/film clip. What are the colours/angles/the sound effects/the mood music? What details are in the foreground - and what, in the background, has significance? What will be the consequences of this scene?
4. Revisit the same scene through the eyes of another character - if you have adopted first person move to third; if you have told this in the present, move to the past. The idea is to dig over the ground of your idea until you have a fine tilth, ready for the planting of a story.
5. Write a list of 9 other characters who might feature in this story - named characters are fine: 'Sofia Renato - a single mother of 2 children, living in the flat upstairs' ; unnamed characters are fine: 'the fisherman in his boat on the lake'.
6. Choose one character and list 9 things that they have in their pockets/ in their suitcase/ in their room; 9 places they have been to in their lives; 9 memories of significance (or collect 9 objects which will feature in the story ... or write a 9-line monologue by that character.)
7. Draw a map of a town/place in this story and find 9 names for roads, rivers, buildings,features and places first from the words you have used - and then from 9 related words: 'Rose Avenue', 'Disappointment alley', 'Whisper brook', 'The Rock building' ...
8. Now find an intersection/cross-roads/place that interests you on your map and write the conversation of 9 lines between two characters who meet there.
9. The book/novel is completed: write the blurb/ the introduction/the acknowledgements or the interview with the author.
10. Now devise the title(s) and 9 chapter headings.
Simon Wrigley
Outreach director
12.3.2014 (updated 22 Nov 2019)