AUGUST, 2019
YOUR LIFE AS IDEA CENTRAL:
AN AUTHOR SELF-INTERROGATION
By: Alice Orr
My last several arti-
cles have been
about
generating
ideas for your writ-
ing. Sorry, I‘m not
finished yet. Because,
YOU are your most
natural subject matter
for your fiction, your nonfiction too, and
not only memoir writing.
Get Out Your Writer’s Journal. You
say you don‘t have a Writer‘s Journal?
Then, the first step of today‘s exercise,
(and this article is almost all exercise) is
to get a Writer‘s Journal. One that‘s spe-
cial for you personally. I once favored
black-and-white mottled-cover quad-
ruled notebooks. Next, I turned fancy
with leather-bound Paperblanks brand.
Now, its faux-whatever from the 99-Cent
store. All are special to me. Find the jour-
nal version that ―speaks‖ to you. Listen.
You will hear its song for sure. Bring it
home where it belongs.
Answer the Following Questions in
your Writer’s Journal. Longhand is im-
portant. The words flow from your head
and heart together, down your arm,
through your fingertips to the pen and
the page. Write your answers in detail.
The more candid and complete you are,
the more resource material you will cre-
ate for writing ideas. Tell your truth.
Be liberal, not conservative, about
what you include. Tell all of it. Every-
thing. And, leave room for more, further
additions later, then others also. This is a
LIFELONG exercise. There is no such
thing as an insignificant experience. Se-
crets and holding back are inappropriate.
Dramatize (write out) specific anecdotes
wherever possible. Play at it. Have
writerly fun.
Here we go. The Questions.
1. What is your ethnic background, es-
pecially your cultural experience of
that ethnicity—its language, customs,
foods, rituals, challenges?
2. What places have you lived long
enough to know the feel of them?
(Describe that feeling.)
3. What have been your occupations,
past and present, and what happened
there?
4.
What are your special abilities,
your areas of expertise, your particular
knowledge?
5. If you had to describe your physical
appearance, what would you mention
first and why?
6. How would you describe your tem-
perament? (Tell Everything. Warts and
all.)
7. Which relationships in your life have
involved conflict, in your family, your
romantic life, your friendships, your work
life? (Conflict is story dynamite. Blast big
time.)
8. Who have you loved intensely in
your life? (This is gold mine territory. Dig
deep.)
9. Who have you disliked intensely in
your life? (More gold mine material. Ex-
cavate deeper.)
10. What have been your most power-
ful—as in intense, significant, forma-
tive—non-sexual experiences (during
childhood, adolescence, maturity)?
11. What have been your most powerful
sexual experiences? (This is private. Lust
is a Must.)
12. What have been your personal tri-
umphs, past and present? (No modesty.
Brag Brag Brag)
13. What have been your biggest frustra-
tions and disappointments, past and
present?
14. What are your complexes, inhibi-
tions and superstitions, past and pre-
sent?
15. What do you long for?
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