Comments on: The DIY MFA Brainstorming Process

By: #5onFri – Tame the Idea influx - DIY MFA

#5onFri – Tame the Idea influx - DIY MFA — Fri, 16 Sep 2016 14:11:31 +0000

[…] (Ideas still on vacation? Check out Laura Highcove’s Five Ways to Boost Your Creativity or Gabi’s Brainstorm the DIY MFA Way.) […]

By: Gabriela

Gabriela — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 21:48:43 +0000

Kerryn–You make an excellent point that sometimes the inner critic can take over if we let it. I think the trick is finding a balance between generating ideas and evaluating them that works for you. If being too analytical just gives your inner critic room to go wild, then best to reserve that step for later in the process (as you suggested, in the revision stage for example).
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I find that brainstorming and SWOT analysis is especially helpful for non-fiction work (like in planning DIY MFA content or planning lessons for the courses I teach). For fiction, I tend to be a bit more loosey-goosey, though I still go through the two-stage process, writing a chunk of a project, then evaluating it and changing direction if need be. For any given novel I’ve worked on, I have at least 10-12 different versions outlined or sketched out because the more I write, the more the story circles around the spiral and gains focus.

By: Kerryn Angell

Kerryn Angell — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 21:06:50 +0000

This is a great reminder not to stop at one session of generating ideas. Rinse and repeat and repeat and repeat.That’s when we’ll get to really original, really exciting ideas.

I’d never thought of applying SWOT analysis to ideas, or to a story at all. Sometimes I find that being too analytical or marketing focused at the idea stage can really hamper my creativity. My inner critic takes the inch and suddenly my confidence is miles away. The SWOT analysis could be done in early revision stage as well.