How to use the right brain for inspiration and ideas

Long before I learned about the left and right brain, I was always a reader and a scribbler trying out new ideas. Not much attention was paid to it because it was just put down to my having a larger imagination than most kids. My scribbling became serious over the years and soon I was published. One day I read the book Writing the Natural Way by Gabriele Lusser Rico and my writing took a turn for the best.


The author, an English lecturer, found that even though his students improved their grammar and writing under regular tuition, their writing was turgid and flat and had no rhythm and recurrences and was quite frankly dull. I used the teachings in the book not only to improve my own writing but also to teach high school students privately in my home how to write. If you are interested in coming up with new ideas for a short story or article or any piece of writing, follow these instructions to liven up your prose.


Preparing for the writing process before you start

• Pick a quiet spot in your house where you can relax and write in an atmosphere which is conducive to you. I write in my room and even have my television and reclining bike in it. It is my personal space. Picking the right spot is important as you do not want to be interrupted.
• Be in a receptive mood and read the instructions below a few time. Take off the handset on the telephone. Have your pen and your blank paper ready.


Developing your characters

• Let’s say you want to develop a really great character, before you start writing, you are going to google the right brain for ideas on a clear sheet of paper. Write the name of the character in the middle of the page and draw a circle around it. This is your nucleus word from where all your character’s traits are listed. As you write down a word you draw a circle around it. You will experience a surge as the words flow from your brain.

• Do not stop to consider whether you really shouldn’t write that word you had in mind; the idea is that once you start, think of nothing but your description of Ruby and keep writing down word after word which pops into your head from the word and draw a circle around it.

• Remember the right brain is your fun instigator and wants you to step out of the box and be original; your left brain is the teacher and critic who stands ready with the cane to tell you not to s tart a sentence with but. Hogwash! You can break the rules depending on the prose.

• When you have finished googling the word Ruby and have a page full of scribbles you will have a wealth of information from which to build your character and give you a starting point. You will find after an hour of these exercises that your brain is tired. Take a break. Or continue to write until the urge dissipates. You can use this exercise not only for building a character, but also to structure your book where you do an outline and plot out the chapters.

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