Hello and Brainstorming

[Fred Ramsey]

Hello, everyone.

I'm trying to get started writing a novel.

Question: Is there such a thing as a brainstorming partner? I'm not looking to collaborate in the traditional sense, but am looking for someone to bounce ideas off of and get input from as well as provide the same thing to them. For example, in creating my setting, I'm trying to expand on a what if idea and would love someone's input.

Do people do this?

Thanks.

 

[Droflet]

Hey Fred, welcome to Chrons. I'm sure there must be somewhere in the writing threads to ask your questions. There are lots of good people here for you to bounce your ideas off. Good luck.

 

[The Judge]

Hello and Welcome to the Chrons!

Question: Is there such a thing as a brainstorming partner?

Short answer, yes. I use one all the time. Trouble is, he's my husband, and strictly a one-woman brainstormer!

Long answer is also yes, but if you've not got one on-tap as it were, you might have problems finding someone who connects with you and your ideas. I was lucky. I formed a writing group with two other Chronners here years ago, and as well as giving critiques on each others' work -- and scoffing tea and cake! -- we've also held brainstorming sessions for one or other of us along the way. If you're not a member of a writing group already, see if you can find one locally. The coronovirus hasn't helped in that respect, but I know one local to me now has Zoom type meetings so you might be able to find something. If the group itself doesn't encourage brainstorming sessions, see if you gel with any of the members and organise something with just one or two of them.

In the meantime, we've helped other new members with brainstorming issues before, in that they've set out their current thoughts and ideas and asked for help/advice/comments, and we're certainly open to helping you in the same way if you want. Just start a thread here in Writing Discussion with the specific queries you've got and take it from there.

In any event, it's good to meet you. There are lots of threads here for aspiring writers, so have a good look round and settle yourself in!

 

[JJewel]

First, welcome aboard and hope you have fun

Next, maybe one to one might be difficult but as said above no harm in opening up a discussion and you will find it is the same people that come along and help out / point out as you go along. So in a sense you get a brainstormer just with 5 or 6 heads?

And if you wanna pick their brain for more details you can always email them direct as this is a friendly crowd.

Hope that helps?

 

[JJewel]

While I remember, check out the writing forums for some sound advice and also the monthly contests (75 word / 300 word essay) for honing your skills is also handy. Finally if you have something you want a view on their is the death ride called critique which is incredibly usefull for the brave and is worth checking out.

 

[Wayne Mack]

Welcome.

One possibility for discussing specific issues is the Writing Discussion forum on this site. For more general brainstorming, one common recommendation is to form or join a writers' group. Due to the current situation, I have not followed this advice and have been going ahead with writing on my own. One additional resource, although it does not match your original query, is the Writing Resource forum and especially the link to the Brandon Sanderson lectures on YouTube. I have probably spent over 10 hours listening and felt the insights gained were worth the time spent.

Welcome again and remember to have fun.

 

[DLCroix]

Hi and welcome!
It's hard. It requires you to find a person with at least a similar intellectual level and even better if he is superior and you can learn from him. In that sense, some of the men are true teachers, and I mean it sincerely. I don't know, maybe it's their historical heritage that they tend to be more rational instead of intuitive like us; the thing is, we give more importance to feelings.
But the problem is also that so far I have only found two that meet those requirements. The first one at least served me to unfold the general argument of the saga that I am writing and it is always a new source of ideas, it is necessary to see him again every time I am stuck. Although the phenomenon in which this occurred was remarkable. We first came up with an idea (well, all of Deep Impact and Armaggeddon was in vogue in those days) around the need to build an ark ship in front of a comet, etc., the same idea from those two movies. Then I think it occurred to me to ask him: "What if it was only men who die?" Then I was stunned with his answer. He told me: "Keep the idea of that ark type ship, it is the only one that has the route to a planet. And do not use the threat of a comet, but of a virus, a weapon, which does not affect children under certain age. And the question is which is more important: what do you prefer, save the children, or take over that ship and the route to that planet? There you have a war. People will always kill for something like that, and others will want to protect those children."
After that I naturally asked for the bill: I needed to rush out to write; but my dear friend, well ... You guys are wonderful until you stop using your brain, you know?

Lately I have developed a brainstorming system but based on chaos theory. Two tools: a folder with at least a thousand photos and a coin. That is the universe in which I find characters, the direction in which they should go, according to the number of the day of the month or the page where it is originated more draws with the coin and thus I am solving everything, even that the original protagonist dies in the middle on the way and the relay is taken by someone else. It is a system that until now continues to throw me surprises of ideas and arguments that I could never have imagined precisely because I never know in which direction I will go. Chaos. Random.