The ideas that arrive to torment an author are called plot bunnies. They frisk around and try to lead us down strange paths.
How do you handle them?
Well, you never want to squander inspiration, so you must record your ideas. You will NOT remember them. Trust me on this. But, beware.
(Maybe what I’m about to say applies more to pantsters than to plotters, but here goes.)
Think of butterflies pinned down in museum collections. They are still brightly coloured and perfect for studying, but they’re dead. They no longer fly, sip nectar, or create the next generation. They’re beautiful corpses.
This is what happens if you strip a plot bunny, examining every detail of it, and nailing down your thoughts. You’ll be tempted. But don’t.
Instead, write down fragments of ideas, description, dialogue, and theme. Sketch the pictures that swim in your head.
Concentrate on recording what you need to tantalise future you.
The aim is that when you open your notebook you’re greeted by a cloud of butterflies rather than beautifully described, dead ideas.
Comments
4 responses to “Butterflies”
The notes become random 🙂
I’ve scratched my head over a few of mine, wondering what on Earth I was thinking 🙂
It sounds like my dream journal. Dreams are so filled with symbols and emotions that writing it down in a detailed, clinical way detaches me from it. Writing it down in a more poetic way, symbols and feelings, allows me to feel like I’m almost dipping back into the dream.
That sounds so much like what I do with my notes. It’s trying to keep a link back to half-formed imaginings.