GET BUSY WITH WRITING

a collection of 31 daily prompts to spark your inspiration and get creativity

flowing

Would you like to get more inspiration for your writing? Have more
confidence in your creativity? Or perhaps you would like to come up easier
with new ideas?

If you are one of those people who have been putting off doing their
creative projects and simply think they don't have enough time to write or
be creative, than this the real thing for you. It's been designed to show you
that you are creative and every word in this workbook is oriented towards
empowering your inspiration and building fulfilling creative life. For each
day in the month you have a prompt, an exercise or just few words to
spark creative fire residing somewhere in you.

This interactive workbook, (or journal, guide whatever you want to call it)
will ask you questions, provoke your thinking, initiate you to smell, touch,
feel, see, it can make you laugh, cry, dream or even dance! But most
importantly, it will help you have fun while writing and exploring creative
soul that might be hiding beneath the burdens of everyday life.

It is not intended to be filled, written or read in any particular order the

way you decide to use it is the right way. Each prompt can be used in
multiple ways: to write a story, poem, to use it for brainstorming new ideas
or assessing your ongoing projects. Browse daily prompts and pick one
you feel like doing that day. You can separately print them or use them in
a consequent order. Most importantly, each day of the month you go on a
new exploration of both your inner and outer world.

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Among them you will also find inspirational quotes and poems to further
spur your creative spirit and simply give you that wind in your writing
wings we all need from time to time. In the electronic version of this piece
you will find references to other interesting articles in the domain of
creativity, writing and art to further enrich your journey towards achieving
creative goals.

Keep in mind to do some preparations before embarking on your everyday

creative journey:

Make time

One of the first key things to do is to make time for creative

practice/exercise. In my own experience, whenever I feel constrained by
time or my tight schedule its simply additional pressure that kills every
motivation for creative work. Your mind drifts away thinking about the
errands and home chores you need to do So its not going to work.
Making time, being able to do things at your own pace is of vital
importance. Having a problem here? The first prompt is designed to help
you with your productivity.

De-stress

Once you make enough time, its very important to set the right mood in
our mind, simply to get relaxed enough before thinking or brainstorming
about new idea. Deep rhythmical breathing for a few minutes,
visualization, light yoga or any type of meditation can do a wonder!

These steps allow us to be gentler with ourselves meaning that we dont

push ourselves too much if work/idea development doesnt go the way we
want. It can bring additional emotional burden that doesnt help and
doesnt serve us.

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And as a warming up, fill in the blanks:

This book belongs to:

_______________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

I am creative when
_________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

I dream of
___________________________________________________________________________
________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

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I am ME when I
___________________________________________________________________________
__

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

and All that I need is

_______________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

___________________________________________________________________________
______________________

Table of contents:
Table of contents:.......................................................................................................................6
Prompt 1: Charge your day with creative daily routine ..........................................................8
Prompt 2: Awaken your creativity ..........................................................................................10
Prompt 3: Get acquainted with your creative side..................................................................12
Prompt 4: Let gratitude empower your creativity...................................................................14
Prompt 5: Blend and tune in...................................................................................................16
Prompt 6: What's in the news today?......................................................................................19
Prompt 7: Fragrance in your words........................................................................................20
Prompt 8: Find a color contrast that appeals to you..............................................................22

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Prompt 9: Tip - toe through your bag.....................................................................................23
Prompt 10: React to given act..................................................................................................24
Prompt 11: The moment..........................................................................................................27
Prompt 12: Acrostic alphabet..................................................................................................28
Prompt 13: Dive in the absurd.................................................................................................29
Prompt 14: Limit yourself on purpose....................................................................................30
Prompt 15: Play with the what if clause..............................................................................31
Prompt 16: Dare to compare!..................................................................................................33
Prompt 17: Catch new ideas while redefining the obvious....................................................35
Prompt 18: Organize your own creativity workshop..............................................................37
Prompt 19: Collage your way to creativity: let the rebel out!.............................................40
Prompt 20: In between rhyme ................................................................................................43
Prompt 21: Reuse.....................................................................................................................45
Prompt 22: Reduce...................................................................................................................47
Prompt 23: Recycle..................................................................................................................48
Prompt 24: Mix and match......................................................................................................49
Prompt 25: Work with opposites .............................................................................................53
Prompt 26: Mind mapping through poetry ............................................................................56
Prompt 27: Lets travel ...........................................................................................................59
Prompt 28: Going sideways for boosting creativity................................................................61
Prompt 29: Visualize with words ............................................................................................63
Prompt 30: Try walking in their shoes....................................................................................66
Prompt 31: Group effort..........................................................................................................68
Bonus productivity exercise.....................................................................................................71

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Prompt 1: Charge your day with creative daily routine
"The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine"
- Mike Murdock

There are those days, especially in the winter (when most of the days are
short and dark) that you think: I just dont feel like doing anything
creatively today theres too much other stuff I need to do. And what
happens is that you dont feel like doing anything at all! Hence, if
we set the right intention for the day and start our morning routine in
meaningful way, which can influence the tone even for the weak ahead -
its worth a try to do something in the morning that can boost your
creativity and get your productive flow running.

For me it is to have a fruit bowl in the morning, followed by a half an hour

yoga session. I never skip breakfast, but sometimes Im just too lazy (I
admit! :) ) to get on my yoga mat and start stretching, but even in those
mornings I try to convince myself how good I will feel afterwards
energetic and motivated.

There are few simple, yet effective exercises we can apply and practice in
our daily routine, which can help us to cultivate that creativity spark and
productive flow.

If we dont do what helps us to start our day right, the whole day can be a
waste of time and energy.

The next exercise Im suggesting will help you to figure out whats
important to you and how to incorporate that in your productive day:

1. Describe what your typical morning looks like: what you do, how
you do it; estimate the time between getting up and starting your

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 work day (half an hour, hour, two hours?). Write everything: how you
feel, what you do, what you like about it, what you dont like about
it. Write it in a form of free writing or you can write a poem it
doesnt matter: just get it out whats on your mind.

2. Now, turn the page and try to remember what the morning of your
exquisitely productive day looked like: what you did, how you felt,
what was essential for that productive day write everything down.

3. Compare: is there anything missing in your typical morning routine

comparing to one of the extremely productive day? Are you getting
enough sleep? Do you need extra help around house errands? Do
you skip your workout? Notice that one key element and think of
ways to incorporate more of that in your typical mornings. Dont try
to change everything, just one thing start small and see how that
affects your productivity.

Being mindful about your morning routine and applying small changes
can help us get those small increments in our productivity that can turn
our day from boring to fabulous.

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Prompt 2: Awaken your creativity
"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening, that is
translated through you into action, and because there is only one of
you in all time, this expression is unique."
- Marta Graham

Sometimes, all that we need is just a little nudge to keep us moving

forward and invoke some new ideas. But often, you dont know where to
start. I suggest: start simply, from the most basic things:

What makes you smile?

What makes you angry?
What are you curious about?
Who would you like to be?

Write a poem answering these questions treat them like a little poetry
prompts, with that difference that you dont have to share them with
anyone, they are for your eyes only, for your own journey to awakening
creativity. You can actually start your own creativity journal where you
daily reflect on your ideas, feelings, experiences, circumstances; how any
of these factors influence your creative power you certainly have residing
within you. It just needs to be properly initiated and directed.

Poetry to us is given
As stars beautify the heaven,
Or, as the sunbeams when they gleam,
Sparkling so bright upon the stream ;
And the poetry of motion
Is ship sailing oer the ocean
Or, when the bird doth graceful fly,
Seeming to float upon the sky;

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 For poetry is the pure cream
And essence of the common theme.
Poetic thoughts the mind doth fill,
When on broad plain to view a hill ;
On barren heath how it doth cheer
To see in distance herd of deer.
And poetry breathes in each flower
Nourished by the gentle shower,
In song of birds upon the trees
And humming of busy bees.
Tis solace for the ills of life,
A soothing of the jars and strife;
For poets feel it a duty
To sing of both worth and beauty.

James McIntyre

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Prompt 3: Get acquainted with your creative side
"Talking to paper is talking to divine. It is talking to an ear that will
understand even the most difficult things. Paper is infinitely patient."
- Burgild Nina Holzer

For this daily prompt think of certain words like:

creativity
passion
purpose
inner voice
stillness
success
failure

and try to picture in your mind, metaphorically, what kind of living being
each word could be? What kind of associations does it bring? Is it an
animal, plant, flower, tree, insect, child, another person, describe
everything in detail, write a short story about it. It will help you reconnect
with your creative force to more vividly sense what it means for you to be
alive, creative where to search for your passions and purpose.

Build on resolve, and not upon regret,

The structure of thy future. Do not grope
Among the shadows of old sins, but let
Thine own souls light shine on the path of hope
And dissipate the darkness. Waste no tears
Upon the blotted record of lost years,
But turn the leaf, and smile, oh! smile, to see
The fair white pages that remain for thee.

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 Prate not of thy repentance. But believe
The spark divine dwells in thee: let it grow.
That which the unpreaching spirit can achieve,
The grand and all creative forces know;
They will assist and strengthen as the light
Lifts up the acorn to the oak-trees height.
Thou hast but to resolve, and lo! Gods whole
Great universe shall fortify thy soul.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox

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Prompt 4: Let gratitude empower your creativity
"Gratitude opens the door to ...the power, the wisdom, the creativity
of the Universe. You open the door through gratitude."
- Deepak Chopra

In almost any religion and culture we have heard of the importance of

being grateful: to search for positive aspects in life instead of delving on
what is wrong and how world is a bad place to live in. Our modern and fast
paced environment has so much to offer: yet we get trapped into trivial
and petty things instead of concentrating our attention on more
important experiences. Those negative feelings that arise can literally
block our creative energy, potential for problem solving and seizing the
opportunities.

Gratitude can help us combat fear and anxiety. That feeling of

appreciation opens the door for receiving even better things to flow into
your life. Experience of positive emotions and nurturing the state of well-
being helps us to engage in the activities that encourage discovery and
growth. Your observation improves; your relationship with the
environment improves and you tackle problems from different angles.
Every problem comes with some sort of stress and crisis, but instead of
wasting your precious energy on what you lack, you can learn from new
situation and reinforce your ability to cultivate sense of inspiration.

Of course, being content and grateful doesnt mean neglecting the

problem and looking at the world through pink glasses. Its about finding
self-confidence in every situation and feel liberated to explore the world as
what it is.

Gratitude, like creativity, can be developed through practice.

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Here are some ideas where to start:

1. Read something inspirational at the start of your day;

2. Imagine experiencing your good;
3. Celebrate your small everyday victories;
4. End your day with thinking of 3 things you are grateful for.
Poetry does have that restorative power, so use it into your own
advantage: as you might pour out those negative feelings in your poetry,
try also to step back and write your poem about all good things in your life,
that you love and care about. The more you write, the more things you will
find you like about your life.

This beautiful sonnet by Alan Seeger offers a different perspective on our

modern lives and stuffed cities, where we can see beauty and light in our
ordinary surroundings.

Down the strait vistas where a city street

Fades in pale dust and vaporous distances,
Stained with far fumes the light grows less and less
And the sky reddens round the days retreat.
Now out of orient chambers, cool and sweet,
Like Natures pure lustration, Dusk comes down.
Now the lamps brighten and the quickening town
Rings with the trample of returning feet.
And Pleasure, risen from her own warm mould
Sunk all the drowsy and unloved daylight
In layers of odorous softness, Paphian girls
Cover with gauze, with satin, and with pearls,
Crown, and about her spangly vestments fold
The ermine of the empire of the Night.

Alan Seeger

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Prompt 5: Blend and tune in
"That is beautiful which is produced by the inner need, which springs
from the soul."
- Wassily Kandinsky

What triggers and inspires creativity in one person is quite individually.

There are a lot of factors influencing this process, but usually it is
something that catches our attention (like curiosity) and initiates that idea
from which everything else begins. So today I want to invite you to pay
attention to your surroundings. We all tend to sink into our own minds,
thoughts drifting on their own ... But focusing and paying attention to our
surrounding is of great importance since it reflects our abilities to spot
opportunities and act upon them; turn that inspirational thought into
something viable and move forward with your creativity.

Listen to everything and everywhere. Blend and tune in with your

environment and listen to the sounds, conversations (Im not suggesting
you spy on anyone!) and notice what randomly catches your attention: a
word, song, laughter, baby cry ... and write about it. Let that be the initial
spark of something you absorbed from your environment and you are
creating further. Dont censure yourself, just write your story, a poem or
whatever comes let it surface.

Interesting fact: Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944) was a Russian painter and

one of the founders of Expressionism movement. He became famous for
his abstract art. Most of his paintings were influenced by the music he was
listening to. Kandinsky was on quest to break the barriers
between different arts and actually tried to connect them in his work.
Concerning the spiritual art is the most influential piece that left its
mark on the abstract art of the 20th century.

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So, as Kandinsky was painting his music, you can go step further and write
a poem influenced by the music you hear. The idea is not to describe the
music, but rather let yourself feel the music - take you to different place,
different time. If you feel like dancing, dance. If you don't want to be
disturbed, secure that peaceful moment and with calm and ease pursue
your activity. Imagine what you hear absorbs you like sponge and you are
like water: liquid, flexible, traveling through different sounds, shapes,
colors and words. Let music guide you and write without censoring,
without limitation. Along the way you can sketch, you can develop your
visual storywhatever feels right at that moment. There is no goal to
achieve, except to escape the rational and let your inner creativity shine.

For this exercise I propose three classical pieces:

1. The Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi

2. Adagio by Tomaso Albinoni
3. Bolero by Maurice Ravel

Or just turn on your radio, play your favorite song and follow the rhythm.
Music evokes different emotions and dont fight it - just let it be and
surrender to it. Your creative spirit will find its way for the most
appropriate expression. I chose classical music with purpose, because it is
believed that classical music makes you more honest with yourself,
improves communication, memory and in general improves our stress
levels, which is crucial for creative thinking.

A Violin at Dusk

Stumble to silence, all you uneasy things,

That pack the day with bluster and with fret.
For here is music at each window set;
Here is a cup which drips with all the springs
That ever bud a cowslip flower; a roof

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 To shelter till the argent weathers break;
A candle with enough of light to make
My courage bright against each dark reproof.
A hands width of clear gold, unraveled out
The rosy sky, the little moon appears;
As they were splashed upon the paling red,
Vast, blurred, the village poplars lift about.
I think of young, lost things: of lilacs; tears;
I think of an old neighbor, long since dead.

Lizette Woodworth Reese

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Prompt 6: What's in the news today?

"Literature is news that stays news"

- Ezra Pound

I particularly dont like the news and dont listen/read them, but for the
sake of this exercise give it a try: pick one news headline and that can be
something you really dislike; now write your own news that are quite the
opposite, news you would like to hear or read in the newspaper, news in
the form of poem or a story. I know, it can feel a bit strange first writing
news (and you are probably not a news reporter, just like Im not) and
second making a poem out of it. But thats the purpose of this exercise:
to stretch our minds and look for solutions and possibilities where we are
unlikely to find them.

T is you that are the music, not your song.

The song is but a door which, opening wide,
Lets forth the pent-up melody inside,
Your spirits harmony, which clear and strong
Sings but of you. Throughout your whole life long
Your songs, your thoughts, your doings, each divide
This perfect beauty; waves within a tide,
Or single notes amid a glorious throng.
The song of earth has many different chords;
Ocean has many moods and many tones
Yet always ocean. In the damp Spring woods
The painted trillium smiles, while crisp pine cones
Autumn alone can ripen. So is this
One music with a thousand cadences.

Amy Lowell

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Prompt 7: Fragrance in your words
"What's in a name?
That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."
- William Shakespeare

For today, get ready to become nosy. This writing proposal is about object
writing. It's direct and straightforward. Pick a random object and recall
memories and associations you hold towards it. What scent does the
object invoke in you? What feelings? Use different metaphors, adjectives to
do this exercise.

Book - as an object, for example:

It's the scent of history, of collected words to drive knowledge. It's the
smell of rainy days and warm nights as I'm reading my favorite novel...

Senses are very important as they are carriers of information we use to

perceive our environment. Use them frequently in your writing.

Be glad your nose is on your face,

not pasted on some other place,
for if it were where it is not,
you might dislike your nose a lot.

Imagine if your precious nose

were sandwiched in between your toes,
that clearly would not be a treat,
for youd be forced to smell your feet.

Your nose would be a source of dread

were it attached atop your head,
it soon would drive you to despair,
forever tickled by your hair.

Within your ear, your nose would be

an absolute catastrophe,
for when you were obliged to sneeze,

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 your brain would rattle from the breeze.

Your nose, instead, through thick and thin,

remains between your eyes and chin,
not pasted on some other place
be glad your nose is on your face!

Jack Prelutsky

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Prompt 8: Find a color contrast that appeals to you
"Nature always wears the colors of the spirit."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

For this exercise, let's play with colors. Observing patterns and how colors
interlay can help us train our focus and flexibility.

Look around you and find a pair of colors - any two colors will do. It could
be just that you spotted yellow-green pattern on your blanket or the book
near you have black-white cover. It doesn't matter. Look in that contrast
and then close your eyes. Write about what you 'see', what you feel. How
does it appeal to you? Let it inspire your writing and focus on pictures
coming to your mind.

Colors passing through us (an excerpt)

Purple as tulips in May, mauve

into lush velvet, purple
as the stain blackberries leave
on the lips, on the hands,
the purple of ripe grapes
sunlit and warm as flesh.

Blue as cornflowers, delphiniums,

bachelors buttons. Blue as Roquefort,
blue as Saga. Blue as still water.
Blue as the eyes of a Siamese cat.
Blue as shadows on new snow, as a spring
azure sipping from a puddle on the blacktop.

Cobalt as the midnight sky

when day has gone without a trace
and we lie in each others arms
eyes shut and fingers open
and all the colors of the world
pass through our bodies like strings of fire.

Marge Piercy

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Prompt 9: Tip - toe through your bag
"Touch seem essential as sunlight."
- Diane Ackerman

Touch is one of the most essential senses we have. It translates everything

that happens around us through our largest organ - skin. If we are cold,
warm, if something is soft or sharp, we can feel it. Our sensors for touch
give us that information. So today, simply grab your bag and dig your
hand in it: your task is to describe the first object you find (no matter if you
know what it is). How does it feel, what's the color you imagine, is it cold
or warm, how does it fit in your hand?

To make it more interesting, ask for assistance. Let someone else pick
random objects and fill the bag that you will later explore and use for
exercising your creative mussels. Now this is interesting, right?

Go and do it, what are you waiting for?

At the Touch of You

At the touch of you,

As if you were an archer with your swift hand at the bow,
The arrows of delight shot through my body.

You were spring,

And I the edge of a cliff,
And a shining waterfall rushed over me.

Witter Bynner

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Prompt 10: React to given act
"To every action there is always opposed an equal reaction."
- Isaac Newton

Ive always been fascinated by the facts how our mind and its creative
processes work. Words and language are the tools we mostly use to
express ourselves and it comes so naturally to us. In the same fashion, I
believe that words and language can be our igniting spark to initiate
creative thinking. And what about using words and language in a different,
innovative way? It can be beneficial for us in any case of creative process
and problem solving.

Remember Newtons Third Law in physics? Every action has a reaction.

Thats simply how Universe works. Thus, use the following statements to
imagine a dramatic situation express emotions, describe scenery, what
each of your senses feel and try to write your story or poem. Its a
refreshing activity and your untamed imagination and power of
visualization will move your creativity in a positive direction.
Example statements:

You woke up alone, hurt and wet on the sand beach. What happened to
you?

You heard a noise on the stairs, behind the closed door.

What made that noise?

A smiling child runs into you. How do you react?

A crowd has gathered below your window. What do they want?

You are in an unknown country: nobody speaks your language, nobody

understands you. How do you communicate?

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This is a great way to initiate your writing. There are endless options of
imaginative situations that can spur your words and keep writing going.

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 O Me ! O Life!

O ME! O life! of the questions of these recurring;

Of the endless trains of the faithlessof cities filld with the
foolish;
Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more foolish
than I, and who more faithless?)
Of eyes that vainly crave the lightof the objects meanof the
struggle ever renewd;
Of the poor results of allof the plodding and sordid crowds I see
around me;
Of the empty and useless years of the restwith the rest me
intertwined;
The question, O me! so sad, recurringWhat good amid these, O me, O
life?

Answer.

That you are herethat life exists and identity,

That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.

Walt Whitman

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Prompt 11: The moment
"A whole stack of memories never equal one little hope."
Charles M. Schulz

Go back to some pleasant moment in life something nice that you

experienced for first time, like your first bike ride, first swim, first love,
hanging out with friends, moments from your travel: those special events
in your life can be an inexhaustible source of emotions for a touching
poem. Re-living the moments again reconnects you with your true nature
and helps you get that intensity you need to move forward with your
thinking and creativity.

A Memory

I remember
The crackle of the palm trees
Over the mooned white roofs of the town
The shining town
And the tender fumbling of the surf
On the sulphur-yellow beaches
As we sata little apartin the close-pressing night.

The moon hung above us like a golden mango,

And the moist air clung to our faces,
Warm and fragrant as the open mouth of a child
And we watched the out-flung sea
Rolling to the purple edge of the world,
Yet ever back upon itself
As we

Inadequate night
And mooned white memory
Of a tropic sea
How softly it comes up
Like an ungathered lily.

Lola Ridge

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Prompt 12: Acrostic alphabet

"A poet is, before anything else, a person who is passionately in love with
language."
- W. H. Auden

Write a poem, where the first letter of the verse in the poem spells out a
word you choose, subject, and message. You can go even further: write a
poem where each starting letter of the line is a consecutive letter of the
alphabet, from A to Z.

In poetry it is called acrostic technique and poets frequently use it while

experimenting with their own writing.

Below is an example I did using acrostic technique:

Acrostic allowed animated alignment:

Bright blue bird borrows beautiful barn
Cmere! Coherently cried crow, crawling cowardly!
...

Windy waves widely warned

X-rated xylophone:
Yuck- yawned yak
Zoological zodiac zen.

Its funny what can really come out no matter how quirky it might look
and sound. Fun and humor are those additional spices that make the
process of creativity even more enjoyable!

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Prompt 13: Dive in the absurd
"We are all hungry and thirsty for concrete images. Abstract art will
have been good for one thing: to restore its exact virginity to
figurative art.
- Salvador Dali

In the paper Connections From Kafka: Exposure to Meaning Threats

Improves Implicit Learning of an Artificial Grammar authors argue that
experiencing (reading, hearing or seeing) something absurd like surreal art
or literature can increase pattern recognition of association unrelated to
the original meaning threat. In other words, mind always tries to justify,
explain what it experiences and nonsense art forces mind in faster mode
of thinking to recognize what body senses.

So for today's challenge give your attention to something abstract, surreal

You can visit an art exhibition, read an abstract poem or story and let your
mind drift, loosen up from everything you were trying to accomplish. Let
your mind recharge this way.

Life is not a dream. Careful! Careful! Careful!

We fall down the stairs in order to eat the moist earth
or we climb to the snow's edge with the voices of dead dahlias.
But there is no oblivion; no dream:
only flesh exists. Kisses tie our mouths
in a tangle of new veins,
and those who hurt will hurt without rest
and those who are afraid of death will carry it on their shoulders.

Federico Garca Lorca

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Prompt 14: Limit yourself on purpose
"The future author is one who discovers that language, the
exploration and manipulation of the resources of language, will serve
him in winning through to his way."
- Thornton Wilder

This might sound strange at first but when you think about it- it might be
true. Often we try to find the solutions to new problems by exploring
already familiar models and build our new denouement on old
foundations. Furthermore, when we have too many options or resources,
we try to incorporate everything and unnecessarily over-complicate
solution we are seeking. When we put restrictions on what we can use and
what path we should follow, it can actually boost our creative thinking.
Here I suggest you improvise a bit with your solution, tackle it from
different perspective and simplify your approach. It can be that final
click you need in your mind to move thinking in right direction. For this
prompt, challenge yourself to write a story consisting of only 140
characters, using key words that are crucial for your project, idea or
writing. Than you can continue your writing from there in the same
fashion, you can tweet about it, play with it and see how it goes. The
important thing is to train our mind to work at defined conditions and
limited resources.

For sale: Baby shoes. Never worn.

Ernest Hemingway

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Prompt 15: Play with the what if clause

According to the research, presented in paper Implications of

Counterfactual Structure for Creative Generation and Analytical Problem
Solving: "additive counterfactual thinking mind-sets, activated by
adding new antecedent elements to reconstruct reality, promote an
expansive processing style that broadens conceptual attention and
facilitates performance on creative generation tasks.

Now, take your problem, idea and try to look at it from the What would
happen if.? point of view. Its a great way for creativity spikes that we
all need when we feel stuck and lack ideas. It's also a great starter for your
writing of a poem, story and will initiate many new creative thoughts to
come forth.

Whatif

Last night, while I lay thinking here,

some Whatifs crawled inside my ear
and pranced and partied all night long
and sang their same old Whatif song:
Whatif I'm dumb in school?
Whatif they've closed the swimming pool?
Whatif I get beat up?
Whatif there's poison in my cup?
Whatif I start to cry?
Whatif I get sick and die?
Whatif I flunk that test?
Whatif green hair grows on my chest?
Whatif nobody likes me?
Whatif a bolt of lightning strikes me?
Whatif I don't grow taller?
Whatif my head starts getting smaller?
Whatif the fish won't bite?
Whatif the wind tears up my kite?
Whatif they start a war?
Whatif my parents get divorced?
Whatif the bus is late?

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Whatif my teeth don't grow in straight?
Whatif I tear my pants?
Whatif I never learn to dance?
Everything seems well, and then
the nighttime Whatifs strike again!

Shel Silverstein

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Prompt 16: Dare to compare!
"True alchemy lies in this formula: Your memory and your senses are
but, the nourishment of your creative impulse."
- Arthur Rimbaud

Everyone once in a while face a challenging situation to solve some

problem, find an answer to a question; brainstorm an innovative idea. And
that got me thinking: what if we challenge ourselves even more? What
would happen with our creative flow? Now, Im not thinking about putting
pressure on ourselves, yet we all know we can move ourselves towards
productive creativity through certain exercises, but creativity is still kind
of unpredictable. What I mean by challenge, I mean challenging us by
comparing the problem to something else.

In poetry is very well known technique called similes. Its purpose is to

compare two things, so examples of simile poems include any poem that
makes comparisons using the words like or as. Two things compared
dont have to be alike (in poetry usually they are not), and they create
different images in our mind, making correlations and connections that
doesnt actually exist. If we apply this to our creative thinking, we are
training our creative muscle; it gives us an opportunity to conceptualize
different solutions and approaches in problem solving.

Examples of similes in poetry might include something like:

Your eyes were dark as a night without moonlight.

Blank page is like an empty canvas where I paint with my words.

So next time you have trouble getting in your creative mood, try this
exercise:

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You write down your question/problem and try to find a simile.My
problem is like I... and finish the sentence. The idea is here for you to
challenge yourself to find a similar problem in a completely different life
area.

If you have a trouble finding inspiration to start writing, for example, try to
remember how it felt when you were trying something else new: a sport,
travel, diet, even reading a new book, or developing a new habit? How did
you manage to start a new activity? What made you want to stick to your
new routine?

Write down your similes and try to analyze them. What of the written ideas
you can translate in a given problem? As you brainstorm and think of your
answers, probably this will trigger even some emotional response that can
act like a drive for generating a flow of new ideas.

You might not get the desired outcome all at once, but using this effective
brainstorming tool can distract your attention from a problem. In this
way, making distance in your view, will help you get more objective and
consider some approaches that might actually work.

O my Luve's like a red, red rose

That's newly sprung in June;
O my Luve's like the melodie
That's sweetly played in tune.

Robert Burns

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Prompt 17: Catch new ideas while redefining the obvious
"Dance above the surface of the world. Let your thoughts lift you into
creativity that is not hampered by opinion."
- Red Haircrow

Throughout the day we encounter many words some we like, some we

dislike; some we even avoid to use, or we overuse. Why is that?

To every word we attach our meaning, definition and somehow just one
word can influence our way of thinking and how we form opinion.

The next exercise Im going to propose belongs to type of writing that

some experts and psychologists call free writing. As in this article, author
Joel Friedlander sees that free writing:

is a practice that helps to liberate your writers voice and connects

you to the vibrant stream of creativity that lies just under the
surface of our ordinary thinking;

can be used to launch you over a writers block, to explore painful

emotional memories, and to work out problems in a longer work. It
can be used for making contact with ones own unconscious;

is a simple, structured practice that is flexible and forgiving. It can

be used as the base of a writing practice, or spontaneously
whenever you want to go deeper into a subject.

You pick one word it can be a word related to your current project you
are working on or just some random word you find interesting, attractive
or annoying. The purpose of the exercise is in your own words to write
down general definition, widely accepted meaning of the word.

Then ask yourself do you agree with given definition and give your reasons
why you agree or disagree.

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Afterwards continue writing whats your own meaning, what emotions it
triggers and ext.
For example, the word danger. One of the generally accepted definitions is
life-threatening situation. For me, first impression is the feeling of unease,
uncertainty, fear, unpleasant surprise and losing control over situation.

You can write as long as you like. One, two paragraphs. Its possible that at
one point you will feel stuck and think This is stupid, it doesnt take me
anywhere! , which is the critical point - by continuing to write, you are
unlocking a new stream of ideas that otherwise you might have stopped
before they had chance to get out. This type of playing with your insights,
examining thinking patterns opening the word can help you further tap
into your creativity potentials. I personally find this exercise very useful
especially when it comes to writing/creating something new,
from personal perspective. It can be helpful in terms of crafting a story,
poems and blog post and all you need is just one word to start.

In winter, in the dark hours, when others

were asleep, I found these words and put them
together by their appetites and respect for
each other. In stillness, they jostled. They traded
meaning while pretending to have only one.
Monstrous alliances never dreamed of before
began. Sometimes they last. Never again
do they separate in this world. They die
together. They have a fidelity that no
purpose or pretense can ever break
And all of this happens like magic to the words
in those dark hours when others sleep.

Wallace Stevens

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Prompt 18: Organize your own creativity workshop
"Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to
look at things in a different way."
Edward de Bono

This one maybe suitable for some weekend days, when you have enough
time and simply get immersed in your creativity. There are few simple, yet
effective exercises that we can apply and practice in our daily routine
which will help us to cultivate that creativity spark and productive flow.

1. Make your own inspiration box or board

One of the things I like to do is to create an inspiration box or an

inspiration board: just the process of crafting and creating something you
believe will get you closer to your goal is already a step forward. When you
collect pleasant items that inspire you (quotes, pictures, poems anything
symbolic to you), that represent who you are, who you want to be, things
you enjoy and you find uplifting whenever you return to your box or
board it will refresh your mind and new ideas will start to pop up!

2. Jot things down

Whenever you have an idea write it down. No matter how silly,

impossible, distant from the solution youve been contemplating, write it
down. This unconstrained writing, where you simply dont censure your
thoughts is a technique called free-writing or free association. You can
go even step further and write it in the form of a poem. Surrealist poets
were using similar techniques which Andre Breton described in
the Surrealist manifesto published in 1924 as a:

"Psychic automatism in its pure state, by which one proposes to express

the actual functioning of thoughtin the absence of any control
exercised by reason, exempt from any aesthetic or moral concern."

37
This process can speed up our solution thinking abilities and help us focus
on the task at hand.

38
3. Be curious about your immediate environment

When I was very little having dolls to play with was not simply enough. I
was so curios that almost each toy I had to break into parts to see whats
inside and how it works. Of course Im not suggesting you take first object
in front of you and break it into pieces, but on the paper or in your mind
you can think of its constituent parts and how the object in front of you is
interdepended of its generic parts and where do they come from.

For example a window: It consists of frame (wooden, aluminum, ext.) and

glass. It might have a blind as well. Glass is made from molten silica at very
high temperatures etc. Its called the generic-parts technique and
usually people with this habitual way of thinking are better at solving
problems through creative insight.

Choose Life (an excerpt)

Choose life choose life venerable Childhood

The ribbon coming out of a fakir
Resembles the playground slide of the world
Though Sun is only a shipwreck
Insofar as a womans body resembles it
You dream contemplating the whole length of its trajectory
Or only while closing your eyes on the adorable storm named your hand
Choose life

Andre Breton

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Prompt 19: Collage your way to creativity: let the rebel out!
"Without freedom, there is no creation."
- Jiddy Krishnamurti

You know those days when you have, like a hundred ideas what you would
like to do, to write, but somehow you are having hard time to convey and
articulate your idea? Its there, you almost have a breakthrough, but your
thoughts are fast racing and nothing is coming out. Maybe we should try
another way of expressing it?

If you haven't made your inspirational box as suggested in the previous

prompt, you can select different items that appeal to you and try to
express your idea or come up with a new one, by rearranging items in a
collage.
The idea here is that we challenge ourselves, as much as a situation, a
question, a problem that we have.

A collage as an art form was especially popular in dada movement. Many

artists used this technique to provoke their unconscious thinking and
explore metaphysical origins of reality. For example Hans Arp was famous
for making a series of collages based on chance; he would stand above a
sheet of paper, let squares of contrasting colored paper fall on the larger
sheets surface, and then he would glue the squares in any position they
took by falling. Arp was interested in I-Ching fortune telling (where coins
fallen by chance were interpreted for future forecasting) and he was curios
what kind of visceral reaction would his art produce.

So how can you use technique of collaging to exercise your creativity?

The basic idea is for you to find small items, pictures, texts and letters
from newspaper anything that moves you and that you can rearrange

40
into your own collage poem. By collaging your items, a new reality will
start to form. Prune anything you find excess and look at new relations,
surprises, metaphors, combinations. Your mind will try to justify any item
by its origin, position, and dimension. This is an excellent exercise for your
creative rebel, to shout, to say, to sing, to whisper anything in particular
you cant. Let this collage poem be the messenger of your creativity. This
exercise is a fun to do in groups also, as a team building game, an exercise
in leadership skills, perhaps. Possibilities are endless dont restrain
yourself its good to rebel from time to time. For the example poem
below, it is believed, the poet D.W. Snodgrass used a marine manual on
self-defense, with some shockingly violent images:

After Experience Taught Me by

Take the first two fingers of this hand;
Fork them outkind of a V for Victory
Whether there might be something whose discovery
Would grant me supreme, unending happiness.
And jam them into the eyes of your enemy.
You have to do this hard. Very hard. Then press
No virtue can be thought to have priority
Over this endeavor to preserves ones being.

D. W. Snodgrass

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42
Prompt 20: In between rhyme
"Every little or big problem has a reason,
every year there is a winter season,
Every trouble goes away with time,
after winter spring comes with rhyme."
- Debasish Mridha

The Greek philosopher Aristotle, was originator of advanced human

thinking in ancient Greek and in his book On Interpretation he describes
how words were powerful tools for his thinking especially when words
were connected to a thought he wanted to materialize, execute or one that
conveys a meaning of creativity. He believed that in such way we are
encouraging creativity and paving the road for possibilities to come.
Today let our focus be on language, rhythm and melody of the words that
can also train your creative thinking and especially be useful for other
forms of writing.

I suggest you start with an internal rhyme like:

I try to write, remembering your kiss as you held me tight.

Type, type! I say to myself; Dont get fooled by a sentimental hype!

So, you see the first and the last word in the stanza rhyme, giving the
verses completely new feel and meaning to the written sentence.

For your exercise, you can call to mind an issue you have and pick one
word of your own interest (it might be connected to a topic you are writing
on, project you are working on or any other word that bugs you
somehow). Write in flow, without too much thinking just try to follow
this one simple rule; dont pay attention to the logic or the meaning
behind your verses; use simple facts about the situation, what you think,

43
what others might think, what you could try or what you already did, what
could be holding you back and other thoughts related to the issue..

This is more leisure and fun approach to brainstorming, which can be also
beneficial: relaxed manner of thinking decreases tension and helps us
become more open to the hidden treasures that language holds for us.

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Prompt 21: Reuse
Not a wasted word. This has been a main point to my literary
thinking all my life.
- Hunter S. Thompson

In many years of environmental practice what I learned is that everything

revolves around resources: how you use them, manage or generate them.

Well, this same notion we can apply in different ways in order to get our
creativity flowing especially when it comes to writing. Rewriting, revising
our own or somebody elses work helps us not only to become better
writers, but also it helps us develop our reading and analytical skills. You
learn to question ideas, statements and arguments. You learn to notice
and search for new relations, discover weaknesses and come up with new
ways to improve whats already there. So, this is what I propose: reuse
your old books, magazines or even shopping receipts and try to create new
poem. It can be similar to collage, but this time try to focus specifically on
words and create your poem out of them. Cut out your favorite words and
phrases or circle them on the given page and make them the constituent
part of your new writing venture. Play with the words. Try different
arrangements. Pick words that somehow inspire you or relate to a project/
problem you are working on. Once you found an arrangement you like,
youve created a found poem. What kind of emotions or reaction words
trigger? Read them, play with them and they just might offer some new,
fresh perspective on the questions you have.

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46
Prompt 22: Reduce
The urge to destroy is also a creative urge.
- Pablo Picasso

Now, this one I believe is going to be fun at least was for me and can
really help you in you writers block. Try to find a poem that you dislike,
that you feel negative about and simply wreck it! Thats right: tear it apart!
I dont mean tearing the physical paper, but omit, reduce, erase,
everything from the poem you dont like and use it as the basis for writing
a new one in a way that feels and sounds right to you. This little, simple
exercise can be really helpful later in your own writing.

Belonging not to winter but to another

I face the face that made me

And lie all my hours

Upon your reckless hands

Make myself a prisoner

Of the sky

The sweet vermouth

Of your teeth

Shaping me
Like a spectre

In the attic of my flowering heart

Janaka Stucky

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Prompt 23: Recycle
Rebels revel in rewriting reality's restrictions.
Ryan Lilly

This one is similar to the previous, but it refers to your own writing. Find
something that you wrote long time ago, when you were in a different
mood, influenced by other circumstances and give your writing a make-
over. Use your own writing as an inspiration for your new poem, dress it in
new words, develop stanzas out of sentences and see where it takes you.
Our past experiences are our best teachers and what weve learned we can
use to adequately manage our creativity and direct future actions. Take
the knowledge you acquired into your own advantage and just let your
free writing do the rest.

Natures first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leafs a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

Robert Frost

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Prompt 24: Mix and match
Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know more.
- Confucius

Ive always been criticized by my family members and friends, that Im at

times childish and how everything I want to turn into a game. Well, in my
opinion life can be dull enough and by adding some playfulness into it is
my way of getting a sun shine in my dark days: which of course doesnt
mean that I take life lightheartedly and that Im not serious when situation
requires. On the contrary! I just think that through gamification and
playfulness we can learn with ease, soften the tension when some
problems arise and is actually a great tool for brainstorming.

But for todays exercise lets just play with words. I will suggest couple of
ways you can add your own or alter this suggestions according to your
preference. Below are written couple of words:

sky table spice medicine

hope flesh doing escape
inevitable immense minuscule golden-brown
chew pull face inhale
in between cryptic soft people

These are random words I picked and we can use them in variety of ways
in different brainstorming sessions.

Version 1

You can circle and chose around 5 words from the list above and write
your poem including those words. But heres the catch: you also have to
include 5 key words related to your project you are working on and
incorporate them in the poem too. Now, dont get bothered with the logic

49
and form, just write your poem no matter how silly it may sound: the
purpose is to get your creativity pumping.

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For example:

My words from the list: medicine, cryptic, inhale, flesh, chew.

My key words: business, entrepreneurship, art, creativity, purpose

This medicine is a cryptic business.

As I inhale stagnant air
I chew with purpose
while creativity floods my flesh;
Im the captain of my entrepreneurship:
Its an art and courage to sail alone
so far and deep.

This poem turned out to be quite funny, but this unexpected relation
between unpairable verbs and nouns can spark unexpected views on
problem and reveal hidden solutions. This poem, produced in the form of
free writing, no matter how funny, does speak of courage and risks I need
to take; that Im in charge of the outcome and for me is quite empowering.
Just let your inner being play it already knows what you need.

Version 2:

Write three haikus or very short poems, using in each poem one noun and
one adjective from the list above. Also include your own key words: Lets
say:

1.
Immense sky covered in blue.
A joy spread with purpose.

2.
Minuscule face enters home.
Love, a lifes art.

3.

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 Wind gives wings to golden-brown spice.
Split second of natures creativity.

If I would go in deep analysis of every and each of these sentences what

do they have in common (as how I interpret them ) is that I always first
have to look at nature as it is the inexhaustible source of inspiration where
I will find new ideas and solutions.

Version 3:

Take one key word and all the verbs in the list. Make a poem out if it.

I inhale and breath as my business goes so well!

With joy and smile I chew this small chocolate
as I pull this feeling deep inside, hoping never to escape.

Now, this example turned almost into an affirmation and self-

encouragement; being present in the moment; taking one step at the time
and enjoying lifes little things.

This is fun and interesting way for us to stimulate our subconsciousness

and its like having a conversation with our inner self. Language and
words are that wonderful tool (every time available to us) that can help us
move from stagnant thoughts in direction of creativity, inspiration and
hope.

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Prompt 25: Work with opposites
The brain is a wonderful organ; it starts the moment you get up in
the morning and does not stop until you get to the office.
Robert Frost

Many of us get trapped in ordinary, routine thinking which makes it hard

to get into a mood of generating fresh and innovative ideas. We routinely
get up every morning, brush our teeth, drink coffee, go to work mostly
every day at a same time, using the same routeAnd to tell you the truth,
it can be a creativity killer. What we need is to mix up things a little bit,
challenge our habits, language and way of thinking.

We are also aware that we do live in the world comprised of opposites. In

Chinese philosophy and especially in Taoism, Universe is seen through
the lens of yin and yang energy, male and female, strong and weak, dark
and bright, cold and warm. Perceiving reality from the opposite side can
give us clue in which direction we need to move forward in order to sort
things out.
So for this exercise, as a warm up I propose you pick some ordinary words,
something you frequently use in your language and list the opposite
meaning of that word; first that comes to your mind.
For example:

sky bottom, ground

water dry, yellow, sand
coffee tea, sweet, cold
work vacation, free time, relaxation

Do this for a limited time, maybe five to ten minutes. The idea of these
warming up exercises is to somehow flush out that ordinary thinking,

53
and give room for more ideas to come and encourage creative problem
solving.

As a next step you can pick your real problem/project you are working on
and apply similar technique. If you repeatedly struggle with something,
turn over your thinking: instead of trying to develop your best solution,
think of the worst thing could happen. How can your project fail? What is
the worst scenario? Write every detail of that, using some key words
related to your project and answering questions when, how, who, why,
how much ext. To make it more fun, write a poem about it.

From that vantage point it might be clearer what you could do in order for
your project to succeed. By being able to imagine what we would like to
avoid, it may open a clear path in our mind of right things we need to do:
who to contact, when to do something, how to prioritize our time.

Knowing what you dont want to, is a first step to achieving what you do
want.

I am not ambitious at all:

I am not a poet, I know
(Though I do love to see a mere scrawl
To order and symmetry grow).
My muse is uncertain and slow,
I am not expert with my tools,
I lack the poetic argot:
But I hope I have kept to the rules.
When your brain is undoubtedly small,
Tis hard, sir, to write in a row,
Some five or six rhymes to Nepaul,
And more than a dozen to Joe:
The metre is easier though,

54
 Three rhymes are sufficient for ghouls,
My lines are deficient in go,
But I hope I have kept to the rules.Dear Sir, though my language is low,
Let me dip in Pierian pools:
My verses are only so so,
But I hope I have kept to the rules.

J. K. Stephen

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Prompt 26: Mind mapping through poetry
The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.
- Plutarch

Since our creativity can be unpredictable, often times we can find

ourselves having that huge idea, but still not managing to record all
details, write everything down without losing a bit of it.

So for today I propose to you little tool that I use regularly to brainstorm a
problem, or a project idea. I have found it to be quite helpful. Its mind
mapping with a twist. Probably most of you are aware of this technique
but as the old Latin proverb says, Repetition is the mother of all
knowledge. Mind mapping can help you become more creative, train
your visual thinking, memory, and solve problems more effectively.

The basic notion behind this technique is to visually capture, connect and
sort out information, or even get a great amount of information under
control in order to generate new and fresh ideas.

The process is quite simple:

1. You put in the center (of your paper) your main idea.

2. Around that idea, now write all other topics that relates to your idea,
establishing new relations among main and side topics.

3. Its almost like forming a tree where each branch further drives you
to generate more details and more connections.

4. And now the twist: try to think of this map you are building
like it is a poem.

56
Instead of dry listing topics and ideas, with the words and phrases you
chose, give your map a rhythm, lyrical note. Use adjectives, describe
emotions related to your idea, expectations, why is it important. Imagine
you are writing a concrete poem for example.

In this manner, your project will become more vivid and real to you. You
are actually mapping your visualization, through words giving your senses
the chance to live everything in your mind. By breathing in that
emotion with your words, positive energy, you become more eager to put
everything in work and apply solutions you came up with. Its fun and
interesting way to brainstorm every time you need more clarity and focus.

Now, this technique can be used for writing actual poems, novels and
books (great as a storytelling technique as well), but it can help you even
in your vacation planning and job search.

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58
Prompt 27: Lets travel
One can begin to reshape the landscape with a single flower.
- Mr. Spock (Star Track)

It can be very interesting to play around with notion of travel when it

comes to our creative projects and goals.

In my personal experience, what sometimes happens is that we have too

many options or too many choices that we need to make, and that can
keep us stuck in one place; no matter is it writing, creative problem or
something else. It simply fuels our indecisiveness and we continue
prolonging to tackle problem with some serious determination.

Today, I will suggest some simple exercises that might help you move
forward in right direction or bring clarity when it comes to problem
solving.

First exercise: Time travel. That is one of the greatest desires of humans:
time travel. As a kid and a great fan of Star trek series, whenever was
happening something I didnt like I would pretend Im teleporting myself
to different world and time. But looking at it from a scientific point of
view, time as a parameter was invented by humans in order to give
meaning to natural quality of impermanence. Eminent scientists, such
as Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne are allured with the possibility of
time travel and continue to debate about it in their most recent works.

So why not play around with this notion by ourselves?

Imagine you were in a different time period, maybe 10, 100 or 500 years
ago and how then would you deal with the problem? You dont have your
computer, phone, car or even electricity at your disposal, just met your

59
basic needs. How would you approach your problem with fewer resources
at hand? Or, you can go in future and imagine you have everything you
need to achieve your creative goals, and more. In 10 years or 200 years
ahead, how your situation would be different?

Second exercise: Space travel. Stage your situation in completely different

geographical (or even planetary) location where conditions are completely
opposite. Different climate, different culture and different societal values
influence life: how that would impact your creativity, realization of your
creative goals? Its interesting where our imagination can take us and how
that can raise some additional points of view just thinking about the
problem differently conditions new ideas to come forth. In this way, you
are giving yourself opportunity to experience your creativity in an
unexplored manner. You can write a poem about it, or a short story. The
point is to stir up inspiration that just might lies dormant and is waiting
for some initial idea to trigger an avalanche of creativity.

The railroad track is miles away,

And the day is loud with voices speaking,
Yet there isnt a train goes by all day
But I hear its whistle shrieking.
All night there isnt a train goes by,
Though the night is still for sleep and dreaming,
But I see its cinders red on the sky,
And hear its engine steaming.
My heart is warm with friends I make,
And better friends Ill not be knowing;
Yet there isnt a train I wouldnt take,
No matter where its going.

Edna St. Vincent Millay

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Prompt 28: Going sideways for boosting creativity
Logic will never change emotion or perception.
- Edward de Bono

The first definition of the term lateral thinking came in 1967 from Dr
Edward de Bono. He has become the worlds leading authority on
conceptual thinking and has contributed to development of new tools and
approaches to the organizational innovation, strategic leadership,
individual creativity, and problem solving. Present in the innovation
industry since 1970, his exclusive strategies and methods have brought
remarkable results to organizations and to individuals from a wide range
of cultures, educational backgrounds, occupations, and age groups.

So, what is actually lateral thinking? It is a way of thinking that solves

problems through an indirect and creative approach, using reasoning that
is not immediately obvious and involving ideas that may not be applicable
by traditional step-by-step logic.

This kind of thinking requires of you to go beyond the obvious and even to
take into account parameters that your traditional logic might easily
dismiss.

One really attractive and interesting example is given in this article.

Pretend that youre trapped in a magical room with only two exits.
Through the first exit is a room made from a giant magnifying glass, and
the blazing hot sun will fry you to death. Through the second door is a
room with a fire-breathing dragon. Which do you go through?

There are many ways we can approach this problem in order to solve it.
One way could be using poetry techniques, for example kennings.

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Bed of fish, smooth path of ships, island-ring, realm of lobsters, slopes of
the sea-king, whale-house, land of the ocean-noise, blood of the earth,
frothing beer of the coastline

These are some of the terms and phrases used by the Viking and Anglo-
Saxon poets to name/describe the sea. The word kenning comes from
the Old Norse verb a kenna, which means to describe or to
understand. Poetry asks us to think and view the world from the different
perspective. And kennings question our habitual way of thinking. If we
apply this technique to the above problem, we could call sun object that
gives light to the earth, object that brings day .

So by using this technique, we could come up to a solution by deducting

our thinking: sun, in a day time, in the above example is dangerous for us,
but what happens when the day goes by? Darkness. And the answer
presents itself: we should wait for the sunset, and the first door is a safe
passage for us.

The answer to this puzzle is an example of what psychologists call lateral

thinking: instead of going ahead onto the problem, going sideways can
present an elegant solution.

So next time you have a project, creative problem you are working on, try
to name it, describe it differently, focusing on its functions and elements
and solution might unexpectedly reveal itself.

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Prompt 29: Visualize with words
Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others.
Jonathan Swift

I like to call visualization: strategic thinking while having fun. When you
read about principles of strategic thinking it might sound too managerial
and business oriented, but it is actually a sort of visualization: where you
tactfully visualize and plan your desired outcome. Once you develop the
ability to relive in your mind what you would like to experience, you are
somehow training and preparing your mind (and body) to achieve in
matching that picture with your performance.

Often guided meditations and visualization exercises are tools with the
aim to awaken all of your senses and help you more easily and vividly
imagine you succeeding in your goals.

But also your writing can help you in visualizing what you want. You know
you read good book if writer is capable in his words to put you in the
center of the story where you have impression you are experiencing
everything written.

So the next exercise I will propose will help you not only in your
visualization, but also you are practicing your writing.

The exercise is very simple, yet effective:

Your task is to name three things, topics, projects whatever you are
working on (or would like to achieve) and describe them using words you
never used before to describe them; how that accomplishment looks like,
feels like. Try to be descriptive as much as you can, use your senses and be
precise write a poem about it.

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Lets give it a try:

1. First word: writing

Leaving engraved deep trails, beyond all boundaries and false
confinements. Soundless Im heard above all mountains and below every
ocean; materialized thoughts in the smell of graphite, focused desires in
every beat of pen on paper, caught ideas with smiley face, released
drama in every vowel.
Where and when I offer me to you.

2. Second word: coaching

In service, empowering, alignment of what I am with fruitful response:
where other side becomes glitter in its own eyes and smiles with
confidence and determination, air is filled with blooming possibilities
and every atom of my knowledge is transferred and received openly,
crushing any doubt, inability and disbelief.

3. Third word: creativity

Every moment, every day is new and gives new beginning; different,
weird and enjoyable theres nothing to be afraid, no reason to hide. Its
warm, exciting, giggly, live, sharp, focused and likes to dance and
cuddle.
In the sea of everything existing, its the laughter that connects, inspires
and teach: with every key stroke, plaudit nod and receptive silence.
Its making unbelievable desirable, silly sensible and complex simple, but
truthful.
So this is my take on the exercise. Now its your turn.

And therefore, though thy name shall pass away,

Even as a cloud that hath wept all its showers,
Yet as that cloud shall live again one day
In the glad grass, and in the happy flowers,
So in thy thoughts, though clothed in sweeter rhymes,
Thy life shall bear its flowers in future times.

Henry Timrod

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Prompt 30: Try walking in their shoes
The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water and
breeds reptiles of the mind.
- William Blake

This prompt is all about changing perspective viewing situation from

someone elses point of view. If you feel stuck with your writing, or you
experience some oppositions from your peers in advancing with your
project, this can be a good exercise to experience a different perspective
and tackle problem form different angle. You can write about situation
seen from a different cultural, educational background or even about sub-
cultural differences. Prepare yourself for writing by getting acquitting with
the culture you chose - through reading, watching documentaries, ext. For
example, someone addicted to romance novels might try to write as
someone who likes horror movies and stories with gothic elements.

This is skill we want to develop especially if we are engaged in fiction

writing. It can help you foster empathy, broaden your view of the world
and how other people think and feel.

Some time when the river is ice ask me

mistakes I have made. Ask me whether
what I have done is my life. Others
have come in their slow way into
my thought, and some have tried to help
or to hurt: ask me what difference
their strongest love or hate has made.

I will listen to what you say.

You and I can turn and look
at the silent river and wait. We know
the current is there, hidden; and there
are comings and goings from miles away
that hold the stillness exactly before us.
What the river says, that is what I say.

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William Stafford

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Prompt 31: Group effort
When you invite people to share in your miracle, you create future
allies during rough weather.
- Shannon L. Alder

Once you become comfortable enough with your own creativity, why not
spice up things and work in groups? So grab some of your pen-friends,
play together and see how can you inspire and help each other become
more creative.

These exercises can be also performed in the business setting, theyre fun
and can be a great way to break out of the ordinary working routine.

Inspired by discovered

Each of you, players, has to write down a rare fact about yourself that most
people dont know about on a piece of paper, fold it and exchange it with
others randomly. Caught by surprise about unknown facts you may find
your own fountain of creativity! Write a poem about it and see where it
takes you.

Pantomime

Let one of your friends or coworkers gesture with hands: your task is to
describe what you see, what you experience and jot it down in words in
the form of poem. This can be quite intriguing way of stimulating our
creative capabilities, as is discussed in this article, using two hands to
explain something prompts the brain to consider issues from multiple
perspectives. To spice up a bit, try everything that you write to put in
rhyme (in the prompt 14. on the page 26, I explained the benefits of
putting boundaries during our brainstorming sessions and how that can
stimulate creativity further).

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Whats wrong with this picture?

Visual stimulation can unleash your imagination in the most exciting

ways. You can pick some random picture and each of players has to make
a story in the form of poem, inspired by the picture. Afterwards, you can
all debate and see whose story is the most interesting or you can take it
step further and compile all stories into one: it has to be believable and
follow some logical structure. Its best suited for groups of two, three
people.
With certain moderation you can use these ideas for your own creativity
exercises, as well.

Somebody said that it couldnt be done,

But, he with a chuckle replied
That maybe it couldnt, but he would be one
Who wouldnt say so till hed tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldnt be done, and he did it.
Somebody scoffed: Oh, youll never do that;
At least no one has done it;
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew hed begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldnt be done, and he did it.
There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle it in with a bit of a grin,

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 Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That couldnt be done, and youll do it.

Edgar Albert Guest

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Bonus productivity exercise

While you are studying at a Faculty, many of the courses you encounter
(obligatory) you dont like or you dont recognize at that particular time
you do really need certain knowledge and skills they offer. And on the
other hand, there are subjects you simply adore and you are always
excited about.

When you are young and full of energy you simply dont want to waste
your time on something you dont like when there is bunch of other stuff
youd rather do. And that's exactly what happened to me while I was a
student. So I made a little pact with myself that every day, at least for 10
minutes I will do seminars and projects that Im excited about. Every day,
consistently! Why I did this and how it helped me? It helped me in two
ways:

Since I had to devote my time also to courses I didnt like that much, by
doing what I liked for at least 10 minutes a day, I made sure I wasnt
behind with what I really wanted to learn;

By doing what I liked, the good feeling generated made it easier for me to
do things I didnt like that much.

At the end, I managed to graduate a year before anticipated time.

These principles we can also apply to our creative projects and make
ourselves more productive and excited about what we are doing.

Here is the exercise:

1. Make an agreement with yourself that you will work on a project you
are passionate about, every day for at least 10 minutes. It can be in

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 the morning, your lunch break or evening it doesnt matter. The
key word here is consistency.

2. Decide on which project you will work tomorrow. If you are a writer,
choose a poem, story or essay you are excited about and that you are
eager to finish. Skip those I must do this one, but I hate it! That
feeling of resistance only leads to more procrastination and that is
something we want to avoid. Choose a project that brings smile on
your face and that you simply love.
3. Tomorrow, at your convenient time, set a timer for 10 15 minutes
and work on your favorite project. Dont pay attention to the quality
of your work. The progress you make each day while working on
what you love will generate such good feelings that it will make
much easier for you to jump-start the project you were postponing
and avoiding.

4. When the times up, stop! Even if you would like to continue
working, stop and leave yourself a reminder where to continue
tomorrow.

5. Tomorrow, repeat your newly established routine.

6. After a couple of days you might consider prolonging your working

time intervals and see how it goes. If it doesnt and it makes you
nervous and worried you wont have time for things I must do,
then just stick to those 10 minutes. Its important for us to have fun
while we are creating.

7. If you skip some of the days, its OK. Continue the next day where
you previously stopped.

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I hope you find this exercise fun and applicable to your creative routine.
By being persistent, it can eventually help you enjoy more your creativity
and writing.

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Well done! I hope you enjoyed these prompts and that you have found
them useful in your writing and creative projects. We are all creative
beings we just need a bit of encouragement and inspiration to step
forward in the right direction.

I also invite you to share this book with anyone you think might benefit
from it. Your comments, feedback and suggestions for improvement are
all welcome and you can reach me at businessinrhyme@gmail.com

On twitter you can find me at @businessinrhyme and to connect on

Facebook follow this link.

Thank you!

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 About the author

Maja S. Todorovic is a writer and writing coach from Belgrade, currently

living in the Hague, Netherlands. After finishing her PhD in Organizational
Sciences and years of academic work, she switched her scientific pen for
more creative expressions.

This e-book emerged as a result of her research and adaptation of writing

and creative exercises she developed during the time of her diverse work
with students where she delivered innovative arts-based study courses in
design thinking and organizational management.

Business in Rhyme is her creative corner where she blogs about beautiful
uses of poetry and poetic techniques for improving writing, personal
growth and creativity.

To connect or simply say hi, you can find her also on her Linkedin profile.

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