Brainstorming Starter Lists

The following is a starter list of starter lists. I recommend that you add not only to each group, but new groups, ones that intrigue you, excite you, or just get you to write something down. Maybe “People,” “Transitions,” or ‘Titiles.” You may even want to begin your own all-encompassing list cleverly titled “Stuff.” It’s okay. Whatever works for you.

The trick is to have a minimum of five lists of at least...oh, say, 15 each. More or less. Again, this should be a stressless, open-ended activity. It’s designed to help you, not thwart you.

The items listed are simply thrown together quickly. As you can see from the photo on the right, anything is fair game. The works listed afterward are just to show that seemingly frivolous thoughts can become central to a great story. You don’t have to add works to your list...but if you want to send me ideas, I’d appreciate them and put you on my “good person” list.

Objects

• Snow sled (Rosebud in the movie Citizen Kane)
• Leg of lamb (The short story “Lamb to the Slaughter” by Roald Dahl)
• Hair brush (The short story “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry)

Places

• Maine (Countless Stephen King books/stories)
• Iowa (The book Shoeless Joe / movie Field of Dreams by W.P. Kinsella)
• Afghanistan (The books Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini)

Events

• The Manson murders (The book Helter Skelter by Vince Bugliosi)
• The Space Race (The book The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe)
• Woodstock (The movie Taking Woodstock from 2009)

Animals

• Lemur (The book Lunatics by Dave Barry and Alan Zweibel)
• Gorilla (The book Ishmael by Daniel Quinn)
• Wolf (The book White Fang by Jack London)

Activities

• Golf (The book/movie The Legend of Bagger Vance by Steven Pressfield)
• Baseball (The book/movie The Natural by Bernard Malamud)
• Social media (The book The Accidental Billionaires / movie The Social Network by Ben Mezrich