Structure in the form of frameworks, work processes and goals enhances creative output:
a) Short term goals (incremental productivity) produce more output than a "do your best" approach. Writing four pages a day completes a words-on-paper first draft screenplay in one month. A "do your best" or "waiting for inspiration" approach can take months or years. Witness the untold number of people with unfinished manuscripts under their beds.
b) Work processes such as separating creative from critical thinking and other techniques help to a) unblock the mind, b) tap into tacit knowledge, c) trigger the mind into working at various cognitive levels and d) apply a) and b) and c) to the areas of problem identification and idea generation and evaluation.
c) Frameworks reduce complex problems into their component intellectual parts. For example, story structure can be reduced to three or four acts or The Hero With A Thousand Faces (Campbell, 1973). Frameworks increase output by reducing complex problems into smaller, more manageable problem solving exercises. Frameworks tell the screenwriter where to start, where to finish, what to write and what should be happening at a particular stage of the story.
Additionally, a structured approach improves performance in a number of ways, including:
a) Structure triggers prolific production and simply being prolific improves performance and quality. The single best creative product tends to appear at that point in the career when creator is being most prolific. Experience refines knowledge and methodology towards optimal levels.
b) Structure triggers engagement and simply engaging in the tasks results in problem identification and stimulates the mind into working on those problems at various cognitive levels, resulting in inspiration. Screenwriters often find that their best ideas come to them when they are in the middle of writing a screenplay.
c) Structure triggers problem identification which in turn triggers incubation. Problems incubate until answers become apparent. Increasing the incidence and frequency of problem identification increases the incidence and frequency of insight.
d) Increased problem identification (coupled with motivation) increases the incidence of solution seeking, through active search for stimuli and intellectual cross pollination through networks and collaboration.
e) Radical shifts (originality) occur through sustained incremental change. By incrementally modifying output, the distance between the original and final versions increases. Radical shifts sometimes result from dramatic events or conditions but the vast number of gains accrue from continuous incremental improvement.
f) Quality gains, measured on many levels, are result of sustained incremental changes.
The Hero's Journey and various story structure templates can be found at http://www.managing-creativity.com.
You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.
Kal Bishop, MBA
**********************************
You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author's name and site URL are retained.
Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached on http://www.managing-creativity.com.
executive chauffeured services Bradford .. Madison to Airport carWord processors are so widely used now that I tend... Read More
|| Graphology & Graphotherapy ||Everybody wants to know more about... Read More
Last week I was having a quick browse on eBay... Read More
During the past few months I have received many questions... Read More
Have you ever started a creative writing project with great... Read More
Dream that your book can be a number one best... Read More
Writing for the web is very different from writing for... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?What a plot is and what a... Read More
You have a new website, or a new business, or... Read More
If your writing muscle isn't in shape, writing a novel... Read More
So, you want to freelance as an editor, writer, copy... Read More
Paulo Coelho was born on August 24th 1947 in Rio... Read More
Working on my first humorous novel, I started with a... Read More
There is an image most people carry of the artist... Read More
In the words of Aristotle, "happiness is self contentedness helping... Read More
Bookcoaching clients come to me at different stages of writing... Read More
Typically when falling asleep in bed at night great thoughts... Read More
In one of the exercises in my "Getting Started as... Read More
Kallu was a tenant of Santosh Kumar Nayak. Santosh Kumar... Read More
Suspense novels, unlike any other genre, need fast starts. Fans... Read More
Why should you consider creating a memoir of your personal... Read More
A few magazines refer to their written idea sources in... Read More
Having problems writing? I don't know why. San Francisco Chronicle... Read More
Started a book and then got bogged down? Like many... Read More
Screenwriting is a competitive trade. To distinguish yourself as a... Read More
O'Hare Chicago prom limo ..A few magazines refer to their written idea sources in... Read More
So, the decision is final. I am a writer.Actually, I... Read More
You can learn a lot about what it takes to... Read More
1. Use Logic: Check for External PressuresAre you under physical... Read More
Working on my first humorous novel, I started with a... Read More
FERRETING OUT WORK You keep hearing that there's work out... Read More
Every writer eventually develops her own unique style of writing.... Read More
Language Training - A key to Global CommunicationLanguage Training is... Read More
Has the thought run across you mind that you might... Read More
The Scanning ReaderWriting for the Web is different than writing... Read More
Have you ever wondered why some people can make millions... Read More
Bookcoaching clients come to me at different stages of writing... Read More
As an International language, English has been used widely in... Read More
How long should your chapters be?I can't resist... I have... Read More
Great business writers combine narrative skills with sound judgment to... Read More
Welcome to the zany ideas of a productive writer. My... Read More
Writing is hard work, and like all hard work, one... Read More
10 - You will always have a job. As long... Read More
Beyond three and four act story structure, lies the Hero's... Read More
Whether you are writing a magazine article, composing a press... Read More
Short Story Writing Tips ?We all have different tastes in... Read More
When the writing bug hits you, get out your pencil,... Read More
No one is born a novel writer. But do you... Read More
When you get stuck for ideas, and the words won't... Read More
A well-punctuated approach letter may make the difference between acceptance... Read More
Writing |