Brainstorming a Book

I’ve had several writer-friends recently have troubles with getting stuck with their books. Each time, I was able to help them get going again with a straightforward brainstorming exercise I learned in Kat Fall’s class on screenwriting. I’m posting it in hopes it will help others as well.

This exercise needs a name… how about…

WHAT: Brainstorm Your Book 
(works whether the book is partially written or we’re starting from scratch)
WHO: You (and a friend – optional)
HOW LONG: 1/2 hour to one hour
RESULT: A rough outline of major turning points and scenes in your book

Okay, are you ready? I’m going to brainstorm a book right here and now, as I’m writing this post – to give you examples and to give you courage. You will do so much better than me, because you won’t be pulling stuff out of thin air. Then again, pulling stuff out of thin air (or more precisely, your subconscious) is exactly what this exercise is supposed to do.

Let’s begin.

STEP 1: Grab a friend – I really do recommend you have a friend walk you through this. Although I’ve done it on my own for two separate books, I think the guided, interactive brainstorming that comes with two people is very helpful. You could each be the guidance for the other! (Why does everything I do turn into a party?)

STEP 2: Open a Word doc… or use a pencil and paper. Either is good.

STEP 3: Write a Logline
Now… DON’T PANIC. I’m going to walk you through how to do this, and the result doesn’t have to be pretty. In fact, make it SLOPPY. This isn’t an actual logline, it’s just a way to get down in a few rambling sentences the basic premise of your book. If you’re not sure about your premise, this exercise will help you figure it out.

Your logline needs to contain:

• Lead character and distinguishing attribute
• Setting
• What does your MC want?
• Who or what stops them from getting what they want?
• What is their challenge in this story?

Jacob Enderman is a nineteen-year-old human genetically engineered from stolen DNA to be part of the advanced negotiating party for an alien race making contact with Earth for the first time. Only he’s never met his Makers – he’s been grown and trained for his duties on the dark side of the moon, waiting for the day of First Contact. Then he will meet his human liaison, and his mission is clear: to fall in love; to mate; and to pave the way. If he and his fellow negotiators fail to make that lasting connection, the human race will lose their chance to be elevated to a space-faring race. But what if gaining the trust of the humans is only the first step in a more insidious plan, as the humans will no doubt suspect? With a foot in both worlds, Jacob is a Stranger in a Strange Land… and has ideas of his own.

• Jacob fails in his training to master a basic human social skill
• Jacob falls for one of his fellow negotiators
• Jacob has to counsel the negotiator he loves to mate with her human liaison
• Jacob and his negotiators are taken hostage by one of the human nations
• The aliens make an unexpected live-communication with the negotiators across space
• Jacob discovers where the aliens true homeworld is
• Jacob’s liaison is beautiful but uninterested in him – and very suspicious
• Jacob’s liaison kidnaps him away from the hostage-taking-human-nation; she thinks his life is in danger
• Jacob wants to see the ocean (he’s only seen pictures); when he gets there, he has a spiritual moment, connecting him to humanity
• Jacob sees the ugly underside of humanity through a terrorist character who kills one of the negotiators
• Jacob discovers who his DNA was stolen from
• Jacob has to kill someone to keep from being killed
• Jacob discovers he’s not fully human
• The aliens show up… and they’re not what we expect.

• 5 – Jacob has to counsel the negotiator he loves to mate with her human liaison
• 5 – Jacob and his negotiators are taken hostage by one of the human nations
• 4 – Jacob’s liaison kidnaps him away from the hostage-taking-human-nation; she thinks his life is in danger
• 3 – Jacob wants to see the ocean (he’s only seen pictures); when he gets there, he has a spiritual moment, connecting him to humanity
• 3 – Jacob sees the ugly underside of humanity through a terrorist character who kills one of the negotiators
• 2 – Jacob has to kill someone to keep from being killed
• 1 – The aliens show up… and they’re not what we expect.

• HOOK – Jacob has to kill someone to keep from being killed
• POINT OF NO RETURN – Jacob has to counsel the negotiator he loves to mate with her human liaison
• POINT OF NO RETURN – Jacob and his negotiators are taken hostage by one of the human nations
• MIDPOINT – Jacob sees the ugly underside of humanity through a terrorist character who kills one of the negotiators
• MIDPOINT – Jacob wants to see the ocean (he’s only seen pictures); when he gets there, he has a spiritual moment, connecting him to humanity
• CRISIS – Jacob’s liaison kidnaps him away from the hostage-taking-human-nation; she thinks his life is in danger
• CLIMAX – The aliens show up… and they’re not what we expect.