WOW! Women On Writing Blog: problem solving

Writing for Problem Solving and Conflict Management

Thursday, May 21, 2015

When I was getting my master’s degree in creative writing, I had a teacher who told us that if we were having a problem in real life, we should work it into our story. Not only does it add depth to the story, it often serves as a remarkable problem-solving tool.

Below is an activity that I use in many capacities to elicit stories from myself and students. One way you can use it is as a problem-solving exercise.

1) Create a Character based on yourself, a person with whom you’re having a conflict, or a completely fictional character.

What is this person’s name, age, gender?
Describe this person’s eyes, hair, hands, body shape, scars, voice, walk.
What is this person’s favorite food, song, activity?
What is something the person often says?
What is a goal this person has in life?
Describe this person’s best friend.
Describe this person’s enemy.
What else to you know about this person that you want to write down?

2) Create a Setting

Where are you most likely to find this character? Favorite place?
Describe what it looks, smells, sounds, feels, tastes like...

3) Create a Conflict or, ideally, insert the conflict or problem you’re having.

What is something that prevents the person from reaching his or her goal?
What is something that confuses or frustrates this person?
How does this person interact with his or her enemy? Why does that person have an enemy?

4) Put It Together

Create a story through writing or drawing that includes your character in the setting you created and one of your conflicts.
What does the character think? How does he or she act? What’s the outcome?

5) Share Your Story with at least one other person. This is a way to get an alternative perspective on the problem you hope to solve.

Ask your reader: What do you like about the story? What interested or surprised you the most?
Ask yourself: What do you like about your own story? What interested or surprised you the most?

I’ll often journal my thoughts and feelings on a difficult issue, but this activity makes me think even deeper about it. And who knows, maybe one day it’ll lead to a publishable work of art!

Have you ever used writing for problem solving or conflict management?

Written by Anne Greenawalt, writer and writing instructor

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Productivity and Goal Setting

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

I’m either a really productive writer or I’m not. It all depends.

When I have a deadline, I can power through a project whether it is 30 crafts and activities, a week’s worth of blog posts or researching and writing a 14,000 word book in 5 weeks. That hard and fast goal moves me forward and I write hard and fast until I'm done.

I don’t even need large periods of time. Over the summer, I focus on projects I can break into smaller pieces. My son isn’t old enough to drive but he’s on the city swim team. Between trips to and from practice and various meets, I manage to work fifteen minutes here and 30 minutes there. I get a lot done flitting from one small block of time to another, switching which project I'm working on to suit how much time I have.

Now that the school year has started, my son is back in the classroom or at practice most of the day. I have plenty of time to write but for several weeks I wasn’t getting more done. In fact, my productivity had slacked off. I’d a write blog post and then a craft. After lunch, I’d write another blog post and fiddle with some research.

But it wasn’t enough. I’d write at one sitting, rewrite at another and make very little progress over all. Sure, I’d notice the lack of progress but . . . why worry? I had plenty of time to work.

For the last two weeks, I’ve been working a bit differently. Instead of doing a bit of this and a bit of that every hour, I focus on one or two larger projects a day. Monday, I write the posts up for one blog and work on marketing, getting returned manuscripts back out. Tuesday, I watch the lectures and take the quiz for a class I’m taking. During the afternoon, I start the crafts which I finish up on Wednesday before I research my next nonfiction project.

Some people may work well when they have large blocks of time and flit from project to project. Maybe one day that will work for me, but, right now, I’m staying on just one project for longer than I have in the past.

The reason isn’t magical beyond the fact that this is what is working for me now. But the next time my productivity lags, I won’t fight it. I’ll shake things up – breaking my work up in a different way, writing in a new place or, if I feel tapped out, taking the time to recharge my batteries.

As professionals, our solutions have to be as creative and varied as the work we do.

--SueBE

Sue teaches our class, Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults. The next session begins in October; places in the class are open.