Don’t you hate it when your head feels empty, and your English paper is due in two days? This will help you fill your brain back up. Consider this paper a cerebral gas station. The words are free and there’s no sales tax or lines at the pump. To be an accomplished writer, you must think like one. Reviewing writing skills will help the process move smoothly. In order to achieve this talent, you need to be able to brainstorm, open up your imagination, and have patience.
First, you need paper and a pen to brainstorm. For inspiration and motivation, get a little help from your music player. Whether it’s classical, contemporary, or rock, you’ll get the lift you need. Jane Austen may have enjoyed listening to Mozart while writing “Pride and Prejudice.” Tennessee Williams probably listened to jazz when he wrote “A Streetcar Named Desire.” Now, list any ideas you have about a paper. Think of this exercise like a grocery list, and you’re really hungry. Take as much time as you want because brainstorming sets down the foundation for your paper. It also lets you pour out thoughts, so you’ll have a thundering piece of art.
If you’re stuck with a theme paper, don’t let your thoughts turn to glue… think: topic. Persuasion, how-to’s, and compare/contrast are all topics to consider. Persuasion makes people do or think the way you want them to. How-to’s show people step by step how to do something. Compare and contrast show the similarities and differences of two things. I have always enjoyed making up my own stories. Fiction is what I’m best at.
Then, expand your imagination. Let it flow like a flood. Let it erupt like a volcano. There is no reason to put limits on your mind. Try to be as creative as possible. You don’t want to have the same paper as someone else do you? Clone sheep, not thoughts. After all, you’re an original. Make your paper a reflection of you.
Next, you need to have patience. Patience can truly be a virtue when you’re striving for a written masterpiece. Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and a well-written paper can’t be done sandwiched between “Friends” and “Seinfeld.” Plan ahead to give your mind notice that a brainstorm’s on its way. Don’t let yourself suffer the frustration of impatience.
If you’re read this far, you’re ready to work the mind-magic and make that pen perform! It’s a good idea to make friends with an eraser or a bottle of wite-out. Don’t think of them as weapons; use them as tools to build your creation. Whether your creation is a story, a book, an article, or a class assignment, think: B.I.P. [brainstorming, imagination, patience]. Get to work! The deadline’s tomorrow.
