Brainstorming isn’t for Dummies

Taking what you’re thinking and putting it on paper can be pretty difficult. How do you make the main idea, characters, plot, and the supporting details make sense? You, don’t. That’s the answer; it isn’t supposed to make sense when you’re brainstorming.

Brainstorming is a process of producing an idea by participating in self-discussion or a group discussion.  Brainstorming is writing down a few main ideas down then picking one, then you write a lot of secondary ideas and pick from those, then you write down a ton more supporting details and pick from those. It is a long process and there are times where you have to do it multiple time because you don’t like your secondary ideas or your supporting details. There’s a method to this madness though and it makes for a great paper!

Figure 1: Ugly-web-thingy

Take yourself back to when you used graphic organizers and webs and all that jazz in school. Well, sucks to say, but those are pretty useful even in college. Now, I’m not saying that you have to use a graphic organizer so if you want to have a piece of paper with random words and a bunch of scribbles then go for it; it’s all about what makes sense for you! Graphic organizers are just a great way of harnessing the writer’s block and helping to move your ideas forward. They are also great for keeping your sanity when you have 20 million ideas of which you can only pick one. Whether you want to do the ugly-web-thingy, or an organized- column-graph-whatever-you-call-it, or just a concept map, it can all be helpful! Or you can just start writing and sound like an idiot because you get disorganized between topics, lose your train of thought, start talking about how your life is a mess because you don’t know what to write about, and finish it with a few tear soaked words about how your readers need to love your writing. But, no judgment here!

Figure 2: You if you don’t organize your writing.

Interesting Word: Laissez-faire

Laissez-faire

Noun – An attitude or policy of allowing things to progress without interference.

Mr. Bozman created a Laissez-faire work environment in which all his cubicle-bound lil’ workers were allowed to finish their work at their own pace; nothing was accomplished.
Shep Nedly’s Laissez-faire style of parenting instilled in his child a sense of wonder, creativity, and adventure which led to his career as a traveling bard; Shep–pursued by his hospital debts–regretted his parenting.

Oh, Shep, if only you had disciplined your child, then maybe your combo hood-beanie wouldn’t be necessary.

Hyphen Rule: Use Hyphens to Make Compound Adjectives

A hyphen can join words that modify the same noun to create compound adjectives.

The bruised-apple-red car crashed into the lake.
The bullet-proof vest was, unfortunately, not a viable defense against the snowballs of children.

“Can you feel them, Jenkins. The children, they’re all around us. The white storm cometh, 

Hyphens can also change an adjective modifying a noun into a more direct description of that noun, sometimes to humorous effect.

Hello, old friend
A pleasant greeting to a friend you’ve had for a long time.

Hello, old-friend.
A succinct way of pointing out how decrepit your friend has grown over the years. 

And did I mention your sunken eyes and receding hair? Don’t look at me like that, old-buddy.

Avoid Very

Very:

Adverb- used for emphasis

Adjective- actual; precise

It was a very peaceful day at the lake when we saw a very large monster creeping through the water. We could see its very shiny and very sharp teeth ready to chomp through our very soft skin. We couldn’t believe it; it was very unexpected. We tried to run off the dock but the monster was very fast and wiggled its way up the very thin dock. We turned around very quickly and found ourselves very scared and very upset. Here it came, the very judgmental and very harsh grammar monster.

Sounds lazy, huh? Pick up a thesaurus, you dumby! Here’s how it sounds with a little more effort.

It was a peaceful day at the lake when we saw a gigantic monster creeping through the water. We could see its gleaming and razor-sharp teeth ready to chomp through our delicate skin. We couldn’t believe it; it was surprising. We tried to run off the dock, but the monster was swift and wiggled its way up the narrow dock. We turned around hastily and found ourselves shivering in our own skin. Here it came, the judgmental and rigid grammar monster.

Comma Rule: Use a Comma to Separate Nonrestrictive Elements

Nonrestrictive elements are clauses that do not affect the fundamental meaning of a sentence. They provide information that is not necessary to the basic idea of the sentence.

Correct
Chudley, who is passionate about pigeons, lives on the roof of my building.
I had a dream that Barack Obama, who is the president of the United States, was disappointed in my grades.
“Who is passionate about pigeons” and “who is the president of the United States” are not essential information to the success of the sentence. Instead, they add details that the sentence doesn’t necessarily need. 

Oh jeez. He’s flashing his “I’m disappointed in your performance at school” smile.

Incorrect
Danbo the famous baker lost a thumb in a terrible egg beater accident.
Estelle who considered internet browsing aberrant behavior wrote letters to all her grandchildren via carrier pigeon.
To correct these sentences you would put commas around “the famous baker” and “who considered internet browsing aberrant behavior” because those two bits of information are nonessential to the meaning of the sentence. 

Pictured above: the last time he ever made that gesture.

Comma Rule: Appositives

Appositives are nouns or phrases that rename a noun that precedes them. Use a comma to separate appositives from the nouns they rename.

Correct
Clyve, the intern, was infatuated with smoothies, his one true love.
I am Fluffles, unforgiving slayer of mice, hurricane of the Eastern scratching post, chief threat to the free rodents of off-center Earth.
These examples are correct because the comma separates the appositive phrase from the noun it is renaming. 

Hear my roar, my battle cry!

Incorrect
Hello, smoothie, I am Clyve the love of your life.
Eggs the fruit of the avian world are delicious.
These examples are incorrect because there is no comma to separate the appositive phrase. It is noticeable as you read it because there are no commas to provide a natural pause between the pause and the noun it modifies. 

A good harvest this season.

Comma Rule: Use a Comma After an Introductory Clause

Introductory clauses are dependent clauses that introduce the second part of the sentence.

Correct
After she finished shearing it, the sheep bought an expensive leather jacket to keep warm.
Unknown to the intrepid adventurers, the minions of the great magician Dave were on their trail.
These sentences are correctly punctuated because the comma separates the introductory clause from the rest of the sentence. 

That’s classic Dave to send someone to do his evil for him; Dave is very lazy, but he enjoys pointing at things.

Incorrect
After I woke up I went back to sleep.
Once I had woken up a second time I realized life was an endless cycle of waking up and falling asleep punctuated only by tiny and infrequent joys.
These sentences are incorrect because the comma does not separate the introductory phrase from the clause that is being introduced; it’s chaos! See how sad that second example was; that’s what happens when you don’t punctuate properly: sadness abounds. 

“No, mother, there will be no more music. I punctuated improperly, and life lost its flavor.”

Avoid the Passive Voice

The active voice is more forceful and it is brief. The active voice provides the subject and verb in direct and concise relation to each other. The passive voice makes the sentence linger and takes the momentum away from the ideas.

Active
Tomandra stole a bag of corn.
Theodorus gave an impassioned speech about eggs.
The rabbit cuddled with the moose.

For whatever reason, the only corn Tomandra stole had the nutritional value of the bag that held it.

Passive
A bag of corn was stolen by Tomandra.
An impassioned speech about eggs was given by Theodorus
A moose was cuddled by rabbit.

The active sentences are direct, pointed, and tell you everything you need to know in as few words as necessary. The second is indirect, unnecessarily long, and makes the final details seem like an addendum. A few words difference may seem trivial but every word should work for you in making your point direct and clear to your reader.

Colon Rule: Use a Colon to Introduce a List

The sentence preceding the colon should be a complete independent clause.

Correct
I dislike birds as they posses unsavory qualities: ugliness, loudness, and a tendency to stand by windows coughing at tired people.
A proper eggplant has three characteristics: it is purple, oblong, and not the progeny of birds.

These examples are correct because the sentence before the colon is not dependent upon the list; the list emphasizes or expands upon the ideas introduced by the sentence before it. 

Just look at it; it’s probably looking for some exhausted youth to spit at.

Incorrect
Birds: ugly, loud, and cough too much.
The proper eggplant is: purple, oblong, and of no relation to birds.

The clause preceding the comma is not a complete sentence so it relies upon the colon to be a complete idea, and that is incorrect.