This might seem like a stupid question, but I wondered whether anyone would benefit from some spitballing round here. For those of you who are concerned that I'm talking about a sport that invloves a lot of bodily fluids, it's a term that screenwriters use for when they get stuck. You have a bunch of people in a room who bounce around lots of ideas, usually about the plot or general themes, in order to help the writer.

I don't know about any of you, but to this day, I still have various bits of unfinished business on my computer. Opening scenes or characters or whatever that I think are based on a good idea, but that haven't grown into anything more substantial.

I used one of these - the opening scene to a play - in my playwriting course at uni. I handed it in out of laziness to avoid doing that week's assignment, but it turned into a class discussion with everyone throwing out loads of ideas which helped me work out where to take the story, and eventually I turned it into a one act play.

This site is great at providing comments and feedback on short stories, individual chapters, even whole novels in some cases. But if you're working on something that hasn't got that far yet, or if you've reached a certain point and then drawn a blank, perhaps there are some members who could lend a hand (or a spitoon).

I know that a lot of members worry about copywrite and others stealing their ideas. If people are concerned then I suppose the writers groups will offer some protection - speaking of which, do writers groups do this already and I just don't know it (on account of not belonging to one)?

Anywho, was just a thought as it's something I've found so useful in the past.

Katie

Katie -

Well I love that name - spitballing - and I think it is an absolutely fantastic idea.

I didn't even read your whole post because I found it exciting, so now I will go back and read the rest!

Ani

used to be known as brain storming but that is now non PC more commonly now called mind mapping but I think I love your name better

Great idea Katie. At the moment I am involved in a television series writing project at Lighthouse (Script Naked) and writing as a team has been really interesting. There are 6 writers and we are writing a television series in much the way many of the great American series are written. It is one of the best writing exoeriences I have had because when several people are creating a character it becomes layered with the richness of all the writer's experience. It also allows scope for characters one writer might never have imagined in the series and the same goes for storylines - each writer adding their very different experience and style. It is very liberatiing.

I have a million and one snippets of ideas and started novels, plays, screenplays that I gave up on and shoved in the 'misc' file in the relevant section! I've always hoped one day they might come back to life!

is that not the beauty of this site in that the critque one receives are other interpretation or view on that character or person etc.

We all see different things in a person or situation and equaly see the same things differently

Well, that's a new expression for me - we live and learn. I do recall similar expressions...'Run it up the flagpole' and 'Let's get this in the ballpark' to describe this brainstorming concept.

However, it's a good suggestion. How would it work? One is tapping into the creative abilities of the individual whereas it is far more effective when open within a group discussion where ideas prompt reponses and develop from many small points contributed - aometimes almost as 'asides'- voiced by the members of that group. If it could be made to work then - brilliant for I am sure we all have bits and pieces that could be woven into a first-class patchwork quilt.

Len

<Added>

Excuse typos. I am still all-afflutter from some wonderful news I received last night concerning the health of a member of the family. May I confess that I had to open the front door and call out into the darkness..."YESSSS!!!".

Len

Len --

It sounds like you've had wonderful news, so I am very happy for you!!!




And what about starting up some of this spitballing then? When can we begin? Who wants to spit the first one?

Ani

Glad you all seem to like the idea - I was expecting to be met with copywrite worries and a quizzical look!

Yeah, so who needs the first spitball? Anyone having a plot crisis? A 2d character that just won't flesh out? Anything?!

I have to say, this is the bit I love about my job; I'm meeting up with a client next week to talk over his book and spitball a little. Emilia, your job sounds fantastic; must be great fun.

Oh and by the way, it's not my term so I can't take the credit: I pinched it from William Goldman.

K

I've got a recent opening scene here. It would be interesting to see if this tickles anyone's imagination. I got stymied about where I cut off. (A little after, where it really degenerates, but I am not posting that bit!)

Here:

'Night Cleaners' (but saved as 'Elf Work'

Two small elves in green peaked caps squeeze through pores halfway up a membraneous wall. Fat Walfo plops down onto a cluttered heap while Bin Bang falls onto the dusty floorboards.

“Ouch!” he cries.

Fat Walfo whips a length of rope from under his straining breech bottoms. “Hey, wha’s this?”

“Looks like a string, Fat Walfo!”

Fat Walfo slides down to the floor, little bits of paper and metal cascading down behind him. “Avalanche!” he yells.

“Cut it out. You’re gonna wake up the giant, Walfo. We’ll get all thrown around and there sure is a lot of junk in here.”

“Okay. So wha should I do with this here string?”

“It’s in the corner, heh? Corners are funny old things, aren’t they? Do ya wanna change it? Wha’s the clue?”

“Tag says ‘Janie’.”

“Huh. I wonder wha’ tha’s for. Have a think on it, eh?”

“Is tied in a knot here, see? ‘S got a big loop on it. Mebbe we should hang it on somethin’?”

“Mebbe,” agrees Bin Bang.

Walfo throws the rope onto the floor, then begins poking through the top of the heap. An iridescent tubular item projecting from the wall catches Bin Bang’s eye. He grasps it in his horny little hand, tugging until, with a pop, the wall relinquishes it. Bin Bang todders back against Walfo.

“Hey whaddaya think this is?”

“Smells bad,” says Walfo.

“Mebbe we should send it out?”

“’gainst the rules, Bin Bang. ‘Less we leave a dummy, ‘course.”

“We coulda leave a dummy. Stinks bad.”

“’S got a note,” says Walfo. “Lemme see it.”

Intriguing stuff ani! I had to read it twice, trying to piece things together, but I love that feeling of 'what the hell?!' when you first read something; I love to be surprised.

Anyway. On to the spittoon.

I love the names of these little guys. They reminded me a bit of the borrowers, crossed with the police in Fargo - something about the way they talk so matter-of-factly, they seem very practical.

I'm kinda confused about where they are (prob being stupid). Night Cleaners made me think of a hospital, and then the tags with names on made me think of children. Presumably the giants are humans; or are we in a full-on fantasy land?

I love the way they squeeze through pores in a wall, as if they're going inside something living; but then they land on floorboards so they must be indoors. But then I start worrying that I'm reading it all too literally and missing something very important and obvious!

Is this a children's story? A short story?

I think you've got their voices down perfectly. As to their situation, what are they cleaning up? Objects, or something less tangible? Now I'm reminded of the BFG; are they cleaning dreams? minds?

Sorry this is all a little incoherent! I'm sort of thinking out loud at this point. Be interesting to see what others have to say...

Katie

I think that this would be agood idea. How exactly would it work? Is one piece of work, or an idea, say, submitted for discussion?

Nick

Katie --

I think it would have helped if I had prefaced this with a bit of the missing info. This was an initial abortive attempt at writing to a prompt in my class - the prompt was 'the attic of my mind'. Anyway, the elves are climbing into the brain at night and dealing with all the clutter, the stuff stored up there. It's trying to straddle the literal and the figurative, so I guess it's metaphorical. (Isn't there a noun for an extended metaphor? I think there is, but can't remember the word, so a lot of good that does now!)

So it seemed like a good idea, but now that they're in there, I just don't know what to do with the critters!

Ani

<Added>

Oops, I missed part of your post, Katie. It's geared up to be a short story.

Bergkamp - at the moment we don't have much of a structure, but I'd say, either outine the general idea/problem here and it can be discussed, or provide a link to something you've uploaded if it's longer piece.

Ani - A ha! So I wasn't that far off the mark after all! I love the idea of these little guys poking around and tidying up your mind (they've obviously never had a go with mine - just as well; it's utter chaos!)

It's a great idea for a short story. I'm intrigued by the line about putting in a dummy. So if they take something away they leave a 'dummy' memory behind? Are they just tidying memories, or is there 'litter' as well - old maths problems, discarded shopping lists, headaches, all sorts of things?

How much power do they have? Can they erase a memory? If they did can they put it back if they made a mistake? Or do they simply tidy? I mean, you could go anywhere with a beginning like this - maybe that's the problem; there's so much choice!

Do they phsically tidy things; is there a filing cabinet of sorts? Do they deal with unpleasant things? Perhaps there's something they have to be careful of; a nasty memory, the person's personality, a 'scatterbrain'?

I'm sure others will have lots of ideas on this one; there are just so many possibilities!

K

Spitballing? The name alone makes me want to be completely excluded from such an activity. Can't it just be called brainstorming?

Katie --

Re erasing memories, dummies, etc.

There seems to be a set of 'rules' lurking somewhere offstage that the elves have to abide by, or suffer the consequences. So I guess they could erase a memory, but then there would be consequences.... It's kind of hard to deal with those consequences while inside the 'attic'....

Yeah,and the dummy would replace something that the elves decide just has to go. Actually the stinky thing was an old hotdog left over from when the 'giant' was about four years old. (When I discovered hotdogs and my friend Tracey and I used to walk down the street eating uncooked hotdogs straight from the fridge. Disgusting, eh? But I used to play with earthworms, too.) On a much darker note, the rope is a noose that someone used to hang herself.

I suppose if the elves have dummies that they can replace memories with, they might also have other people's old memories in that bag too. Memories that the elves judged would be better off excised. What if the elves acidentally replaced something awful in the giant's mind with a new and horrible memory taken from someone else?

Ani