make a list
an book of creative writing prompts
Here is a list about what makes lists so great:
· Lists can help us get ideas out of our head – and onto paper.
Create some space in your brain!
· Lists can help us break down complex matters into smaller, more simple parts.
· Lists can help us filter out what is important, what stands out.
· Lists can help us overcome our horror vacui – the fear of the blank page.
Jot something down now - turn it into a consecutive text later.
Make your list a starting point to write that paper, letter, speech, …!
· Lists can be a great tool for brainstorming new ideas.
They can give us a clearer idea of what we are looking for.
· Making a list can be a mindfulness practice.
Notice and name what is!
· Lists can be a beautiful way to collect memories.
· Making lists can be a fun and even funny thing to do – alone, or with friends and family.
· All in all, writing lists can help us get to know ourselves and each other better.
“A couple of years ago my Oma, my grandmother in Germany, passed away.
I knew that she felt ready to leave. I still felt sad, though, especially because I wasn’t able to attend her funeral. Despite my inability to be there in person, I was determined to honor her and take part in her final celebration of life.
And so, I started working on a list.
As a child I’d called my grandma Oma Lingen after the place where she lived. I wrote this name I had given her on a piece of paper. Then, I started listing who else she was to me.
I focused on memories we had shared and wrote them down as a way of naming her: Walk in the Park Oma, Sweet Carrots Oma, Unexpected Joke Oma, Sticki Oma (after a German board game)… More and more memories bubbled up as I kept on writing, recalling her, naming her.
My mother agreed to read the list aloud during my grandma’s ceremony.
In the days that followed, family members reached out to me and shared that my words had touched them in unexpected ways. Not only did they recognize my grandma’s traits described in the list, but they had also felt my love for her “between the lines.” I was stunned by the effect of sharing this heartfelt — but simple — list. “
”
— From the introduction
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