Collecting Ideas As An Essayist

• We observe the small stuff of our lives and then try to let what we see and hear spark an idea.


• We record an issue that matters in our lives. Then we list several ideas we have about that issue and develop one at more length. We push ourselves to shift from observing to saying, “and the thought I have about this is...”.


• We write in two columns, or in two paragraphs, one section for what we see, hear, and notice and the other for what we think.

Grow Ideas