Member-only story

Show Me How to Use Lists for Better Story Building

Each list is a treasure chest.

Marta Calderon, MScE
4 min readApr 6, 2021
Photo by Paico Oficial on Unsplash

I live a list-centric life. Before smartphones, I wrote lists on napkins, paper pads, and anything that allowed a pen to roll. The cell phone gave me access to Notes and other online apps. Lately, I focus on Notes. I use it to write things I hear, read and ideas that land on my brain from who knows where.

Recently, I heard writer Áine Greaney talk about the use of lists to ease conversations with people with serious health issues. Each participant makes a list of things to talk about with the other person. Each uses the list to drive the conversation.

Immediately, I related these lists to my notes. Each note is a list of items from which I selectively take ideas for stories.

Let me show you how you can use the lists of things that come to your mind, hear or read during the day to write stories.

The Power of lists

J.D. Meier, in the article The Power of Lists, discusses list benefits, why using lists, and how to use them in our daily lives. He starts with a quote from Steve Maraboli,

“Rename your To-Do List to your Opportunities list. Each day is a treasure chest filled with limitless

--

--

Marta Calderon, MScE
Marta Calderon, MScE

Written by Marta Calderon, MScE

Plant lover and eco-friendly gardener. Want to be an eco-friendly gardener? Join my weekly newsletter: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/IyRTLEF

Responses (2)