A few months ago, I restructured my evenings to prioritize some new activities over others. One of those activities was to have time to think creatively. Several times a week, I take 30 minutes to sit and think creatively about a topic. Most evenings the topic I am thinking about is RPGs, either my current game, future games, or RPG theory. The activity has been wonderful and I have had several useful thoughts and ideas to put towards my current campaign. I cannot recommend dedicated creative thinking enough. So let me tell you about how I set it up and what I do.
What is Creative Thinking?
For my loose definition, creative thinking is having original thoughts or using my imagination focused on a given topic. (That last part is self-imposed because I wanted to spend a session thinking about one thing, not bouncing around from idea to idea)
I did not want to be overly restrictive about what topics I could or could not think about, but I did have a few ground rules:
- This could be brainstorming for a session, but not documentation for any current session notes.
- It could not pertain to my day job (I am setting up some creative thinking time at my day job for that work).
Beyond that, anything was game.
I was concerned that without a topic when I sat down, I would not think of something, so I made a short list of possible ideas to work on. I wrote them on index cards and keep them with my notebook (see below), this way I can grab them and flip through them for inspiration.
Writing Tools
Here is where I had a few more restrictions. The first was that this is not journaling. Journaling, especially if you frequent Pinterest or TikTok can at times overly focus on the product of the journaling, with the use of stickers, sketches, formatting, etc. I wanted these sessions to be raw and unfinished – the fewest barriers between my thoughts and the paper.
For this, I use a notebook that is separate from my other notebooks. I repurposed an old Traveller’s Notebook with a single notebook insert (square ruled). I also purchased my favorite pen, to make my writing quick and smooth (Uniball Jetstream ballpoint pen 0.7mm).
There are a few rules about the notebook:
- It is designed to be messy. Cross things out, misspell things… it does not matter. The goal is to get ideas flowing.
- The book is not to be a reliable archive. At any point, an old notebook can be thrown away because nothing of value should be in it.
- If something written down is important to archive, then it’s transcribed to one of my more reliable documentation systems (OneNote).
- If something is actionable, such as a to-do, that gets copied out to my to-do list of choice (Remember the Milk).
There are a few reasons for this. The first is that I did not want to make any other major investments into notebooks. I repurposed an old one, and any notebook could be used for this task. I also did not want another place I had to go looking for ideas, so the notebook was not to be the final destination for any usable ideas.
The Thinking Session
My thinking sessions are 30 minutes long, three times a week. I do them earlier in the evening so that I am not too tired. I often do them right after dinner.
My session takes place under good lighting, with a comfortable chair and writing surface (my couch, and a lap desk). To help keep focus, I like to have music playing during these sessions, my favorite being the Lofi Girl. I set a timer…the session is never less than 30 minutes, but can go over if I am on a roll.
At the start of the session, or earlier in the day, I pick a topic. If I don’t have one, then I shuffle the cards to see what grabs my attention. With a topic selected, I get comfortable, gather my tools, turn on some music, and start my timer.
During the session, I have periods of writing, periods of thinking, and some light research. When I am writing it is as freeform as possible. I am not looking to be accurate but rather to capture ideas to paper.
Research comes in the form of Google searches from my phone, checking my campaign notes, or looking at rule books. I can use my phone for this, but no checking of email or social media.
At the end of the session, I will highlight or flag any items that are worth archiving or need to go into my to-do list.
Thinking for your Game
There are many things about your game that you can use this time for.
One of my favorite uses is for my current campaigns, to think about the larger campaign arcs and what else is going on in the game. This unstructured creative time is a great canvas to start building how your campaign arc will flow.
Use this time to think about what the main plot will be, then how it will be broken down into sessions, and how to create linkages between the characters and the different elements present in the arc. Tap into your character backgrounds and your session notes to pull together details.
This time is also great for worldbuilding, be it for your current campaign or a future campaign. You can think about any number of campaign elements and work them out during a session. Then transfer that info back to your campaign notebook.
This time is also a great space to think about your future campaigns. Take time to think about what you want from a future campaign. What system might work best?
You can also use the time to work on issues at your table. You can do some brainstorming and problem-solving to figure out how to solve those issues. I have been working out some ideas about how to create a better atmosphere of appreciation at the table.
Make it a Habit
Once you do this you will see the value. The trick is how to make it a habit. There are many ways to build a habit, and you may know what works best for you. I will share with you how I was able to make it one for me:
Prioritize time in your schedule for the activity.
As I mentioned above, I do this early in the evening when my energy is high, around 8:00 pm.
Make it comfortable.
Have a nice place to work, have nice tools to work with. This will help to make the work enjoyable.
Do it multiple times to reinforce the activity.
I have a goal of three sessions per week. I don’t always hit this goal, depending on my other responsibilities during the week.
Track your sessions.
I use a habit tracker on my phone (Streaks for iOS) to help log when have a session and to track how well I am doing.
Thinking It Through
Life is busy, and the truth is, we are often too busy to think things through. At the same time, when given some time, space, and focus, our minds can create amazing things. By carving out some time in your life for creative thought, you can harness that mind to help improve your game.
Do you have a dedicated time for thinking? Do you have favorite tools or music? What do you like to think about?
