Listen Up!
Idea Stimulator # 7
Listen Up!
Listen Up!
For the next few days put a dozen index cards in your pocket. Capture verbatims wherever you go. Just write down what you hear without judgment. For example, when you were picking up your cleaning you may have heard, “I lost my receipt.” Or at the diner, “These are scrambled. I asked for over-lights!” The ordinary statements often work best. Sit down in a quiet place. Place the index cards on a table face down. Turn over the first card which might have been overheard at the supermarket check-out line, “This place is really filthy.” Now write down a minimum of ten ideas triggered by that thought. Don’t limit yourself to one location. Vary the ages of the people. For example, Imagine a pristine laboratory with workers in lab coats and masks with hands in protective gloves. One worker turns to the other and says, “This place is filthy.” Go to a K-Mart or Target. Listen. I heard, “The light in this place makes me crazy.” What is it about the light in these kinds of places? How can you duplicate this light on a set?
Illustrator/cartoonist Stan Mack made a career of collecting and visualizing verbatims. His comic strip entitled Real Life Funnies: Guarantee All Dialog is Reported Verbatim appeared in AdWeek and The Village Voice for decades. Check him out at www.stanmack.com.
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Comments
Ian, this is a great idea, one I haven't heard of. And have read Stan's stuff for years. :-)
Posted by: Willie | March 27, 2006 06:52 AM