Milton Erickson, Abused Children, and the "Always-a-Robin" Syndrome (Part Four)

Vigilance: That's a term psychologists sometimes use when discussing these issues of perception, focus, and attention we've been talking about. The science of paying attention.

Last time, I suggested three practical steps, if you want to improve your capacity for observant detail in fiction:

1) Observe more of life around you.
2) Write it down, or you will forget.
3) Select carefully and thoughtfully, based on your audience and genre.

1) Observing more is a discipline. If you want to see the world around you--really see--you must make a conscious effort. Left on our own, we "see" enough to get by. And what we see is selective. It's generally established in the research, for instance, that females observe and decode non-verbal signals with greater skill than males. This helps account for that phenomenon we label "female intuition" (Which isn't as mysterious as it sounds...Intuition is based on observations/interpretations that seem to occur below the level of conscious awareness.)

So the first step is to decide to see more...and keep that decision in front of you on a regular basis, to guard against slipping back into the more comfortable mode. Write yourself a note. Carry it with you. Ink the world "see" on the back of your hand for one day. Put it on a stickie over your computer. However you do it, be more intentional about observing.

Another strategy to help you get started is to use that selectivity that we all seem to have...but use it to your advantage and play Observation Games. Pick a specific detail, and go on a hunt for examples. How many types of doors can you observe today? How many different ways are there for people to sit? (Posture, legs crossed, still or jittery, etc.) Have you ever studied the way people comb their hair? Let yourself become very still, right now, and identify all the sounds in your environment. The hum of fluorescents? Is your computer making subtle sounds? Wind, or street sounds from outside? Someone typing in the office down the hall? (Hey...What are you doing reading blogs at work, anyway??) You may find...probably will find...sounds you've never noticed before--because you weren't attending to them. How many color gradations of eyes can you find today? Count 'em.

(Hint: If you relied only on fiction, you'd get the idea that nine-tenths of the world walks around with eyes of piercing ice-blue.)

2) Human memory is demonstrably fickle. That's worth a post of its own sometime, but for now, trust me on this. (You didn't think it was just you, did you?) So if you don't write these little tidbits of detail down, later on, when you need them, they will be forgotten.

Many, many writers..those famous and those never-to-be...keep a writing journal. I keep one, and in it I jot down not only story ideas, but little observations I make along the way. Now, here's what I was thinking about the other day:

Wouldn't it be great if I could peek in your journal?

No, I don't want your story ideas...(Well, maybe I do)...but the point is, I'm only one lone writer. And I can only observe what happens in my little slice of the world.

What if we shared observation journals?

You could see my observation notes...and I could see yours...and maybe something that you see in mine would spark your imagination. Maybe the perfect detail you've been searching for is out there, only it's not in your journal.

It's in mine.

And if we had a dozen contributors...two dozen...a hundred?

Wow...think what a resource that could be.

Not that you have to use my journal notes verbatim. You'd be free to mix them up, change them around in accordance with your imagination. For instance, I might observe an interesting tattoo which incorporates the name "Betty."

If you like the tattoo I describe, but don't have a Betty in your story...use the tattoo's design, but change the name.

Here are some true examples of the kind of thing I'm talking about, from my journal:

8/31/09... a small bird chasing a car. Flitting along right behind the vehicle for at least a full block as it sped down the street (Think maybe it was enjoying the heat of the tailpipe?)

9/13/09...divining rods and "water witching"

11/20/09...a vast field of sunflowers, shriveled and spent with black, drooping heads.

3/11/10... Flagpole in a stiff wind. Arrythmic "ping" of the chain against the pole.

3/22/10... woman with arms crossed, who continuously plays with the hem of her short sleeve as she speaks.

3/24/10... sign outside business: "Ion foot detox = $25.  Ear candling."

Now, maybe I'm the last person in the world who's never heard of Ion foot detoxes, or ear candling...But those things caught my attention. Some day I may use that sign verbatim in a piece of fiction...or I may change it a bit...or I may never come up with a use for it.

But even if I never have reason to use that particular observation...You might.

So I'm adding an online Writer's Journal to this site...Probably over in the left sidebar. For now, if you're interested in participating in this experiment, just send me your observed detail in the Comments.

Along with your observation, give me the date, the general geographic location if it's important, and your name if you would like attribution.

And remember...details don't have to be bizarre to have impact. But they have to ring true, and, when possible, present a fresh perspective.

Ok...I observe that I'm running long, here...so I'll save the final thoughts for next time.

See something today...and write it down!