In his essay, Run Fast, Stand Still, Or, The Thing At The Top of The Stairs, sci-fi luminary Ray Bradbury asks writers to trust in the powers of the unconscious mind. What does this mean? Early in his career, Bradbury created lists of nouns, taken from childhood memories. Many were frightening totems with a visceral power that carried over into adulthood. For example, "THE ATTIC, THE BASEMENT, THE TRAPDOOR, THE BABY, THE CROWD, THE NIGHT TRAIN, THE FOG HORN..." These simple lists, drawn from the wellspring of his own personal mythology, provided the impetus for countless classic tales like R is for Rocket, and Something Wicked This Way Comes. Why not take five minutes to make your own list of nouns? Put pen to paper, don't judge your answers, and let your mind wander wherever it likes. There's something very appealing to this organic and individualized method of story-finding. I'll post my results soon, and if you're game, send me the results of your lists and I'll share those too. And if you haven't read Bradbury's inspirational and energizing manifesto, Zen in the Art of Writing, pick up a copy here or check it out of your local library.