Dreams

Finally for a writing topic. This came to mind again after I had a rather vivid and disturbing dream about my AP literature test (classmates can inquire further). I thought it would be funny to tell later, so I got up at 6:00 in the morning and wrote it down. This reminded me how rarely I record my dreams.

If you've read books about writing and brainstorming, you've probably been told to keep a notebook at your bedside to write down what comes to mind in the middle of the night. This is not the best use for such a notebook. Keep one there to write down your dreams after you have them. It may be hard to get up and do it, but if it's one of those adrenaline-pumping dreams where the ending plays over and over in your mind, it helps you get it out of your head.

I realized the value of this about four years ago, when I had a dream about traveling...somewhere (hey, it was a dream), and I was trying to protect my family from...somebody (I think it was Darth Vader, but I'm no longer sure). The most vivid part, though, was the lightsaber on my belt. I could really feel it, that gave me the idea for a story of a girl who finds a lightsaber on the street and is trained by Darth Vader. The story I wrote for NaNoWriMo came out pretty poorly, but I think the idea was good. And it was good practice. All from one dream.

What are your thoughts about your dreams? Comments welcome.