The Encyclopedia of Interactive Performance

If making stuff up is scary or hard, consider this: You make up stories every night when you dream. You can already make stuff up. You just need to tap into that ability when you’re awake. There are two ways to do that: inspiration and invention.

When an idea pops into your head—that’s inspiration. When an idea shows up because you’ve thought it through—that’s invention. Both inspiration and invention are useful skills. Inspiration is quick and intuitive, but it can be elusive. Invention is there whenever you need it, but it’s a slower process. Practice both because you’ll need them both.

Inspiration

It’s tricky to practice inspiration because it comes from the subconscious. You can’t access the subconscious directly. What you can do is practice the conscious skill of releasing control. This makes it easier for subconscious inspiration to appear.

Let’s start with an experiment. Make a shape with your hand. Any shape will do. Done it? You just made something up.

Before we continue, did you make a shape with your hand or did you keep on reading? If you didn’t make a shape, that illustrates an important point. The first obstacle to spontaneous creation is not doing something. Do something. Do anything.

Ready for another experiment? Stop reading and say something clever.

Did you do it? I hope so, because it illustrates another point. Trying to be clever (or original or entertaining) gets in the way of inspiration. Try saying something again, only this time say something simple.

Any easier? When you let things be simple, it’s easier to make stuff up without thinking.

If saying something simple wasn’t easier, no worries. Releasing verbal control takes practice. Drills like Random access, Ping pong, and Hot seat are great ways to practice letting go of verbal control.

But if you release control, how are you supposed to know where you’re going? You don’t. That’s part of the fun. If you try to figure things out first, it keeps you from doing. Go before you know. It’s easier to figure out why you’ve done something after you’ve done it. To tap the subconscious, do something first and figure out why later.

There you have it. Three tips to release control and access inspiration.

1. Say or do anything.
2. Let it be simple.
3. Do it before you know why.

By the way, there’s a secret sauce that makes inspiration even easier. Play with confidence. In the musical The King and I, Anna gives her son some good advice, “Make believe you’re brave, and the trick will take you far. You may be as brave as you make believe you are.” No matter how nervous you feel on the inside, act assured on the outside. It’s easier to make things up when you play as though you know.

The better you get at releasing conscious control, the easier it is for inspiration to appear. It’s great when inspiration happens, but what if it doesn’t? That’s why you also need the ability to invent.

Invention

Invention sometimes gets a bad rap. It involves thinking, which isn’t as sexy as being inspired. But thinking is just as essential to improvisation as inspiration. When you need an idea and you’re not inspired, it helps to have tools of invention. Here are a few.

The alphabet tool – This is the Swiss Army knife of invention. The process is simple.

1. Think of a letter. (B)
2. Think of a word with that letter in it. (subway)
3. Use that word to inspire an idea. (digging a tunnel)

Association – Think of an idea related to something in the scene. (What’s related to the beach? Sand, waves, sunburn, shark, tide pools, vacation, boardwalk.) All you need is one association and there’s your idea. That’s all there is to it. Association gets faster when you can release control.

Exploration – Be curious. Look for details in your scene partner and the immediate environment. See what ideas your exploration uncovers. This tool keeps your focus within the scene while you’re finding your next idea.

Repeat and amplify – You can also discover new ideas by repeating whatever was just said or done with heightened emotion. See where that leads. There’s your new idea.

Categories – Having too many options can be overwhelming. Sometimes it’s easier to invent an idea when you pull it from a category. Examples of categories include 6 locations and 7 relationships.

Lists – Lists are premeditated invention. They help you avoid your habitual go-to ideas. If you find yourself starting most scenes standing behind a bar wiping off the counter, make a list. Write a variety of ideas in the back of your training journal. When it’s time to play, pick something from the list and do that. It’s not cheating, it’s expanding your repertoire.

Now that we’ve considered the methods of inspiration and invention, here’s a warning about each. First, don’t get over-reliant on invention. If you always invent, your ability to be inspired becomes rusty. Second, don’t assume that inspiration is always your best option. The conscious process is also essential to crafting a good story. When making stuff up, you need both inspiration and invention.