You might not always think of lists as a go to writing tool when you get stuck, but they’re a tool you’ll want to keep in your “writer’s toolbox”. You’d be surprised how often lists appear in all types of literature, often hidden in lengthy prose, or within the lines of poetry.

In this episode of the podcast, Stephanie leads the conversation, inspired by a workshop led by Leath Tonino at the Mountain Words Festival in Crested Butte, CO in May 2024, focused on the list as a tool for enhancing your writing.

Take a moment and think about where you find lists in your everyday life. You’ve just created a new list and a point of reference for yourself about how prevalent and useful lists are for writers.

In a work of fiction, the description of a room can become a list, as the author provides details separated by commas that create a mental picture for the reader. You’ve probably never considered this to be a list because it doesn’t fit the image that most often comes to mind of a vertical display of words going down an edge of a page. Of course, there are plenty of other opportunities for description of people, places, and things that appear throughout a novel. And now, you’re going to start noticing it when you read, and remember that what started as a list can become important details in your work.

Lists can become poems. Poetry most often appears like a list. Short sentences, single words, or short stanzas on a page. The economy of language to build an image or create a sensory experience for the reader. A poem can be inspired by a list of objects, names, or anything else.

When you’re developing characters, you have lists for traits, interests, behavior, and more. A list about your characters is created by brainstorming and writing your ideas as quickly as possible to dump your thoughts onto the page. They can be organized later. Your lists allow you to scan your ideas with ease and not get bogged down in a lot of words.

There’s the psychology of the “quick win” as a writer when you write lists. You’ve cleared your mind and improved your focus when you let your ideas flow in the form of a list. You tell yourself you’ve accomplished something for the day. Writing lists is, after all, writing. A great jumpstart when you get stuck and for keeping track of ideas.

Lists are not reserved for fiction writers. They’re for everyone, including nonfiction writers. In nonfiction, lists are used for writing observations, taking notes, and for presenting information. You’ve probably seen lists as a common approach across social media for journalists and bloggers hoping to get someone’s attention.

If you’re still curious, and want to hear more details about using lists as a tool for inspiring your writing, go listen to Episode 35 of the podcast. When you’re done listening, we hope you’ll leave us a review, share it with a friend, and send us an email letting us know your thoughts.