Invention

What is invention? Essentially, invention is just prewriting. This can include many things including outlining, brainstorming, writing a thesis, etc. My favorite way to start is by brainstorming. I write down any ideas that come into my head and don't filter anything out. Although I won't use most of these ideas, and many of them will be bad ideas, brainstorming gets me thinking and I usually end up with a few good ideas. After this I like to go back to my list of ideas at a different time and decide what I want to write about. I often like to do this with another person to get their impute and ideas.

Once I have a topic I find it best to take some time to think about it. I mull it over it my head for a few days until I get a good idea of what I want to say and what my thesis should be. I'm most successful when I know what I'm going to write about before I start writing.