www.inkthinkerblog.com — At first glance, Overheard in New York may seems completely unrelated to writing. However, I would venture to say that it’s one of the best things to happen to writer’s block in a very, very long time.
When I’m stuck on a creative project there’s nothing I like better than to go to a public place and listen to other people’s conversations for ideas. When I’m stuck on a not-so-creative project, writing fiction often revives me and gets the ideas flowing so I can make progress. Overheard in… not only gives me the opportunity to eavesdrop when I don’t have time to leave my office, but also gives me a window to other parts of the country and other environments where I may not ordinarily have access.
Basically, at Overheard in New York, people in NYC use a simple online form to submit snippets of overheard conversations, which are then posted in a blog-style forum on the site’s homepage for all to see. Archives go back to July 2003. If you don’t live in NYC, you can still participate at Overheard in the Office, where archives go back to January 2005.
Unofficial Overheard sites include Overheard in Philly, Overheard in Law School, and Overheard in Pittsburgh.
So why is this so great? After less than 10 highly addictive minutes of trolling the official sites, I’ve got more than a dozen story ideas–there’s a lot of information packed into a quick back-and-forth exchange. You can tell what kind of relationship the speakers have, how they feel about themselves and one another in that moment, who’s tired and who’s in a great mood, who has a sense of humor, what kind of stuff is going on around them…
I find myself wondering, What happened in the five minutes before and after a particular exchange? Five hours? Five days? What if so-and-so had said X instead of Y? What does the exchange tell about their relationship? Even if you don’t find the actual conversation inspiring, it’s educational to listen to how real people talk, to hear their pacing and pronunciation, to see how they punctuate their speech with gestures and facial expressions, to watch the people around them reacting as they also eavesdrop.
Have you found another Overheard site? Do you have your own Overheard moment? Let me know.
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Talk is cheap. Good writing is priceless.
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I took a writing workshop with the Royal National Theatre one summer. My problem is middles.
So, they had me write a scene. I was all excited, thinking it was a great opening to a play.
Then, they had me write the scene after the original scene.
Super duper.
Then, they had me write the scene BEFORE the original.
Hence, no “middle sag”.
The “overheard” sounds great. I do that all the time when I commute.
Thanks for posting about these sites – hadn’t heard of them before, and they’re just delightful!