TABLE OF CONTENTS



Introduction: Your Mind is Bigger Than You Think



Part One: The Six Secrets to Freewriting

Chapter 1: Secret #1 - Try Easy

Chapter 2: Secret #2 - Write Fast and Continuously

Chapter 3: Secret #3 - Work against a Limit

Chapter 4: Secret #4 - Write the Way You Think

Chapter 5: Secret #5 - Go with the Thought

Chapter 6: Secret #6 - Redirect Your Attention



Part Two: Powerful Refinements

Chapter 7: Idea as Product

Chapter 8: Prompt Your Thinking

Chapter 9: Open Up Words

Chapter 10: Escape Your Own Intelligence

Chapter 11: The Value in Disconnecting

Chapter 12: Using Assumptions to Get Unstuck

Chapter 13: Getting a Hundred Ideas is Easier Than Getting One

Chapter 14: Learn to Love Lying

Chapter 15: Hold a Paper Conversation

Chapter 16: Drop Your Mind on Paper

Chapter 17: The Writing Marathon

Chapter 18: Doubt Yourself

Chapter 19: The Magic of Exact Writing

Chapter 20: Extract Gold from a Business Book

Chapter 21: You Are What You Focus On



Part Three: Going Public

Chapter 22: Sharing Your Unfinished Thoughts

Chapter 23: Help Others Do Their Best Thinking

Chapter 24: Notice Stories Everywhere

Chapter 25: Build an Inventory of Thoughts

Chapter 26: Write Your Own Rules

Chapter 27: The Fascination Factor

Chapter 28: Freewrite Your Way to Finished Prose



Notes

Acknowledgments

Index

About Mark Levy

Teaches the liberating technique of freewriting, which helps people produce breakthrough ideas and solve problems in minutes

Levy’s witty ideation tips and techniques—seven new to this edition—make freewriting fun, easy, and enlightening
Includes a new section on using freewriting to generate material for books, articles, blogs and more

When it comes to creating ideas, we hold ourselves back. That’s because inside each of us is an internal editor whose job is to forever polish our thoughts, so we sound smart and in control, and so that we fit into society. But what happens when we encounter problems where such conventional thinking fails us? How to get unstuck?

For Mark Levy, the answer is freewriting, a technique he’s used for years to solve all types of business problems, and generate ideas for books, articles and blog posts.

Freewriting is deceptively simple: Start writing as fast as you can, for as long as you can, about a subject you care deeply about, while ignoring the standard rules of grammar and spelling. Your internal editor won’t be able to keep up with your output, and will be temporarily shunted into the background. You’ll now be able to think more honestly and resourcefully than before, and will generate breakthrough ideas and solutions that you couldn’t have created any other way.

Levy shares six freewriting secrets designed to knock out your editor and let your genius run free. He also includes fifteen problem-solving and creativity-stimulating principles you can use if you need more firepower—seven of which are new to this edition—and stories of problems he and others have solved through freewriting.

Also new to this edition: an extensive section on how to refine your freewriting into something you can share with the world. Although Levy originally taught freewriting as a private brainstorming technique, over the years he and his clients have found that, with some tweaking, it’s a great way to generate content for books, articles, and other thought leadership pieces.