Invention is a general term used to describe the processes and strategies that writers use to generate ideas for their essays and papers. Invention has manifold functions: choosing a topic, exploring ideas, organizing information, practicing and honing writing techniques, determining an audience—just to name several.

Invention work can occur at any stage in the writing process, and one could easily argue that many activities are invention: reading, thinking, using a thesaurus, and talking about your assignment with your professor or friends.

Common invention strategies include the following activities. You can do many on your own, and sometimes professors may give you prompts to help you get started on them.

• Freewriting
• Brainstorming
• Clustering
• Listing
• Looping
• Dialoging
• Memory mapping
• Outlining
• Journaling
• Observing
• Question asking
• Letter writing
• Responding to readings
• Visualizing