Improv/Writing Tip #3: “Yes, And”

(#3 in a series of tips from my improv class that struck me as applying to writing.)

Improv/Writing Tip #3: “Yes, And”
Accept what your scene [i.e., writing] partner gives you without judgment and build on it.

“Yes, and” in improv comedy refers to the moment on stage where you have a choice—do you support what your scene partner says or undermine it?

You’d see it in an exchange like this:

Me: There’s a Krispy Kreme opening on the corner!
Malcolm: Yes, and Teacher says custard meets our daily requirement for dairy!

You can undermine in two ways: a flatout reversal (“no, way”) …

Me: There’s a Krispy Kreme opening on the corner!
Malcolm: I don’t care about that, let’s go to the beach!

… or a qualified reversal (“yes, but”).

Me: There’s a Krispy Kreme opening on the corner!
Malcolm: Yes, but I’d rather go to Starbucks!

Both kill the rhythm of the scene and keep you from mining it for its full value. (Not to mention what the donuts will do to you.)

The only way to ensure you’re getting the most out of what your partner says is to listen carefully and then give them a solid “yes, and.” Agree, and build on it.

I actually learned this concept first in a business context. I was managing editor of a Web team, with a dozen or so highly creative, energized innovators—and me. My role was basically implementer. They’d have an idea for new content, and I knew I’d be the one to make it happen. So our meetings would sometimes go like this:

Marketing manager: So we’ll launch a newsletter that can get the word out to all our site visitors…
Me: That’s great, but I’ll have to develop a new process for that. It will take a while.

Worse would be:

Executive editor: We want content that engages the readers, maybe with video or music.
Me: Don’t think we have the budget for that.

Finally, my managing publisher took me aside and informed me oh so gently that I was sucking the air out of the room. After that, I saved my “but”s for after the meetings and got into the flow of creative brainstorming. And you know what? Often it turned out that implementing wasn’t as hard as my knee-jerk reaction made it seem.

How does the “yes, and” mindset relate to writing? I find I use this tactic most with my critique group.

The Nobscot Niblets
I have an awesome group of fellow writers, the New England Nobscot Niblets (see right sidebar to meet a few of them). I’ve been with them for about four years now. They’ve seen my book from it’s first outline, and even after my move to SoCal, they’ve kept me in the group via Skype video conferencing.

Last week, they spent a generous evening giving me their feedback on what (I hope) will be the novel’s second to last draft. What I’ve trained myself to do over the years is listen to everything they say and not even give any mental space to whether I agree with it or not. I’ll decide that later, during the edit. But when they’re giving feedback, I accept it wholeheartedly as valid from their point of view.

They wound up discussing as a group things they spotted in the draft and brainstorming some solutions. My job? To agree with whatever they said. Just agree, acknowledging they were great ideas no matter what I did with them later, and thanking them for the insight their comments gave me.

Sometimes I could feel myself edging into that tense space of “How am I going to implement all this?” But I caught myself and consciously put that aside. I didn’t want to miss anything. It was their night to shine, giving me their brilliance for the benefit of the story.

Afterward, I spent the weekend, you know, panicking. I had to stop thinking about it for a couple days. Then the coolest thing happened. That Monday morning I got one or two very simple ideas for how to manage the edit. Very simple ideas, no big deal, which will resolve a lot of issues. What a relief. I didn’t have to figure it out during the critique, I could just listen and let it simmer, and the solutions came.

My critique group has made me into the writer I am today. It has a lot to do with saying, “Yes, and.”

Tagged as: Improv, Niblets, Writing Group, Writing How-To