Can you read a picture? Is a picture really worth a thousand words? Could it have been 500 or 250 words instead? Who in their right mind would sit down and count how many words describes a picture? Where in the world did the phrase A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words come from?

After snooping around to find out where this quote originated, I must say that I was rather shocked to find out the marketing ingenuity behind this phrase. First, the quotation was incorrectly translated as One Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words. Literally, the translation was One Picture Is Worth Ten Thousand Words. It is believed to be a Chinese proverb, which later turned out to be bogus. The phrase was coined by Fred R. Barnard, who promoted the use of images in advertisements appearing on the sides of streetcars. Apparently he called this quote a Chinese proverb, so that people would take it seriously. Its not surprising that this proverb was immediately associated with and credited to Confucius. This was an interesting marketing ploy, but no doubt one that proved to be successful.

Is it possible to take a single picture and yield an incredible literary masterpiece from it? Of course its possible. After examining the picture, try these five easy steps to jump start your creativity:

1. EMOTIONAL OBSERVATION: Write your initial response of the feeling you get from it (ie. happiness, sadness, serenity, grief)

2. COLORS: Write down the colors that you see (skin tone, colors of clothing or objects, background colors, etc.)

3. OBJECTS: Write down single items that you observe (ie. shirt, hands, arms, teeth, chair, lights, sky, clouds)

4. ADJECTIVES: Write down descriptive words next to your objects (ie. wrinkled dress, bloodshot eyes, grass stained tennis shoes, dirty water, broken chair)

5. COMPOSE: Unscramble the individual words youve compiled to begin creating a sentence, even if it doesnt immediately make sense. Think about what type of literary composition you could turn this picture into (ie. poem, short story, screenplay, novel)

For example, if you go into a clothing store and see items hanging on a rack, you may quickly pass it by. However, if you see a display of those items put together on a mannequin, youll be captivated by the merchandising and will more likely want to purchase the ensemble. Visualization can be quickly absorbed compared to a large quantity of information.

A picture can provide you with as much information as the written text can. Although an image can be more powerful that a sizeable amount of text, take a picture that you have, whether illustrated or photographic, observe it carefully and begin jotting down words that speak to you from it. Your picture can be an inspiration for the front cover of your novel or chapbook. Perhaps it can potentially turn your writing into a sequel or a trilogy. Its no telling the magnitude of how many literary compositions can be birthed from vivid descriptions and creative structure, by simply observing a picture. Perceive, conceive and achieve see, devise and make it happen!

Kym Gordon
http://www.kymgmoore.com