The Heady Cocktail of Sense Mixing: Smack Dab in the Imagination by Dia Calhoun

 One of my favorite writing practices to open my imagination is the heady cocktail of sense mixing. Begin by taking an object--a lavender flower for example and describing what your eyes see. Next, describe how the lavender smells, tastes, feels, sounds. Wait, a minute, I can hear you ask, what do you mean, what a lavender sound like? Yes. This is where it gets interesting because we head to simile and metaphor, opening the imagination.

Brainstorm: 

Lavender sounds like drunken bees.

Lavender sounds like my bare feet running out into a summer morning.

Lavender sounds like a dream where I am wide awake.

You can take this further. For example, write a paragraph that describes green without ever saying the word green. When you are stuck in your writing, take one of the important images from the poem, or scene, or book, or simply something that strikes you, and try this practice. You will be surprised at the results. Some wise person said, and I paraphrase, no surprise for the writer, no surprise for the reader. Keep it fresh.