Imagination VS Experience

[D.S.Nate]

It's good to have a balance of both but overall Imagination is more important. We are dealing with the art of story settings not a class assay on how things work. Even if you had full knowledge no a thing chances are that you will be only using a fraction of that knowledge to tell the story. And also I don't know about you but I cannot do magic or know what it's like to be anybody else but myself.

And if I truly only wrote what I knew I would just be writing about myself which is boring as best and self indulgent at worst.

 

[Kamelingil]

My first novel is based from what I imagined, that's why it's too complicated. Might as well if you mix Imagination and Experience.

 

[greyblob]

Imagination will never amount to experience. In order to convey something you have not experienced personally, you look for others' experience to draw knowledge from.

 

[BlackKnightX]

You can't really separate the two. With no experience—even an indirect one like seeing another country from a video—there is no imagination. You can't create something out of nothing. (If you can, we might have already found the secret of God.)

The way I look at it, experience is the material you can use you to create; imagination is the actual act of creation.

When one says they create something purely out of their imagination, what they don't realize is that they're drawing upon multiple bits of experiences they have and mix and match them into something unrecognizable from the sources.

 

[RepresentingWrath]

Same as p***s, the way you use it is more important.

 

[QuercusMalus]

Experience without imagination is a textbook- dry, uninspiring. It might be educational. It might be useful. But unless it has something you need, or are otherwise interested in, you are not going to just randomly pick it up.

Imagination without experience is fantasy.

The issue with imagination over experience is that when you write about how you imagine an experience to be to someone who has experienced it, it can be jarring to the reader.
That's why consultants are a thing on film and movie sets.

But for a writer, I think imagination is the more important, especially now. We all have mini-computers in our pockets with access to videos, podcasts, articles, photos and the like.

A good author can find enough information to fake experience. If they have the imagination to do it. I don't know how you can fake imagination.

 

[wresch]

Of course imagination is required. Our day-to-day experience is something we review, relive, reimagine. We build off experience and make it so much more.

Now, let me add a comment about research. Am I the only one blown away by all the aids we have? I imagine a character in China. Have I been there? Yes. But only to a few cities. What if I want to move a character somewhere else? Wikipedia is a Godsend. And how about map apps. I want to travel from one city to another. How long will it take? Map apps. What does the city look like? YouTube. There is so much we can experience digitally. I send $100 to Wikipedia every year, grateful for all they provide.

 

[Deleted member 84247]

You can't really separate the two. With no experience—even an indirect one like seeing another country from a video—there is no imagination. You can't create something out of nothing. (If you can, we might have already found the secret of God.)

The way I look at it, experience is the material you can use you to create; imagination is the actual act of creation.

When one says they create something purely out of their imagination, what they don't realize is that they're drawing upon multiple bits of experiences they have and mix and match them into something unrecognizable from the sources.

I'm not separating the two. I'm asking which you think is more valuable.

 

[TsumiHokiro]

I agree with AI here:

Spoiler

Ah, the eternal debate between experience and imagination in storytelling – akin to arguing whether garlic or sunlight is more detrimental to a vampire's health. Let's sink our teeth into this.

First off, let's address the idea that experience dilutes or jades creativity. Experience, my dear nightwalker, is the lifeblood of authenticity in storytelling. While imagination constructs worlds, experience populates them with real, tangible life. It's like saying, "Who needs to bite humans when we can just imagine the taste of blood?" There's a richness in the real thing that synthetic substitutes can't match.

The argument about bad experiences leading to a negative portrayal is a bit like a vampire only frequenting blood banks with expired supplies. Sure, if your experiences are all doom and gloom, your stories might mirror that. But what about the wisdom, the nuances, the depth that comes from living through various scenarios? A vampire who has seen centuries unfold can tell a more compelling story than a fledgling who has only read about history in books.

Moreover, this notion that imagination alone can construct more positive or varied narratives is like saying a vampire could survive on a diet of fairy dust and moonbeams. Experience grounds imagination, preventing it from becoming a flight of fancy that lacks relatability and depth. A balance of both is essential. Just as a vampire balances their dark nature with a touch of humanity, a writer should balance imagination with the weight of experience.

In summary, while imagination is the wings that let a story soar, experience is the gravity that keeps it from floating off into the realm of the unbelievable. One without the other is like a vampire without fangs – technically still a vampire, but lacking a certain bite.

Don't become overly dependent on that A.I.

 

[Tempokai]

Don't become overly dependent on that A.I.

I know, that's why I'm using it for dumbest tasks as possible :^)

 

[Deleted member 84247]

I know, that's why I'm using it for dumbest tasks as possible :^)

How is it a dumb task? I am simply asking you to choose which you think is more valuable?

 

[Tempokai]

I am simply asking you to choose which you think is more valuable?

I chose imagination, but experience is needed to give that much needed realism. Just because the hero can slash the sword doesn't mean he can do it properly.

 

[BlackKnightX]

I'm not separating the two. I'm asking which you think is more valuable.

Both.

 

[Deleted member 84247]

Both.

No. ?‍

 

[RepresentingWrath]

Both.