First Thought Best Thought
A writing app built on spontaneity. Random prompt, running clock, no delete key.
Beat poet Allen Ginsberg liked to say “first thought, best thought”. The Beat approach to creativity encouraged spontaneity and immediacy. The Surrealists created many different techniques and games to free up the unconscious mind, such as the infamous “Exquisite Corpse.” Writers from the Oulipo movement in France saw art as a form of play, creating rules for their works — such as author Georges Perec, who wrote an entire novel without the letter “e.”
Our first flash of uncensored insight is often more powerful than what comes through long reflection. ‘First Thought, Best Thought’ assimilates games and practices from these movements as well as others taken from Yoko Ono, Augusto Boal, and Fluxus. You can practice them alone or explore the multiplayer options with friends, or even strangers.
We give you a prompt picked at random and start a timer. The backspace key is disabled to encourage unmediated expression. What you end up with is not a finished piece. It is raw material — the thing you thought, before you even knew you were thinking it.
You can save the result to your personal archive or delete immediately. Hope you enjoy!
Free. No account. Works offline once loaded.
Voice input if you would rather speak than type. Installs to an iPhone home screen from Safari.