Does anyone have any tips on how they are using more of their creative imagination and not their visual imagination (based on prior experiences) to help get through RTK 1?

I am starting out but am finding that I need about 5-10 minutes per kanji just to create that key image in my mind. Therefore, with work, I can only go through about 5 kanji per day which have authentic images.

I know the book mentions that images stick longer in the mind when the creative side of the mind is used by creating authentic images instead of taking images from your past and modifying them.

However, sometime I get trapped into using older images like using Kirby's mouth, instead of creating my own weird character with a mouth.

Please share with me how you are going about imagining these wonderful yet deep stories!

I cannot give you any good advice because most of the times I don't even need a fully fledged story, so I ended up making them only for characters that give me some real troubles... but I want to tell you this: no matter how you'll do it, it's gonna get faster, so don't get discouraged.

[Now wait for better advices than mine]

What helps me, is to create a story which is absurd or extremely disgusting or very cheesy; in short a story which is exceptional.
To give you a example (I learn the German RtK, so keywords will probably not match): "The finger boards a train to go to his love. To see her tip shine he bought flowers, which match her tone." Absolutly bonkers, a finger is not able to board a train, how on earth would a fingertip shine and what flowers have the hue of skin? But that's beside the point, because for me the story translated easily into a picture.
So, for me at least, these stories tend to stick faster and better. Hope this can be of help to you.

Lots of people use images from their memory for the radicals. I don't recall what Heisig says about it but for me it's much more effective to use a fully realised person/character that means something to me than to make up something that exists only within my Kanji stories.

Also, it's okay (and inevitable) that you'll forget things so try and find a good balance between time spent per kanji and how quickly you forget them. If they're taking 5-10 mins each then it's probably more efficient to go through them quicker and use the time saved to review the ones you forget.

Don't worry so much about that - Heisig's emphasis on imaginative memory stems from a time when SRS simply didn't exist yet. So unless you plan on doing your reviews on physical flashcards, I suggest you try spending less time on your stories - the SRS will make up for the most mediocre ones.

I started out like you, but about a quarter of the way through the book, I simply dropped the complex, well-crafted stories for easier, more immediate ones. This not only prevented a burn out, but it also sped up the process dramatically without any significant loss of retention rate.

The bottom line still being do what you're comfortable with, but don't burn yourself out -

I agree with Splatted.

Consider the base radicals you wish to use in your story.

Close your eyes.
Again, consider the base radicals you wish to use in your story.
Let your mind wander (.....).
Verbalize every detail you see.

This may be called daydreaming, free association, or image streaming.
This incorporates various memories and improves reasoning and association. Random images or memories may coalesce into a new experience.

^ : a summary of the excerpt below

Quote:This is the primary technique which you should use in order to reach [...]. It aids
in increasing almost all areas of intelligence. Scientific evidence is here. The
technique is as follows:

1/ Close your eyes.

2/ Relax your mind and body as if you were about to fall into a daydream. Obviously
go in a place in which you will not be disturbed.

3/ In your minds eye, there will always be images present that are revealing
themselves to you. For example, if you think about describing a particular situation,
some sort of image of that situation will occur in your mind. For example, if I were to
describe a room with blue walls and two wooden tables in the middle, you will be
able to create some sort of image of this in your mind. So with your eyes closed, you
need to imagine and visualise any sort of situation, thing, object, symbol. (If you
can’t see or create images in your mind, please see the problems section below)

4/ You should now attempt to describe aloud the image which you have in your mind.
You should describe it in as full detail as possible. Describe it aloud to yourself, a
Dictaphone, a cassette player, another person, or group. It’s more effective if you
describe to someone else as it will keep you alert and save you from falling asleep.

5/ Describe, the look of what you see, the sound, the taste, the smell, the feel, i.e.
describe using the five senses. For example, as I write this, in my mind “I see an orange in my mind, which funnily enough, is orange in colour. I can smell a tangy
citrus smell on its skin. The skin of the orange is slightly soft to the touch and I also
see that it has these small shallow craters on its surface which are dotted all over the
surface. Behind it in the distance is a person on a bike. The bike is about a quarter of
the size of the orange and I see it peaking out from behind the side of the orange. The
person is about the same size as the bike. The person is a man who is dressed up in a
black suit, bow tie and white shirt, and the bike he’s on is a shiny black colour with a
slight reflection of a whitish yellow coloured light reflecting on its surface. I see that
the bike has two wheels with a thin, black rubber covering. I see the left side of the
bike and the front of the bike, which has a light bulb with a tinted glass covering over
it, which is on the far left side of my image.”

6/ Describing in the above manner you should continue to describe in as much detail
as possible. If for example, the taste of something isn’t obvious, such as the taste of a
“brown coloured wooden block with slight sharp shallow grooves of a whitey yellow
colour along the surface of its longest side”, you should try to give some sort of
description as to what it tastes like, in this instance it would be “as I taste it, there is
no obvious taste other than a taste and feel of it being dry, rugged and dull”.

7/ You should describe using the prefix “I.”, “me” or “my” e.g. I smell, I see, I feel on
my side, I sense, the object is moving behind me. You can also begin the session by
asking a question which you wish to find the answer for.

8/ Describe absolutely anything that you sense or see, taste smell etc. in your mind,
no matter how fanciful, scandalous, unpleasant or stimulating. Do this process for the
required length of time which I suggest in the schedules below. *End of Technique*

[...]
1/ Increase in the ability to formulate and extract ideas intuitively
2/ Increase in reading ability, including reading speed and understanding
3/ Increase in intellectual curiosity
4/ Increase in visualizing ability
5/ Increase in concentration span

The Complete Guide to Genius (14-15, 19)