Brainwriting is similar to brainstorming – they're both methods for generating ideas and solutions for a problem.
Brainwriting, however, gives everyone equal opportunity to participate, and it enables all group members to think without any ‘blocking.' Blocking stems from traditional brainstorming sessions which allow only one person to speak at a time and by the time each individual has spoken (and the group has finished the discussion), most participants have edited, discarded, or simply forgotten their own ideas.
Here are the steps that you can follow to run a brainwriting session:
Seat group members at a table, with a sheet of paper in front of each person. At the top of the page, ask them to write down the problem that everyone is trying to solve. (Note: they should NOT write their names.) Appoint someone to be moderator, and time each round.
Give the group three minutes to write down three ideas for how to solve the problem. They should not edit the ideas, or try to perfect them. Allow them to write in ‘free form.' Do not permit any discussion.
After three minutes, move on to round two. Gather in the papers, shuffle them, and then pass them out. You may need to sort out cases where someone gets back a paper they have already written on. Ask everyone to generate three more ideas on the new paper they have just received. They can build on the first three ideas that are already written or think of three new solutions.
The moderator decides how many rounds there are.
When all rounds are finished, collect the papers, and write all of the ideas on a whiteboard for everyone to see. Then begin discussing which ideas would work best for solving the current problem.
There are several advantages of using brainwriting in a group:
Because there's no discussion during the initial idea-generating rounds, you can produce many ideas in a very short amount of time.
All group members – even the quiet and shy people – have an equal chance of offering their ideas for consideration.
Everything is anonymous – you don't know who wrote which ideas – so there's more freedom to be truly creative. Participants are empowered to suggest solutions that they otherwise might have thought were too unusual, or would not be well received.
Exchanging papers still allows group members to evaluate and build on other people's ideas but in a much more concentrated, creative way.
Source: http://www.mindtools.com