Writing Pilates

You asked for it! Get ready to stretch your writing muscles with a few little exercises today!

Creative (a.k.a. what-feels-like-pointless) writing can be actually VERY good for your current WIP. I hate, hate, hate, hate taking time away from whatever deadline I'm working on to write something meaningless, but I've noticed that after I spend a little bit writing something new, I get a quick breath and I suddenly have more inspiration to push through on my WIP.

So, are you ready??? :)

1. Here's an oldie-but-a-goodie from writer's conferences: Dig through a stack of magazines and cut out three pictures of different people - young, old, tall, short, thick, thin. Glue the picture onto a piece of paper and give yourself 10-15 minutes to come up with as many details about that person as you can (name, age, favorite color, favorite ice cream, weird habit, unique talent, etc). What is in their past that they want to hide? What is their biggest pet peeve? What (or who) do they love the most?

2. Close your eyes and think of the most desolate setting you can imagine. Now imagine a person who suddenly finds him/herself there. What would they live in? What would they eat? How would they stay alive? What did they bring or have with them? Do you think they will be able to leave there someday?

3. Pick a random object in plain sight - a cup, a table, a desk, etc. Now, set your timer for three minutes and write down as many adjectives about this particular object as you can. Is it soft, hard, squashy, sturdy, yellow, pink, wet or dry? Get creative - think of as MANY different, unique words as you can! And if you want to get really inventive, try making up a few words!!


Feeling inspired now? Great! Time to get back to work on your WIP! And please feel free to leave your answers to one of the exercises in the comments so we can all get motivated by you! :)