writing exercise | writing exercise
Mar.20.2012
A few days ago, I walked away from a book ghostwriting project.
It wasn't an easy decision, nor was it necessarily a particularly smart move: the up-front money was good, and my subsequent-royalties clause might have made it a lucrative project indeed. The book's subject was one on which I've...
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Dec.08.2011
This is an exercise that I've done with a couple of different classes. I gave out a version of this at AWP a couple of years ago, and someone was just asking me about it again, so I thought I’d share it more widely. This can be done either alone or in a group; it's one of the best exercises I know...
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Apr.20.2011
"We all have a story we tell ourselves; change the story and you change your destiny." - Sharif Khan, author of THE HERO SOUL
* Stories have the power to transform, inspire and motivate. But they also have the power to tear down and destroy. Story is the lens from which we perceive the...
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Feb.23.2011
“Aunt Margaret had one single piece of jewelry, besides her fat gold wedding ring. This was a curious necklace which she wore on Sunday afternoons after lunch, when she changed from her drab, black, weekday clothes into her best dress. The week’s work was done and she waited for another hard week...
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Feb.01.2010
These exercises come thanks to the American Short Fiction blog, on which I discovered artist Mark Menjivar’s intriguing photo project: a collection of photographs of what’s in people’s refrigerators, appropriately called “you are what you eat.” From the freezer filled with nothing but meat and...
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Jan.12.2010
As many of you know, I send out a writing exercise in each issue of my free e-newsletter for writers.
In the spirit of the new year — looking back, looking ahead — here it is:
Write a review of your current project (i.e., your novel, a poem, a story, etc.).
Take a step back from the work and try to...
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Dec.27.2009
A friend who’s been caught up for months in editing and teaching, and then in all the demands of the holidays, writes that she’s going to enter her “spider-webbed writing room” to see what’s in there. Many writers are in the same position right about now. One common piece of advice for this...
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Jul.03.2009
It's not smart to burn all your bridges in a resignation letter. The world of work is a small place and you never know who you might meet again. A resignation letter that doesn't disguise your contempt for your boss, those you work with, or the general culture of the workplace you're leaving, can...
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Mar.17.2009
Yesterday was a bizarre juxtaposition of just about every aspect in my life. I'd go from one thing to another, with no good sense of transition. On and on it went until I fell asleep. Maybe this isn't such a big deal; some days are just packed, life throwing a whole bunch of things at us and we...
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Jan.12.2009
"Most of us stare into blank pages: Few of us bother to read them," says author Thaisa Frank.
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