WordPlay! WriteNet Week 1

Let's get right down to the real nitty-gritty! You learn to write by writing! Each week I will post new exercises here to get you jump-started. Instructions: get pen and paper or keyboard and start writing. Don't stop until the time (at least 10 minutes) is up. No editing allowed. There is no wrong way to do it: JUST WRITE!

Eternal Exercises (always available):

1. Observation Exercise
Sit in a public place and write down all your observations of the people around you: snippets of dialogue, physical description, sensory details (what you see, hear, smell, taste, and/or touch).

2. Reading Report
As a writer, it is essential that you read not just for pleasure but also to study writing. When you read, notice the writing. What worked? What made you turn the pages? What made you stop and think? What stopped or bored you as the reader? You can learn as much from "bad" writing as from good!

3. Writing Journal
Jot down ideabox snippets, things you want to work on in the future. Write about the process of writing: what makes it easier, where do you like to write (home, cafe, outdoors, anywhere?), dreams (literally and figuratively), unedited "daily pages," etc.

Weekly Exercises January 18, 2010

1. I would never ...

2. Describe a perfect day in detail.

3. Pick a number between 6 and 17. Write about the first day of school for a child of that age.

4. Wrie about lunch with your favorite book or movie character.