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| Illustration – Copyright Icy Sedgwick |
I’m a big fan of Writer’s Digest, and I got an email yesterday summing up their latest posts. This one in particular caught my eye – a 12 day plan of simple writing exercises! A kind of “Twelve Days of Christmas” for writers, if you will.
I’ll post them in full below if you don’t want to follow the link, but I think I’m going to try doing each one. The Twelve Days of Christmas actually begin on Christmas Day, and lead to 5 January (also known as Twelfth Night, the day on which your decorations should come down) but I’m going to work the other day, and start on December 13, with an exercise per day to end on Christmas Eve! I might post them, I might not, but at least it should get me writing.
Who’s with me?!
The 12-Day Plan of Simple Writing Exercises
Day 1: Write 10 potential book titles of books you’d like to write.
Day 2: Create a character with personality traits of someone you love, but the physical characteristics of someone you don’t care for.
Day 3: Write a setting based on the most beautiful place you’ve ever seen.
Day 4: Write a letter to an agent telling her how wonderful you are.
Day 5: Write a 20-line poem about a memorable moment in your life.
Day 6: Select a book on your shelf and pick two chapters at random. Take the first line of one chapter and the last line of the other chapter and write a short story (no more than 1000 words) using those as bookends to your story.
Day 7: Write a letter to yourself telling you what you need to improve in the coming 6 months.
Day 8: Rewrite a fairy tale from the bad guy’s point of view.
Day 9: Turn on your TV. Write down the first line that you hear and write a story based on it.
Day 10: Go sit in a public place and eavesdrop on a conversation. Turn what you hear into a short love story (no matter how much you have to twist what they say).
Day 11: Write the acknowledgments page that will be placed in your first (next?) published book, thanking all the people who have helped you along the way.
Day 12: Gather everything you’ve written over the previous 11 days. Pick your favorite. Edit it, polish it and either try to get it published or post it on the Web to share with the world. Be proud of yourself and your work.
sounds great. I’ll join you on this, that is, if I remember to do so.
happy holiday!
p.s., thanks for this and also other suggestions that you’ve posted.
Starting on the 13th, you say? I’m in.
I like this! I’d like to join in. I’ll probably start on Xmas though, just because that’s when I’ll have time. Looking forward to hearing about yours!
Lissa – Happy Christmas!
Tony – You done anything yet?
Jen – I’ll post them when I remember!