« A real writer knows how to get on top of the desk | Main Index | And More Besides; Length and the Way of the List »
February 24, 2006
The writing excercise, expanded and added onto etcetera
I have written about this before. Also, I have to acknowledge 3 AM Epiphany as the place where I started with the idea which grew and grew. I'll start off with the simple version:
Write twenty sentences, alternating as you go an idea/event/description/episode/oddball thought/desire from the past followed by the present. You could also try dream/present or something taken from old/new story. Once you are finished use the material to compose your story.
For myself, I am finding that I come up with rich textured narrative. Others in an online office with other writers at Zoetrope All-Story are finding that they are coming up with material that they don't know they can send out (too intimate) and others are hooked! Yay for being hooked!
So here's my theory: I think the left brain needs to be occupied while the right one is busy being creative ie, one is busy making lists and numbering while the other one is out to play, looking out the window and dreaming.
The beauty for me of this way of writing is that I can fit it into my life when I can't schedule a whole day to write. I can put down into my list as I go. Then I go back to find the pattern, the theme, and then the story!
More later....
Posted by girija at February 24, 2006 11:05 AM