I hoped to have Writer’s Block Exercise #3 ready to post today; however, I’ve run into a bit of an issue. When I first received The Writer’s Block as a gift, it was my plan to randomly pick a page each week and do the suggested exercise. That has worked well for the first couple of entries but has now hit a snag.
The premise of the book is that it contains, “768 ideas to jump-start your imagination,” and that is accurate. What I didn’t take into consideration – even with that premise in mind – is that these exercises are meant to encourage individual growth as a writer and may not necessarily be meant to be shared.
A lot of the exercises are personal in nature as well as carry the potential to be quite lengthy. I actually got lucky with the first two picks, as the initial foray didn’t need a long story to fill the requirements of the exercise, and the second wasn’t of such an intimate nature that it could cause trouble down the line. In the last few days, however, I have actually had to skip around a bit more through the exercises to find one that can be shared.
Just as an example, this one, in particular, made me laugh: “Write about an incident that could be used against you if you ever ran for political office.” Though I love the hubris, I must decline.
Essentially, as much as I wanted to do at least a dozen varied exercises from the book, I might need to be realistic and pare that down to about five. Of course, that will be the minimum. If I can find more – great! The book is still serving its original purpose, which is to inspire me, and I will do the exercises on my own.
Also of note: I just posted the other day about how I feel that water is my conduit for creative thought. I was washing my hair this morning when an entire scene popped into my head. Mind you, this isn’t a scene from Duality, but from the novel I’ll be working on immediately afterward.
I was treated to a vision of the location, background scenery, and dialogue. Scrambling with wet and sudsy hands, I grabbed my phone and hurriedly recorded the foundation for what will be, in my opinion, an amazing second book.
I sit here at my desk with the windows open, awaiting the afternoon rains, a steaming mug of tea beside me, and eight more hours for writing and editing.
Huzzah!
