by Bryan Patrick Avery As a magician, I’ve been taught the value (and necessity) of practice. I had one mentor who told me he would practice a new trick at 1000 times before performing it publicly. That much practice not only helped him perfect his technique, but it made the work second nature. This allows him to focus on his interaction with the audience and his presentation of the trick. The same thing is true when it comes to writing, practice won’t necessarily make your work perfect, but it can make it much better. Here are three practice exercises you can start today that can help make you a more confident writer. Exercise #1 – Tell a Story When it comes down to it, whether we write picture books, middle grade, or graphic novels, we are storytellers. Be honest, how much time to spend working on telling stories when you’re not working on your work-in-progress. If you’re anything like the writers I’ve talked to, the answer is probably “not much”. Practice telling a short, fictional, story everyday for the next 30 days. It can be any genre (mystery, fantasy, sci-fi, etc.). Don’t write it down, just sit and tell the story the from beginning to end as if it actually happened. You can tell your partner, your kids, or your cat. The key thing is to get used to making up complete stories. If you want to jot down your ideas after the fact, that’s okay. Just make sure you tell the story without writing it down at first. This may seem odd or uncomfortable at first (especially if you’re talking to your dog) but stick with it. It really helps. Exercise #2 – Write a Poem Whether you’re a poet or not, writing a poem a day for 30 can help you become a better storyteller. Here are the rules:
Exercise #3 – Pick up a Book Good readers make good writers. For this exercise, read the opening page of 30 books you’ve read and enjoyed. After reading the first page, note the following things:
I’d love to hear your feedback on these exercises. I hope you try them and get some value from them. That’s all for this month. Happy writing and have a magical month.
1 Comment
5/20/2022 01:56:54 am
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We are so excited to be mixing things up at CBA, beginning with some delicious additions to the Blogfish. Meet our awesome bloggers!!
Here's our lineup: 1st Mondays begin with awesome Aussie debut author and former student Amanda Lieber who will be focusing on Aussie kidlit. 2nd Mondays will feature super smart Melissa Stoller whose career is taking off with several new books. 3rd Mondays will feature STEM, STEAM & SEL obsessed author Kourtney LaFavre sharing delightfully dorky, quirky, and fun info. 4th Mondays will be a mystery for right now. And 5th Mondays we'll be taking a break Archives
September 2023
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