![]() ![]() Practice might not make perfect, but it’ll help make you a better and more competent writer. In Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers he asserts it takes ten thousand hours to achieve mastery in a discipline. It may not be your magnum opus but practice is important. Sure it might not be deep, creative work. If you struggle with a daily writing routine this is a great way to guarantee you’re writing something. ![]() Write Every Day and Become a Better Writer You might find yourself blocked or creatively stuck on one piece of work but you have a well of ideas to drink from. A scene in the park can escalate fast in your imagination just by asking, what’s that person’s story or how did they arrive at this point in their life?Īnd let’s face it, with a bank of story ideas and ‘just-in-case’ thoughts captured, the notion of writer’s block is gone. What might be a throwaway line of dialogue from a stranger could transform into an entire story. Leading on from the above, write everything down on the off-chance you might need it. So record everything, even the stuff you think is mundane, because it might be the dose of mundanity your story needs. One only needs to pick up an Augusten Burroughs’ memoir, or for that matter William Burroughs’ non-fiction works and letters, to see that life can be strange. That’s to say there are some pretty crazy things that happen in real life. When Graham Joyce was asked at a This Is Horror event about which parts of his fiction were taken from reality and which his imagination, he said the bits you’d guess are made-up really happened and the more mundane details are fictitious. Whether you’re recording observations, writing about personal experiences or just capturing story ideas, you’re collating a story bank of ideas and characters. But enough about my personal journaling and more on why every writer should journal.Īn Instant Bank of Story Ideas and Characters While I’m not sold on the toothbrush analogy I am sold on The Five Minute Journal as a great tool for gratitude, affirmations and positively starting your day (I recommend completing The Five Minute Journal before any social media or email engagement). It self-describes as “a toothbrush for your mind: do it every morning and every night to have a clear and positive mind”. The electronic journal I use is The Five Minute Journal. There’s an interesting article on Lifehack that suggests a link between writing and remembering, so if it boosts my memory all the better. If I remember something I have to do it goes in the journal. The third journal serves less as a conventional journal and more as a to-do list. ![]() I like to keep the first journal positive so it can inspire and uplift me on those darker days but the second journal is ‘anything goes’. The second is for story ideas, snatches of dialogue and observations. The first journal is for quotes, life lessons and realisations I pick-up throughout the day. The three journals are all pocketsize so I can take them everywhere. I also use the Notes application on my iPhone to write thoughts and observations down if I’m caught journal-less. I have three physical journals and one electronic journal. ![]()
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