The Write Stuff: Exercises to Sharpen Your Skills
By Bridget Ng
Sometimes, coming up with an idea can feel way too hard. At other times, you might have tens of thousands of them and no way of realising a single one on the page.
If you’ve ever experienced either kind of writer’s block, try out some of these writing exercises! Not only are they great for getting you out of whatever rut you’re stuck in, but they can help you build your skills in the areas of characterisation, description, dialogue and plot-building – all the essential components of literature that a good piece of fiction requires.
You can perform these exercises in any way you prefer: with a pen or pencil, a laptop, or even a stick in the sand. Put on a timer for a set number of minutes or write for as long as you can. Whatever the process, just remember to keep going, regardless of any desire you may have to re-read and edit. Let the words flow first, then sit back to see what you have created. It may be utter rubbish. That’s part of the process. Over time, something real will emerge.
Observation Writing
Go to a public place – a library, a park, an apartment block. Find a bench to call your own, or a canvas of grass you can be comfortable on. Observe the people in the area: their clothes, their actions, the thoughts stirring behind their eyes. Watch the way the wind blows and the leaves move and write it all down, quick, before it vanishes forever.
Dream Recording
Think of a dream you once had and narrate it. Scribble down everything you can remember: the tree that sprouted wings; your quest into the heart of the volcano. Craft a plot from that abyss you were hanging over or the strange people you met along the way.
Dialogue Exercise
Write an exchange between two or more characters. Keep it exclusively to dialogue and dialogue tags – no setting or narrative description allowed – and develop a story from the words these individuals say. It could be a proposal of love, an argument between a father and son, or a scientist observing an alien in a lab – any sort of conversation that piques your interest.
Scene Change
Choose a scene of your own or one from a piece of fiction that you love and rewrite it from another character’s perspective. Think about what their internal motivations and thoughts could be. How is the pace and momentum of the scene different from their point of view?
Mismatched
Choose a genre and an event that are the complete opposite of each other. Examples include a wedding written like a horror story, a comedic plague outbreak, and a byelection with elements of fantasy. Use a random generator if you get stuck or want some spontaneity!
Synaesthesia
Describe a setting, an object or a person using different senses. If you are describing a flower, what sound does its scent bring to mind? What colours could a night at the opera evoke? How does an awkward silence taste?
