Monday, June 3, 2013

Writing Exercise: Free Flow Writing


Today is writing fun day. No mind-bending lessons, just some word enjoyment. Mondays are brutal enough without adding another "todo" to your list.

My first Writing teacher as an adult was named Ingrid. She was quite a character and pulled me from an aspiring storyteller to a professional one. She had long (down to her bottom) grey hair that she held back from her face with a sequined barrette. She wrote poetry and non-fiction about Steinbeck. She claimed to have had a dalliance with the famous scribe. She had great stories.
She believed in the art of “free flow” writing. Where you just write, no punctuation, no spell check, no outline.  Write for 10 minutes and see where your mind goes. I got some of my deepest and best work this way.

Here is how it works:

Pick 3 words from this list

1.     tarantula
2.     corncob
3.     vision
4.     sunrise
5.     rowing
6.     chair
7.     old dog
8.     travel
9.     coffee
1.  smoked fish

Now take those three words and write a story using the free flow method. Compose the three words at the top of the page and write for 10 minutes. No punctuation, no spell check, no going back, just create, even if it is nonsense. Eventually you will find a story and it will be like magic. Take 10 minutes today and WRITE!

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Please comment if you find this inviiting your fingers to tap the keyboard (or screen if you are an IPhone homo like me).