Writing 101, Day Sixteen: Mine your own material

Posted on November 24, 2015 by Gun Roswell

Writing 101, Day Sixteen: Mine your own material

“Mining is like a search-and-destroy mission” Stewart Udall

Writing 101, Day Sixteen: Mine your own material

The physical artifacts of our lives act as our raw material: hardbound journals, photo albums, newspaper clippings, belongings handed down to us. But these days, we also document and live online, so we can treat our blogging platforms and social spaces in the same way.

I like looking for post ideas in these places. I once used phrases from a forgotten draft in my dashboard to create almost-poetry. I’ve searched my social accounts for old Facebook posts and tweets and written blog posts about my social media behavior. I’ve experimented with creative content generators, like Poetweet, which uses your tweets to create poems.

Imagine a shopper searching for vintage items at a flea market, or an artist using recycled materials to build a sculpture. Can you dig through your online treasures and build upon old stories and existing writing? Here are more ideas:

* Take a peek in the drafts section of your dashboard. Can you use unpublished copy in a new way?
* Scroll through your Facebook wall and see if any posts catch your eye. Do you feel the same as when you first posted it? Can you comment on how you’ve evolved?
* Look at the stream of tweets you’ve favorited over time. Why did you favorite a particular tweet? What does your list of favorites say about you?
* If you use the Tag Cloud Widget, scan the terms in your tag cloud. Can you write prose or poetry that uses most of these words?
* If you have trouble finding ideas this way, think about the things we leave behind. Tell us about a time you’ve left an object, place, person, or even an idea behind — and had to move on.

Go to:
Work in Progress, the Series

Work in Progress, the Series

Posted on November 24, 2015 by Gun Roswell

“Time’s awasting”

Work in Progress, the Series

My poor little discarded things
Scattered all over the place
Nothing but sorrow it brings
My thoughts high up in space

Ideas are there of plenty
Many a time I have spent
Writing, writing, writing
Against time always fighting

Some if never makes to complete
Against myself I only compete
Maybe I just want to make it neat
And not to admit to being defeated

The excuse is the same as it always was
I started it, got to a great place
Then, I thought of something else
Why? Well just because

If I could only finish what I started
But alas, it is always a work in progress
What if I stick in to it full hearted
Then I can call it WIP, the series

To boldly go where no Woman has gone before

Posted on November 22, 2015 by Gun Roswell

“Well, it’s worked so far, but we are not off yet” Dr McCoy, Star Trek

To boldly go where no Woman has gone before

“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.”
— Astronomer Carl Sagan

Cosmos,
The final
Frontier
So far
And yet
So near

Entering the spaceship
Ready for a long trip
Going to Mars?
Or even farther beyond?
Following the stars
Over the magic pond

Through the window
Feelings of alone
One trail of thought
As the mental guide
Trying not to get caught
In a state of confined

As the flight progresses
I feel less stressed
What ever awaits me
It only can be
Something wonderful
And most magical

To boldly go
Where no
Woman
Where no one
Has gone
Before

Writing 101, Day Fifteen: Take a cue from your readers

Posted on November 22, 2015 by Gun Roswell

Writing 101, Day Fifteen: Take a cue from your readers

Remember the contact form or poll that you set up earlier to collect suggestions from your readers? Write today’s post based on one of these ideas. Be sure to mention the person who gave you this idea, and link back to their blog. (Don’t worry about giving credit if your idea came from an anonymous poll.)

If you don’t have any ideas, here are five passages you can choose from (and sample prompts if you need them):

“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.”

— Astronomer Carl Sagan

What does the line above mean to you?
“Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens.”

— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

I have faith in . . .
Are you optimistic?
Tell us about a challenging journey.
“Our truest life is when we are in our dreams awake.”

— Unknown source, from a fortune cookie

Have you ever felt awake, but in a dream?
Have you received a message in a fortune cookie that moved you?
“We read to know we’re not alone.”

— William Nicholson, Shadowlands

Tell us about a book that opened your eyes when you were young.
Describe a life-changing experience with a book.
Where do you like to read?
“Music was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness.”

— Maya Angelou

Tell us about a time when a piece of music moved you.
Do you have an all-time favorite song? Why is it significant?
Compile a playlist of 10 tracks that represent you.

“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” Astronomer Carl Sagan

Writing 101, Day Fifteen: Take a cue from your readers, Part One

To boldly go where no Woman has gone before… Read in Part Two

Writing 101, Day Fourteen: Recreate a single day

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Gun Roswell

In honour of the month November
&
Ordinary Days: A one week series with ordinary day photos and happenings (if any 😉 )
&
Photography and Poetry

Writing 101, Day Fourteen: Recreate a single day

Setting limits on your writing can be both liberating and productive, as you may have noticed in Day 1’s timed free-write and yesterday’s word count exercise. Let’s incorporate a different restriction: write a post that takes place during one single day.

It might seem hard, at first, to tell a compelling story with such a limited temporal horizon: you have no recourse to flashbacks, backstory, or foreshadowing (unless it’s in reference to something about to take place that same day). But the narrow confines of one single day will encourage you to zoom in on rich, telling details.

But remember: recreating a single day doesn’t automatically mean describing every detail. This assignment is very much about editing — and focusing on the right details.

How will you use 24 hours as your story’s canvas? Here are examples:

* Start in the middle of the action, then zig and zag through time, from the moment you woke up to the last thing that happened before you retired for the night.

* Structure your story as a play-by-play (or hour-by-hour) account, complete with precise time markers.

* Zoom in even further, limiting yourself to just one hour of your chosen day.

* Ignore these instructions and reveal one day’s significance indirectly, through focusing on its aftermath

“Heroes are ordinary people who make themselves extraordinary” Gerard Way

Writing 101, Day Fourteen: Recreate a single day

For this particular assingment, I decided to go with a completely different approach. I have kind of had a head start for the overall idea of “recreating a single day” since Monday.

I am running a trial of posts this under the theme of “Ordinary Days”, where I am capturing the events of the day in few simple sentences accompanied by daily photos taken during each day. The trial itself was a good idea, unfortunately my life, as it turns out is filled with more work than ever! But still, well worth the while the effort 😉

Maybe Friday will bring a change, since it is after, fabulous!

… And watch out for today’s post for Fabulous Friday

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale One: Once there was a Man

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Gun Roswell

Writing 101: Day Thirteen: Play with word count
Shortest of Tales Collection presents: Around 50-Word Stories or So

“A short story is something that you can hold in your mind. You can really analyze how the entire thing works, like a machine” Chuck Palahniuk

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale One: Once there was a Man

Once there was a man
Who did not understand
That the greatest of plans
Was already in his hands

So he went around town
Looking for his crown
His face in a big frown
Feelings of letting down

But when he saw a beggar
With the biggest smile ever
He suddenly turned around
And his smile finally found

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Three: Could it be?

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Gun Roswell

Writing 101: Day Thirteen: Play with word count
Shortest of Tales Collection presents: Around 50-Word Stories or So

“A short story is something that you can hold in your mind. You can really analyze how the entire thing works, like a machine” Chuck Palahniuk

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Three: Could it be?

Could it be?
Can you see?
Is it true?
Who knew!

So what if it is
This wasn’t a quiz
It’s no one’s biz
If we go to the Ritz

Never mind
I’ll be fine
I got a dime
Let it chime

Out on the street
Dancing to the beat
Life oh so sweet
Oh what a treat

The lesson learnt
Don’t get burnt
Even if you weren’t
Dance ’till you aren’t

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Two: The White Cat in a Hat

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Gun Roswell

Writing 101: Day Thirteen: Play with word count
Shortest of Tales Collection presents: Around 50-Word Stories or So

“A short story is something that you can hold in your mind. You can really analyze how the entire thing works, like a machine” Chuck Palahniuk

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Two: The White Cat in a Hat

The little white cat
With a black hat
Was taking a nap
On the kitchen mat

Her tail all curled
As she softly purred
Oblivious to the world
As it around her whirled

Something made her stir
Looking up with a stare
Straight up stood her fur
As she took off in a blur

The hat off tore
Landed on the floor
The cat was out the door
Heard was a loud roar

Writing 101: Day Thirteen: Play with word count

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Gun Roswell

Writing 101: Day Thirteen: Play with word count

On days when you feel stuck and aren’t sure how to write a post, it might well be that your topic and content are solid, but your approach needs tweaking. Have you tried experimenting with word count?

In today’s post, pay attention to the total length of your post: if you usually write posts under 500 words, aim for longer. If you tend to write a lot, be succinct. For those who’d like to aim for a specific word count, here are ideas:

Write a 50-word story (or, if you feel daring, a series of 50-word stories). Get inspired by the tiny tales at 50-Word Stories.

Take a look at some 100-word stories at 100 Word Story, or this Reader’s Digest list of winning 100-Word True Stories, then take a stab at your own. Your first attempt at flash fiction? Your last vacation? A fleeting encounter at the grocery store?

Pick a previously published longer post you’d like to pare down. Keep it at 750 words or less, like the essays at Brevity, a site of concise creative nonfiction.

Want to go long? Expand on an existing post. Search your drafts that are thematically similar and see if you can merge parts of each. Or, combine two or more published posts into one longform piece, made up of multiple pages or sections divided by subheads or graphic elements.

“Writing is an exploration. You start from nothing and learn as you go” E. L. Doctorow

Writing 101: Day Thirteen: Play with word count

Write a 50-word story (or, if you feel daring, a series of 50-word stories). Get inspired by the tiny tales at 50-Word Stories…

Please find links to my posts of the same:

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale One: Once there was a Man

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Two: The White Cat in a Hat

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Three: Could it be?

Writing 101, Day Eleven: Update your readers over a cup of coffee

Posted on November 17, 2015 by Gun Roswell

Writing 101, Day Eleven: Update your readers over a cup of coffee

No matter what type of blog you have, it’s sometimes necessary to post updates: from project news to personal messages about what’s going on in your life. One creative approach to an update post is a “virtual coffee date,” as seen on Kate Goes Global, which is like catching up with an old friend over a cup of coffee.

In her post, Kate begins each paragraph with If we were having coffee right now… and then adds a detail. You can share any details you’d like and include as many as you want, as long as you begin each with If we were having coffee right now… (or a variation of this phrase, as seen on Girl with the Red Hair).

It’s a simple idea, but offers a bit more structure to your post — and is a lot more fun. So today, write an update post in the form of a virtual coffee date.

If this post isn’t fitting for your blog or not your style, here’s your alternative: use a coffee shop as your inspiration.

Set your poem or short story in a cafe:
Not a fan of coffee shops? Tell us about a place or type of setting where you like to meet and socialize with friends or loved ones.
Love or hate coffee? Tell us why.

“I like coffee because it gives me the illusion that I might be awake” Lewis Black

Writing 101, Day Eleven: Update your readers over a cup of coffee

Monday, Paris
An outside Cafe
On Champs Elysées

Watching the passersby
With spirits held up high
No hurries, no sighs
Life still moving along
People carrying on
The worries almost gone

Enjoying my cup of coffee
This time I chose a latte
“When in France,
Do as the French do”
And a croissant with toffee
To complete the story

Just another day
On my stay
In the city of Paris

Rantings Of A Third Kind

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Tag Archives: Writing

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale One: Once there was a Man

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Three: Could it be?

Shortest of Tales Collection, Tale Two: The White Cat in a Hat

Writing 101: Day Thirteen: Play with word count

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