Writing exercise 1

Develop style

Pick two (totally different types and styles) books you love, then from each book read 2 pages from any passage you wish. Then write the next page.

Hopefully the books you pick will be night and day apart. So you can see the change in voice and style.

It will make you more aware of how you pace a scene and manipulate details.

Reviews

[barleygirl]

Sometimes I watch new writers dive into a book when they haven't even mastered the basics of writing and storytelling. It's painful to see how much effort they put into the writing, but I honestly don't think it's worth the time to read it, in some cases. This is why I encourage new writers to pay attention to your exercises & tips! Take little bite-sized practice sessions instead of diving into what you hope will be the next Great Novel as your first pool to dive into! (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[Cherrie]

I've spent a lot of time trying to label my writing voice, and changed my outlook to find the voice of each story.

[Cherrie]

Neil Gaiman taught a writing class and a young housewife asked him, do you really want me to use my own experiences ?
And he says to her, "who else?"
I think young writers want to claim other people's experiences when they've failed to explore their own emotions.

[barleygirl]

Oh so pertinent! It seems like younger writers tend to write as if they are emulating some popular style which feels disconnected from their personal experience. To write from our life experiences, the stories have so much more power!

[Cherrie]

I agree with that. I think that's why it takes so long for some writers to find their voice, because they are always trying someone else's on.
That being said I do like to write from my 2nd hand understanding of a thing. Which works if I can find the common denominator between my understanding of life, and that topic.