THRESHOLDS

Writing Exercises

photo by tiff_ku1

FEATURES: WRITING EXERCISES

‘Writing Exercises’ features recommend tried and tested story prompts, idea generators, crafting solutions, and writing approaches.

Is there a writing exercise that has been particularly helpful to you – perhaps one that gave birth to a fantastic story, or helped you create an especially memorable character?  Maybe you have an exercise that you go back to time and again, one that simply helps to free up your creativity. Please share your favourite exercises with the rest of the Forum community so that we can try them, too.

When making a submission, give a little background information, telling us where you first came across the exercise and how it has helped to improve your writing. Please refer to our submission guidelines before submitting any material for consideration.

~

WRITING EXERCISES ARCHIVE…

A

An Exercise in Perspective in Four Parts - from Loree Westron

An Exercise in Structure - from Carolyn Thomas

Are You Sitting Comfortably — from Holly Dawson

B

C

Can We Time Travel in Short Fiction — from Alex Ruczaj

D

Don’t Be Afraid to Get it Wrong — from Lynda Nash

Do You Need to Keep a Notebook? — from Sally O’Reilly

E

F

Forget Show and Tell — from Lynda Nash

G

H

How to Create a Sense of Movement in a Story — from Shaun Levin

How Not to Lose Short Story Competitions — from Lynda Nash

How to Perform an Exclamectomy — from Mary O’Donnell

I

I Can’t Stand the Suspense — from Lynda Nash

J

The Journey — from Isabel Ashdown

KL

M

Meet Your Inner Mentor — from Rin Simpson

N

O

Overcoming Bumps, Blocks and Barricades — from Lynda Nash

P

Pick and Mix — from Rin Simpson

Plot Soup - from Sarah Dobbs

Q

R

Read All About It — from Annabelle Carvell

S

The Short Story Day Trip — from Doug Crandell

Starting Block — from Lynda Nash

The Strange World of ASBOs — from Jane Rusbridge

T

Taboo — from Jo Gatford

Thinking Outside the Box — from Lynda Nash

The Tip of the Iceberg — from David Frankel

To Tweet, or Not to Tweet — from Emma Strong

U

V

W

Writer’s Road Trip — from Patricia Ann McNair

Writing in the Dark — from Lynda Nash

X

Y

Your Tips for Writing Short Stories — from Hannah Radcliffe and our Twitter followers

Z