The 3 A.M. Epiphany: Uncommon Writing Exercises That Transform Your Fiction

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1. Home educator says:

   April 27, 2010 at 2:19 pm

   As the introduction to this book says: ‘This book is a collection of fiction exercise instructions whose main goal is to teach writers how to let their fiction find itself…This book works backwards-offering instruction through the activity of writing the exercises’.

   So, no irritating lectures on ‘how to do it’ followed by dull exercises designed to reinforce whatever you have just learnt – the exercises ARE the teacher. No name-dropping of authors you haven’t heard of (hooray!) and no self-promotion stuff of ‘here is an example from my latest novel’

   Just exercises. Just writing. Just inspiration.

   What level is it aimed at? Well, I think beginners and more experienced writers should each be able to get something from this book. While I found some exercises just too challenging for me even to contemplate at the moment (!), there were plenty of others that seemed approachable. And as most of the exercises are so adaptable, they can be attempted time and time again, with a different outcome each time.

   The chapters include exercises on Images, Point of View, Women and Men, Children and Childhood, Conversation, Thought and Emotion, Time, History, Description, Sentences, Work, Humour, Travel, and more, though these ‘themes’ seem less intrusive than in other writing books. Sure, the Point of View exercises help a writer to learn about point of view, but they seem to also do much more. It’s a difficult one to explain, but with each of these exercises I’m learning something about my writing, almost when I’m not looking;I have one of those ‘ah!’ moments when things start to become clear. I guess it’s the difference between someone telling you how to drive a car and actually getting in a car and having a go yourself!

   Brief examples of the exercises are: ‘write a short scene in which the ability to recognise faces is crucial to the outcome of the scene…’;'Imagine a person who has an idiosyncratic way of seeing the world. Have this character witness a traumatic event…’; ‘write a short sequence of events in which you slow conciousness down…’; ‘Write a conversation in which nothing is said..’ [Note: the exercises have longer descriptions and some helpful pointers, so I haven't really done them justice here]

   If you’re looking for a bit of inspiration, want to come at something from a different angle and expand or refresh your work, or if you’re frustrated with being stuck in a rut/stuck in a piece of writing, then this is the book for you. But be warned, some of the exercises may make your brain ache!
   Rating: 5 / 5

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2. BookJumper says:

   April 27, 2010 at 3:42 pm

   If all you have on the shelf is space for one, just one, volume to excercise your fiction, make it this one. Let me tell you why:

   1. The excercises are, indeed, uncommon. Even the ones that look like I’ve heard them before when I first start reading them are, upon further examination, given a new spin. Though this may make them look a bit daunting at first, it also makes them exciting and challenging and worth your money.

   2. There are so many of them; just over one hundred and fifty. Do one every few days for a year and you might just find you’ve laid the groundwork for about ten short story collections (the average collection holds about fifteen).

   3. While the author is by no means hyper-critical, he knows how to jolt you into action by tingling your pride. A learned, patient but no-nonsense teacher, he will not shy away from calling you a coward should you chicken out of doing your excercises properly.

   4. The commentaries to the excercises often provide little snippets of literary history and criticism that inspire as much as they inform. Knowing that James Joyce almost stopped writing “Ulysses” when he parted from his daily writing buddy made me go awww (because it’s a cute story) and oh! (because it is always useful to remember that even the greatest wordsmiths are human beings).

   … there are more reasons; though if these are not enough, this isn’t the book for you.
   Rating: 5 / 5

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