Get your character’s hands dirty today. Describe the feel of the dirt in the gardener’s hands, the dough between the fingers of the baker, the wet clay in the hands of the artist. This might relate to your character’s hobby or something he’s cooking, or maybe it’s a way to add texture to a scene you’ve already begun.
I’ll just come out and say it, “Hi, my name is Sarah and I’m a crime show junkie.” Deep breath. There I said it. I LOVE a well written, well cast mystery drama. I devour them like a dog with a fresh steak. I especially love murder mystery shows featuring a crack sleuth author (like Murder, She Wrote or its more recent protégé Castle.) But that’s for another post.
So here’s the kicker, most writers might consider TV a bad habit – something to add to the list of things that keep you from writing. And, for the most part, if you are on the couch for five hours watching a Jersey Shore marathon, that is true. You are wasting your time! And with reality TV – ugh! But I’m here to liberate you from your TV rut.
Yes, get up off your couch, in fact, do a couple laps to get your circulation going again and then get to your writing spot. Now, here’s the bad news – no more reality TV marathons. (There’s really nothing edifying whatsoever about them – although I’m sure if I tried hard enough I could rationalize some merit out of…maybe…one episode.) But fret not my writing friends, there’s good news. Watching TV can actually benefit your writing!
So how can you rationalize watching all your favorite shows instead of writing? How do you tear yourself away from those captivating stories on the screen to create your own? USE them to enhance your own writing!
Here’s the deal, you get to pick one episode of your favorite show (or a scene from your favorite movie) and use it when considering the following list of things we can learn from TV.
Exercise – watch an episode of one of your favorite shows. Listen carefully to the dialogue and write down your favorite quotes. After the show – use it! Try to re-create the scene surrounding that quote. Capture all the five senses of your characters and portray the mood of the moment. So go ahead, watch re-runs of Friends. But do it with paper and pen in hand.
What do you hear in this photo? Absolute silence? The sound of children playing in the background? Work your descriptions into a scene, short story, or poem.
Today it’s up to you. Click on one of the following photos and use that as your prompt today. Already done that one? Try it again and see what you come up with!
Stretch your ability to describe visual appearances today. Using the photo above–or any other photo with contrasting textures and colors–spend 10 minutes freewriting about the temperatures, moods, and emotions their appearance brings to mind. Don’t worry about it making sense or sounding great–just write! When you’re done, set it aside for a while. Revisit it tomorrow with fresh eyes. Do you like the sound of any phrases or descriptions you came up with? Share them here in the comment section.
Does your character need a hobby? Whether he just happens to have plans with his golfing buddies whenever his wife’s family is in town or would prefer staying at home reading classic Russian literature to socializing with friends, your character’s hobbies can say a lot about his personality. Make a list of hobbies your character might enjoy. Could any of them further the story and deepen your characterization?
Consider twilight. What feelings and moods come to mind? Do they differ if you place yourself in Paris’ bustling Place de l’Opéra or at a remote Eastern Washington cabin surrounded by trees and no electricity? Tell a story that takes place at twilight, using the setting of your choice. Or, if you’re writing a novel, could thinking about twilight in this way add color and texture to a chapter that otherwise seems stalled?
Today’s challenge: Brew a pot of tea and savor it until you’ve come up with 30 words or phrases to describe its flavor or the feel of it on your tongue. Now that your creativity is warmed up, use your list to create a full-bodied description that will make your readers crave a taste.
One of your primary characters knows exactly where he’s going. Or does he? Does he tighten his grip on the wheel when familiar terrain suddenly looks foreign? Does he stomp his foot on the brake pedal as he approaches an unexpected roadblock? Explore an obstacle or a case of bad directions, not forgetting to use the sense of touch to ground your character in his setting and heighten emotion or tension.
