Be sure to keep a pad of Post-its with you as you read this book. You'll want to mark page after page of these playful exercises. Author Benke encourages creative writers to:
-be "curious about everything around you for a few minutes" each day (p. 24). This segues into a wonderful, meditation-like exercise in transforming the "awful, terrible, no-good" of the world with a breath.
-wonder "how things began"by writing a "favorite number, letter, punctuation mark...on a page and...imagining what it looks like, what or who it used to be, where it likes to hide, fly, build sand castles....maybe even how it moves and what it has to climb to get a better view of the sea or sky. You can also include what your number, letter punctuation mark isn't, never was, never will be." (p.26) This is a fun twist on an exercise I've used with my students on personification of abstract nouns.
-create a simple "list" poem with a dozen or so ideas to start with (p.111).
The exercises can be used to start the creative process or take it to a finished piece. Benke's delightful book is sparkling with fresh ideas and fun ways to use them.
-be "curious about everything around you for a few minutes" each day (p. 24). This segues into a wonderful, meditation-like exercise in transforming the "awful, terrible, no-good" of the world with a breath.
-wonder "how things began"by writing a "favorite number, letter, punctuation mark...on a page and...imagining what it looks like, what or who it used to be, where it likes to hide, fly, build sand castles....maybe even how it moves and what it has to climb to get a better view of the sea or sky. You can also include what your number, letter punctuation mark isn't, never was, never will be." (p.26) This is a fun twist on an exercise I've used with my students on personification of abstract nouns.
-create a simple "list" poem with a dozen or so ideas to start with (p.111).
The exercises can be used to start the creative process or take it to a finished piece. Benke's delightful book is sparkling with fresh ideas and fun ways to use them.
No comments:
Post a Comment