Set Your Creativity Free

A Writer's Book of Days:
A Spirited Companion and Lively Muse for the Writing Life
Judy Reeves
New World Library (November 1999)
Paperback: 240 pages
Rated 5 Stars of 5 Possible

A Writer's Book of Days is full of inspiring and challenging prompts to get you started in your own writing. There is also practical instruction (ignore that critic in your head) on how to get past the stumbling blocks that every writer encounters at one time or another, and encouraging, supportive advice on making writing part of your daily life. Daily prompts culled from hundreds of writing workshops taught by the author help open the door to your own creative process.

What does the beginning writer need?  Just a pencil and paper! Everybody has those, or can easily get them at their neighborhood store. Judy Reeves recommends going back to paper and pencil to discourage you from editing your work as you go. The main thing about writing practice is to get it down on paper. Spelling, grammer, and punctuation are all secondary and should come AFTER that first draft is complete.

I'll admit that edit as I go has been my writing style since I started using computers oh so many years ago... I don't write that way in my practice notebook though. I just write - and I don't even worry about how sloppy my writing turns out.  With the solid advice contained in this book, my writer's block is broken...and my creativity has been set free. I have seen my writing improve day by day,and you can too!

Work through the book day by day (my personal goal for 2008) or skip around as I have been doing this year. Do not forget to read the author's excellent advice. There are sufficient daily prompts to keep you busy writing for an entire year, plus extras in case you should need them; but you shouldn't need the extras. You can use each prompt multiple times and get different results each time, so when you've gotten through the book the first time, you will probably find you are nowhere near finished. I highly recommend A Writer's Book of Days.