Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Brow, is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!
“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.”
Come Write with Us
When it comes to writing projects, getting started sometimes can be the hardest part. In this open mic episode of Writers Chat, Brandy Brow, one of our weekly cohosts, leads us on a free writing trip. She shares the different types of writing prompts people use to bring twists and turns to their stories. Then she leads us on a five minute free way of writing. After this, we journey through another prompt of writing to music. If you’re stuck, or simply want to know some different ways to get ideas, this episode is for you.
Watch the April 20th replay.
Diving into Devotions with Julie Lavender
Whether you write devotions or are curious about them, this episode is a wonderful how-to for writing and submitting devotions. Julie shares a wealth of information from her years of experience as a devotion writer, covering everything from writing to submitting for publication. For more information check out this week’s episode.
Watch the April 27th replay.
Bio
Julie Lavender, whose maiden name is “Bland,” jokes that she loved trading her dull name for a colorful one. Julie is a journalist, author, and former homeschooling mom of twenty-five years with a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education. She is an award-winning writer and her newest book, 365 Ways To Love Your Child: Turning Little Moments Into Lasting Memories (Revell), released in October. Julie enjoys making memories with her family and would love to connect with you at www.julielavenderwrites.com or on her Facebook group page, 365 Ways to Love Your Child. You can connect with Julie on social media or www.julielavenderwrites.com.
JOIN US
Writers Chat is hosted live each Tuesday for an hour starting at 10 AM CT / 11 AM ET on Zoom. The permanent Zoom room link is: http://zoom.us/j/4074198133
Do you want to become a successful writer? Be ready to work hard and keep your productivity high.
Yep, writing talent is not the only thing you need to succeed in today’s world. You also need to be able to work effectively and deliver results fast.
Luckily, we live in the technology age, where productivity tools are widely available.
If you want to become a more productive writer, use the following tools and apps.
Grammarly
How much time do you spend fixing typos and correcting small grammar mistakes? Fifteen minutes a day or maybe a few hours? Try to install Grammarly and proofread your writings automatically.
Grammarly is an AI-powered grammar checker – it defines common mistakes and suggests fixes. If you start using it today, you will significantly speed up the writing process and get a chance to release your book sooner.
Evernote
The most brilliant ideas always come to mind unexpectedly. And if you don’t want these ideas to fade away, you should be ready to write them down immediately.
Evernote is an app that allows you to take notes and manage your tasks in a smooth and convenient way. You can use it to create textual notes or save drawings, photographs, audio, or web content that inspires you.
The best thing about Evernote is that it allows you to sync your notes across multiple devices. It means that you can access your saved files using your phone, tablet, and laptop no matter what device you have used to create that file.
Scrivener is a popular writing app used by best-selling novelists, professional screenwriters, and non-fiction writers. If you want to take your writing to the next level, consider using this tool for crafting your next draft.
Use Scrivener to write down your ideas, edit your manuscript, and add background materials. Compile everything into a single document for printing and share your book with the first readers and publishers.
Thesaurus
Good writing is all about choosing the right words to describe characters, settings, and items. If you want to expand your vocabulary and improve the quality of your texts – use Thesaurus. This tool will help you to find relevant synonyms for overused words and enrich your language.
Thesaurus is an excellent solution for elevating and improving writing and vocabulary for both newbies and pro writers.
Novel Factory
If you are a newbie in novel writing, Novel Factory will be a great tool for you. It works like an integrated step-by-step guide that helps you to craft a story one idea at a time.
Novel Factory interface includes dedicated sections for characters, locations, and items. It means you can describe the main hero of your story and the settings first and then move to crafting a plot.
Besides, Novel Factory offers plot outlines for popular genres like romance and thriller. If you want to write a novel but don’t know how to start, you can use these outlines for inspiration and as an example to follow.
Essay Guard
Nothing and no one is perfect. So if you feel like you need expert help to improve your writing, don’t feel ashamed to ask for it.
The best way to find a reliable writing service is to check websites ratings and read reviews on Essay Guard. Choose a qualified writer wisely, and you will get adequate editorial assistance.
Writing Prompts
Do you want to become a part of the online writing community? Install Writing Prompts, a mobile app, and create your own writing prompts and stories. Share it with other writers and get valuable feedback.
Writing Prompts allows you to check stories written by other authors. It means you can evaluate the quality of other authors’ works and learn the lesson from their mistakes and successes.
FocusMe
Do you find it challenging to focus on writing? Do you get distracted by social media notifications? If you want to finish your book due to the deadline, you should fight your social media addiction.
Install FocusMe and block access to social media websites. If you don’t have the strong willpower to stop checking your phone – this tool is just a perfect solution for you. It will limit the distractions so that you will be able to immerse yourself in writing.
Freedom
Freedom is another app for blocking distracting websites and apps. If you use it daily, you will improve your productivity and will get able to generate more brilliant ideas. You can set a work schedule, so Freedom will block access to distracting media automatically at hours when you are busy with writing.
In conclusion
All these nine tools are available for free or offer free trials, so you don’t have to pay money to understand whether they suit you or not.
We highly recommend you to test productivity tools one tool at a time to find a solution that works for you the best.
Daniela McVicker is a well-known writer, a contributor to EssayAssistant. She enjoys reading classic literature and doing research on internet marketing. Her favorite pastimes are to write, listen to jazz tracks and take quiet walks.
If
you, like the rest of the world, have been stuck inside of your home because of
the Coronavirus, why not use this as a time to increase your writing
productivity? After all, we’re not the only writers who have been forced to self-isolate;
it has been said that Shakespeare produced his play, King Lear, while facing the plague as well.
However,
I don’t know about you, but my creativity often becomes stifled when I’m locked
indoors for too long. Sometimes all I need is a walk in the neighborhood (or
the treadmill), a writing prompt—and, of course, dark chocolate—to get those
creative juices flowing again.
If
you’re in need of fresh inspiration, I challenge you to put down the TV remote.
Make good use of this time by allowing your imagination to run wild with one,
or all, of the writing prompts listed below.
Feel
free to share your responses to these prompts in the comments!
Choose one country, or city, you
have always had an itch to visit, and pretend as though you are vacationing to
this place and have decided to keep a travel journal. (This should take place after the virus clears, of course!)
Write the first entry of your travel journal. What did you do on your first day
of vacation? Did you meet anyone significant? Did you go sightseeing? What kind
of food did you eat?
Write about the best dream adventure you have
ever experienced. Why did you enjoy this dream, and what happened during it?
Explain the dream, and then pretend as if you have returned to that dream
world. How does it continue to unfold in your imagination?
Find three objects that are
within reach. Now, pretend as though these are the three objects you have
chosen to bring with you to a deserted island, and write a story that involves
you surviving on this island with these three objects.
Put your music on shuffle. Then,
write a scene or story idea that combines the first song that plays and the first
image to appear on this randomize list of photographs. Keep going—pairing the second
song with the second photograph, etc.—until you have written five scenes and/or
story ideas.
Tessa Emily Hall is an award-winning author who writes inspirational yet authentic books for teens to remind them they’re not alone. She writes both fiction and devotionals for teens, including her upcoming release, LOVE YOUR SELFIE (October 2020, Ellie Claire). Her latest devotional, COFFEE SHOP DEVOS, encourages teens to pursue a personal relationship with Christ. Tessa’s passion for shedding light on clean entertainment and media for teens led her to a career as a Literary Agent at Cyle Young Literary Elite, YA Acquisitions Editor for Illuminate YA (LPC Imprint), and Founder/Editor of PursueMagazine.net. She’s guilty of making way too many lattes and never finishing her to-read list. When her fingers aren’t flying 128 WPM across the keyboard, she can be found speaking to teens, decorating art journals, and acting in Christian films. Her favorite way to procrastinate is through connecting with readers on her blog, mailing list, social media (@tessaemilyhall), and website: tessaemilyhall.com.
Thanks to my past teen self, I will never run out of book ideas. I spent those years writing pages of book/scene/character ideas—much of which were birthed through exercises that not only sparked my creativity, but developed my writing voice as well.
[bctt tweet=”5 Fun Writing Exercises for Teens to Spark Creativity and Develop Writing Voice #yalitchat #amwriting @tessaemilyhall “]
Here are 5 of my favorite writing exercises for teens that can spark creativity and develop writing voice:
1. Write fan-fiction.
Have you ever reached the end of a book and wished that it would continue? Or maybe you didn’t like the way it ended and would like to create an alternate one.
On my blog, Christ is Write, I host a bi-weekly writing prompt contest for teens just like you.
My favorite prompts come from songs and photographs. In fact, the setting of my novel, PURPLE MOON, was inspired by a picture I came across of mountains outlining a lake.
As a teen, I spent my free time listening to my iPod on shuffle and writing a scene based on the song that played. Each time a new song came on, I would start writing a new scene.
When I was a teen, my best friend and I wrote a book together. We didn’t plan the story.
Instead, we each created our own characters—so any time they would interact, we would take turns writing the dialogue. (Similar to playing Barbies, I guess you could say. 😉 )
Here’s a secret: One of my characters actually made her way into my YA novel, PURPLE MOON. (Cough, Hayden, cough.)
5. Make a list of potential book titles.
Listen to music. Read poetry. Is there a specific line that stands out?
You could also try to combine the titles of 3 of your favorite books to generate an entirely new title.
[bctt tweet=”It is now, during your teen years, that you can have fun with writing, without worrying about the career aspect of it.” #amwriting @tessaemilyhall “]
It is now, during your teen years, that you can have fun with writing, without worrying about the career aspect of it.
Keep your imagination open. Daydream often (just not during English class. Math class might be OK. — Kidding).
Take road trips, paint pictures, read books, and jot down any idea that pops into your head, no matter how bizarre.
Who knows? It might just turn into your future best-selling novel.
Any fun writing exercises for teens you’d like to add? Let me know in the comments!
