Just Write (63)

It’s all in the details…

This week’s writing prompt is about paying attention to your world, rather than getting words on paper (though I hope it helps you do that as well). It’s also one that will require you to hang with me for more than a single sitting.

Like anything, writing is a habit. It’s more about making time, setting a schedule, and sitting your butt in the chair than it is about divine inspiration. But sometimes we need a little inspiration, divine or not. So all this week I want you to gather it.

Keep a notebook, a sturdy sheet of paper, or (sigh) an iPhone on you. Anytime something strikes you, write it down. An overheard snippet of conversation, a powerful smell, the way emotion washes over your child’s face, a song lyric, the woman standing at the bus stop. Big or small, write down whatever catches your eye or your imagination. You won’t remember when you get home. Grab it before it’s gone.

This is about the subtle detail, the nuance, the little pieces that transform your writing from a collection of facts to a story. At the end of the day, it’s not telling me how tall you subject is that makes them come alive. It’s showing them to me, and often it’s these little bits of life we capture that make this distinction. So spend the week gathering glimmers of life. Notice, observe, record.

*Inspired by sage advice in The Memoir Project by Marion Roach Smith

*Image of Word Nest by Siobhan Martin