Exercises to Help You Write Every Day

Just as you would stretch before a race, train before a marathon, eat well before undertaking a trek in the Himalayas, so too should you exercise those writing skills. Whether you want to write a novel or that personal essay you’ve been meaning to work on, it’s important to instil good writing habits into your daily routine.

Your brain is a muscle and you need to work that muscle, train it, each day. Have you ever noticed the more you procrastinate to write, the more your writing ability diminishes? And once you re-unite with the desire to climb back upon the writing saddle, you are completely lost for what to write, or even how to write.

Read on to discover my top three tips for exercising your writing skills on the daily.

Write flash fiction

Write 500 words or less. Focus on the same story elements (plot, characters, themes, etc), but see how you go when your word count is restricted. This can be a fun task that really gets the brain thinking. And it is indeed harder than it sounds!

Write a blog

Start a blog where you can write articles on something you enjoy – maybe this is a hobby, career, advice for others. Did you see a recent movie that you would like to review? Read a good book that nobody seems to be talking about just yet? Or went to a great restaurant in the city and are keen to share your thoughts with friends and family? Then write! A simple way to re-spark your creative juices. Plus, you can share your writing with others across social media, increasing your own writing brand and resume at the same time.

Write 100 words every day

Open up an old notebook and in the morning or evening (whenever you write best) start to jot down what you hear, see, smell around you. Keep in mind, this task is different from writing your personal thoughts in a journal, it isn’t so much self reflective, but rather opening up your senses to what is happening around you now – a great exercise for any creative writers wanting to practice their descriptive language.