Writing Exercises to Help You Get Writing

There is nothing worse than thinking your writing mojo is gone. If you need to reconnect to the passion of your writing and story, these writing exercises are designed to help you get writing and get back into your happy writing place. Start with these writing exercises for a quick-start, and the moment you feel your mojo come into your heart and through your fingers, go back to your writing and enjoy! (Keep and pull these out again in case of writing emergency.)

Get Writing Exercises: A Personal Book Journal Questions

Remember why you wanted to write this particular book? Here are some prompts to get you back to that place…

1. Why are you writing this book?
2. What in it is important to you?
3. What is your story about?
4. What are you trying to say with this book?
5. Why is your character (protagonist) important to you?
6. What is he going to learn that you want others to see?
7. How is your character like you?
8. What freedoms does he have that you don’t?
9. What will he do you can’t do?

Get Writing Exercises:  Ramp Up Your Story

Need to inject some excitement into your story? Use these prompts to start…

1. What can you add to the mix to make this concept bigger?
2. Push your story to the dark side? What happens?
3. What are the challenges of the story?
4. How can you make them bigger (raise the stakes)?
5. What are the conflicts in the story?
6. How can you make them bigger (raise the stakes)?
7. Write your protagonist’s name at the top of the page. List his character traits.
8. How can you make him more dramatic?
9. Who is he in conflict with? List the reasons for the conflicts with each character.
10.  Who does he see as competition? Why?
11. Write your antagonist’s name at the top of the page. List his character traits.
12. How can you make him more dramatic?
13. How will he provoke other characters?
14. Who does he see as competition? Why?

Get Writing Exercises: Write (First Person) in Your Protagonist’s Voice

Ask for help from the most logical person…er… your character!

1. What do you think about what just happened?
2. What do you want at this point?
3. Why do you want this?
4. What the hell are you going to do next?
5. What is the worst that can happen now?
6. What if it happens? What will you do?
7. What are you most afraid of in terms of yourself?
8. What would be the best outcome for you?
9. What if that doesn’t happen?
10. Are you keeping any secrets? What are they?
11. Why are you keeping them?
12. Who are you keeping them from?
13. What don’t you want me to know or reveal at this point?
14. Who don’t you want to find out?
15. What would happen if he did find out?
16. What would happen if everyone found out?
17. How do you feel right now?
18. Tell me the truth…how do you feel about all this? Be honest and specific.
19.  Now, what are you lying to yourself about?
20. Why do you need to lie about this?
21. What are you lying to others about?
22. Why do you need to lie to them?

Get Writing Exercises: Write (First Person) in Your Antagonist’s Voice

Don’t leave out the bad guy. They get testy. Answer the “Protagonist’s Voice” questions from above but from his or her POV.

Good luck, go forth, and reclaim your writing mojo!

Check out these other ideas to get you past writer’s block and get writing.

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Award-winning novelist Kathy Steffen teaches fiction writing and speaks at writing programs across the country. Additionally, Kathy is also published in short fiction and pens a monthly writing column, Between the Lines. Her books, FIRST THERE IS A RIVER, JASPER MOUNTAIN and THEATER OF ILLUSION are available online and at bookstores everywhere. Check out more at www.kathysteffen.com