Tips for becoming a better writer: the 5-minute writing challenge

As promised, back to regular programing! As writing has once again taken over my life, I thought I'd share some more about the process and how I've been developing my writing over the years to the point of getting my first pieces published about three years ago.

The thing I want to talk about today is the 5-minute writing challenge. This is an every day challenge, something you should do before diving into your day of concentrated writing. The result of these five minutes is not quality writing. It is not something you'll ever use. You might not re-read it, ever. The purpose of this exercise is not to create quality results in the 5 minutes, but in the hours that will follow the 5 minutes.

If you are rushing to your computer to write about a sudden idea you had, don't do this to start off your process. Write your ideas down first and then come do the 5 minutes, then go back and start your quality writing.

Alright, the informative bit.

Purpose:
To get your brain in writing mode.

Execution:
Set a timer with a buzzer at the end of it so the timing is exact. Set it to five minutes and pick a topic, then start the timer and write nonstop for five complete minutes. The topic can literally be anything and usually ends up being irrelevant stuff. Sometimes I write on things like water, the back door, why I hate carpets... stuff like that. I've also written on heavy stuff like art in my life and feelings of animosity towards someone. It can literally be anything!

Rules:
1. You write for 5 minutes. When the buzzer goes off, don't try to finish your sentence. You're done, just leave it off. If you keep ending on sentence fragments, your later sessions will work faster the next time.
2. Don't stop writing, not for a second. If you can't think of what to say next, write "I don't know what to say right now." Anything that comes to mind.
3. Try your best not to stray from your original topic. Try to stay focused and rapidly find new things about your subject to write on. Think about incorporating your five senses, emotions, the subject's function, personal importance (or lack thereof), etc.
4. Don't worry about it being quality writing. It doesn't matter.
5. Don't worry about grammar or rules. Go ahead and use abbreviations if you want. These 5 minutes are yours.
6. Try to write in the physical place where you will be doing your writing session.
7. Do one even if you won't be writing that day.
8. Do not use it as an excuse to get some novel work done. It should NOT be largely related to what you're trying to write.

Why it works:
You're distracted during the day. Even when you sit down to right you're not able to focus immediately. Doing a 5 minute stretch of uninterrupted writing flips a switch in your brain. 5 minutes is a short enough time that it's pretty easy to force the brain to focus, and that solid, determined focus puts you in writing mode. Because you are grabbing for something, ANYTHING to keep on writing about on this object, you learn about new ways to look at things and describe them and will help you with showing and not telling. It also warms up the muscles and tendons in your hands and arms, giving them a gentle start to a long, hard session.

Tips:
Wear headphones and listen to your favorite music while you do it. It stops outside distractions or interruptions.
Try to use all five senses when exploring your topic.
If you can't think on something to write about, pick a random object and write on it. For example, I just looked up for random things I could write on and came up with: fan, jewelry box, old glass Coca-Cola bottle, art easel, fuzzy blanket, green mug with "LOL" on the side, the paint stain on my carpet, the thunder storm that's scaring me, my computer's broken keyboard... seriously just find random stuff. The less you think you can say about it, the more it will force your brain into writing mode.


So I actually have been pre-writing a few helpful writing posts, and will be updating this blog with them for the next week to make up for the horse-spamming I've been brutalizing you guys with.