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Exercise 2 was Hannibal Lecter and Winnie the Phoo. I fixed it up a little. But it was fun. The Silence of the Honey Bees. "Hello Phoo." Long sniff by Lecter. "You ate a special honey this morning." Phoo gulps. "Yes. I did." Lecter sniffs again. "Pollen from citrus trees in a field west of Marrakesh. Ahhh. Wonderful choice. Tasty honey to be poured over sweetbreads." "I don't eat bread Mr. Lecter. As you know I am here for my colleagues at the FBI. They got me into a sticky situation with this interview." "Oh, honey." "No not honey, but close." Phoo licks a drop of honey from his paw. "Sorry." Thank you Kieren for this video. These exercises were a lot of fun and they are refreshing. I think it helped my writer's block. This is a great video.
Thank you for this inspiring video! It reminded me of when I started my own writing journey. One tool that really helped me along the way was Belikenative-it’s been invaluable for refining my writing. I’ve used it to fix grammar, paraphrase tricky sentences, and simplify complex ideas, which made the process less overwhelming and much more enjoyable. For anyone just starting out, finding tools or techniques that resonate with you can make a big difference!
Absolutely! As an author, Belikenative has significantly streamlined my writing process. It assists with grammar corrections, paraphrasing, and simplifying complex ideas, which not only saves me valuable time but also ensures that my work remains clear and polished!
It's like my guitar student asking, when they finally become a guitarist. If you play guitar, you're a guitarist. Nobody will stop you on the street to check your license. And even if you've only been at it for a month, you're already a better guitarist than 99% of all the people around you.
I followed the 3 exercises. The third one is the hardest.. After these exercises, I wrote a short story with 1510 words. So I was able to write a total of close to 2000 words today. The last time I wrote a short story was 3 weeks ago. Thank you. You are very inspiring and motivating.
I always appreciate how supportive and positive and encouraging you are with yourself and other writers. Too many of us take up writing with dollar signs and movie contracts clouding our vision. That's the Hollywood-ized version of what a writer's life should be like, but it's 100% NOT reality. When reality finally does sink in, we think we failed, and we get discouraged. Media makes it it hard for us to shatter that initial disillusionment, but we MUST do it!
My desires to write comes from when I was 10 (I think.1st year of comp). I wrote some short examples at school. One of which I filled my English book. That book circulated around the teachers. By the time I brought my work home, no one at home believed I wrote it.. They said I copied it. Even my mum. I lost the wil to write after that. And for the life of me, I cannot remember what the book was about. What I do remember is how I started the 1st chapter is the reason what got my teacher's attention. Like others started with "once upon a time" mine started with a discussion between two people. That's all I remember about that story. I'm 54 now and I've been playing with the idea of writing something, maybe short stories to start. But I just feel at a loss.
Its funny how things are preceived differently from person to person. Because if that was me, everyone thinkinh that i didnt write the passage because it was so good, wouldve boosted my eagle to never stop writing again. I wouldve took that situation as the biggest compliment 😂. Im sorry you felt that way and that their reactions caused you to NOT write again. Imagine if you were telling everyone now as a best selling author "When i was in first grade, I wrote a short story so good that no one believed i wrote it. Not even my mom believed me that i wrote it. I knew then that i had something in me. And here we today, im a 5x best selling author" ❤ Write you a book before this lifetime is over! You got this 🙌🏽
I’ve listened to a million writing videos lately since I caught the bug to write a novel, but this one has to be the most inspirational and yet the most practical of them all. The exercise to write dialogue for favorite existing characters is so fun and accessible. Writing an opening paragraph that *intentionally* doesn’t have to be good is really freeing. Thanks for the encouragement and the easeful entry points.
I haven't written anything since I left school in the 1980s, yes I'm old, but I had a go at the exercises and really enjoyed them. Thank you for a wonderful supportive video.
Aw Andy! Your age is completely and utterly irrelevant. Those who place no limitations on themselves as older adults...Those who don't see a number as a hindrance of any sort...they are rare. I don't see the lack of older adults taking their dreams on as a sign that they shouldn't. Instead I see the few who do...and I know that others just haven't yet believed the same of themselves. You do whatever makes you happy. Whatever you want! It's your life. You deserve to be happy. Your age changes nothing. Assumptions are just that. They're air. The stigma and or opinions of society are just that. They bare no meaning... You do what makes you feel good!!! ❤ You're NEVER too old. It is NEVER too late. As long as you're alive, and as long as you're a human...Live your life however you would like. Don't let those unrealistic beliefs hold you back. ❤❤
Time’s gonna pass anyway is the greatest advice, especially for creative endeavors. I’ve heard that years ago and started writing. I don’t feel daunted nor pressured whenever I’m writing after that.
The timing of this video is insane. Just when I was thinking of giving up the idea of writing a story before I could even start, thinking I was too incompetent. I'm actually impressed with the dialogue I wrote in those exercises. All what I had to do is break the ice and put my ideas on paper regardless. This video allowed me to do that. Thank yo so much ✨It was really helpful.
That's great! It's encouraging to know that the exercises help. I really do think there's some secret power in breaking the ice and getting words down. Thanks for letting me know this helped, I'm really glad it did.
That's great! Follow that feeling. Put that bad experience aside for now (as much as you can) and just be as creative as possible. It was always there!
The first thing you write will be garbage. But write that garbage story, finish it & then you will be a step further down the line than you were before you started it. I've gone back & read things I wrote 30 years ago, & thought--Oh, what was I doing there? Read more, & expand your reading horizon. Step by step you will learn the craft. Start with just writing one good sentence. Then, expand that to a paragraph. You're on your way.
I have watched many, many videos about writing and I always come back to your channel. You're the most down to earth, genuine writing RUclipsr I've come across, and I feel like I actually learn real, useful things from watching your videos, where other videos usually come off sort of like Buzzfeed listicles with with surface level advice like "don't overuse adverbs." Kudos to you, and thanks.
Exercise 3 is definitely the best one of the three. I cringe over everything i write and never think anything is good enough. This can cripple my writing for months. This video is great!
The algorithm blessed me today! This wasn’t a video that I was searching for however, I’ve been recently clicking on a lot of ambient music playlists for writing so it makes sense that the algorithm sent me this direction. Immediate sub! I love the positivity and the encouragement
Thanks for subscribing ☺️ Maybe the algorithm connected it because I said something about ambient music playing during the exercises? Whatever the case, glad you’re here! Welcome!
I finally convinced myself to follow this video and get my butt down and write alongside you. Thank you. Ill keep coming back to this video to try and make this a habit
I’m finally going to dig my heels into the ground and finish my book. I really enjoyed your video and look forward to watching more. You just found yourself one more subscriber.
I tried all the 3 activities, honestly it was fun just writing and not worrying if I am doing good or not, just letting words work their way on my notebook. I definitely enjoyed it.
Reading plays helps with dialogue patterns and pacing. I acted and directed for many years, which is why I prefer to write dialogue rather than setting descriptions! :)
I like how you incorporated the timings into the video. I think the hardest thing is when you start and have a blank page and unlimited time to write anything, it's just too easy to get distracted. But when you have only 3 min and a clear instruction, you start to think it's not so hard after all! Will definitely use this video to practice some writing 😊
Thanks! It's a strange thing, but you're right. Having that limitation I think pushes my perfectionism away a little bit and subsequently leads to getting something down quicker.
Absolutely love your videos. You are the only writing advice channel I have come across that seems to be rooted in truth. There are no strict rules, just suggestions. Keep it up, you deserve whatever success comes your way.
Thank you so much! I definitely just want to suggest, and not dictate. I can't tell someone else's story, but if I can help them to tell it, that's what I want to do.
I followed along all three exercises, and it was a lot of fun! I didn't even feel like I made any significant progress with anything I've been stuck on with my current novel, but I didn't care, I just had fun writing.
That's great! By all means, if you get into that flow-state, just shut me up for a while and keep going with it! I was hoping that might happen for some writers!
Hello Kieron - my name is also Ciaran, and I’ve had my story idea in my head for years now. I have only JUST started writing it out after thinking about the world, plot, ideas etc for years. My problem is I have ADHD and dyslexia so I have the creativity in my head but since I was a little kid I have really struggled putting brain to paper and I have been using AI to help me sculpt the words, sentences and grammar. It’s helped me massively and hopefully one day many years from now I will click publish Thank you for your videos.
Thanks for being here, fellow Ciaran! Glad the channel could be useful for you. I'm glad you've found a method that works for you, that's a side of AI I'd never really considered before. You've opened my eyes a bit there.
I trolled through countless number of videos on this topic, desperately searching for a tranquil English-speaking person, as I find American videos grate on my nerves! Thank goodness for algorithms, as through them, I found you! I found your video very inspiring & highly educational. I shall follow you and hope to use all your advice to get my writing hobby off the ground. Thank you so much, God bless xx
haha is that because of their constant inflections at the end of every other word?! it absolutely grinds my t*ts. English people do it too, but I find Americans do it FAR more.
Watched this due to my growing addiction to "You can do the thing!" videos I've been watching to try to get through some mental blocks and debilitating anxiety. I admit, I am only passingly interested in writing, and my interest is more because of.. how wordy I can't help but make things. If I could apply it creatively, maybe I'd do some impressive things. Really, I just like the idea of artistic expression and thought writing might be a way to get things out if I could get through my mental dam. But, I find the sentiment this, and the other video you made on the exact same topic years ago, to be one of the best ones I've seen. In that, encouraging is all well and good, but I feel like the idea of "You can't improve on nothing" is something I really needed to hear, and haven't seen before in these videos. Writing is especially bad about it, because yours is the 4th "how to write" channel, and the others were all more "how to make writing ideas" and "don't do this thing that annoys me that other writers do" marketed on RUclips as "how to write". Not sure if I'll apply this to writing or not; I'm isolated enough that I am unsure how people interact in general, which really gives me some mixed feelings on the idea of me trying to depict anything. But I am definitely applying the sentiment that connected so strongly to me on my other hobbies.
This was really helpful for improving my mindset. I get in my own head quite badly avoiding the start of the process, but these simole little exercises felt really good for just getting my mind to let go and just try. Thank you for this.
A lot of us thoughtful writer types get in our own way I think, I'm the same. Sometimes just taking over and pushing through can get the ball rolling, I'm glad it was helpful!
I really enjoyed this video!! I've been a huge reader this year and it sparked my desire to write my own series. I have ideas that are pouring out of me. I'm actually excited to get started and personally don't care if I don't make money, I wanna do this because I believe it to be a good creative past time. Like an outlet for my creativity. And I want to write this specific series because it's something I would TOTALLY read. I'm taking a lot of inspiration from my own life, so the main character would be based off of myself. I guess it's like a fictional idealized world for myself. I think that my ideas are so good and I'm excited to put them down on paper.
Starting from a place of excitement, and aiming to write a story that you want to read is a good start! It'll take you further than you think, just don't give up if initially it's tough, it'll get easier.
Hey man, I have to share with you that I used to write a lot of short horror stories, and just fiction out of my life experiences, and I thought I was awesome. I also got validations from people around me - but one day it just stopped- and I haven’t been writing for almost 10 years now. Though I always had some kind of yearning to get back to it but didn’t know how to , especially with work and family life. But I have to say - taking 15 minutes to follow your steps, is really helping me to hear that voice in me that I’ve abandoned for so long, so I really want to thank you for this! Step one - easy Step two - tricky (I had David from King’s Breathing Method and The Dude) Step three - surprisingly easy every time!
That's great! I'm really glad it could get you moving again. Sometimes just taking over the brain and starting the mechanics of writing can kick-start you a bit. You don't always have to wait for the ideas or the muse. Awesome that it helped, and thanks for letting me know!
This was an awesome video. My brain is the main thing that holds me back and I know it. Ive been writing since I learned how to ride a two wheeled bicycle but basically have never shared anything I have written with anyone. These past few years Ive been getting closer and closer to building up the courage to just start but sometimes I look at the blank page and all of a sudden my mind seems to reflect that empty space. These tiny exercises you gave here were really nice and I had fun with them. I appreciate your work.
You are a beautiful soul brother, thank you of this amazing content, to me it just felt like someone took my hand guiding me to meet with my long forgotten creative self... with a simple and gentle greeting, I was surprised that my self was vary happy to reach out to say "Hi" we talk a lot after that... Thank you so much Kieren
The therapy session you gave were incredible. It was like someone was reading my thoughts exactly as they were. When you asked to write something in 3 min and choosing the character I know really made it a lot easier. I started writing and didn't expect what it turned out to be. It was not very much but it was more than what I was trying to write for a past one year. Thanks and keep it up
I loved the writing exercises. I have 3 novels started, and i never give myself the freedom to just write. I indent, check spelling, etc. The exercises gave me freedom to write, to not be so critical, and it was fun. Thank you for your videos. You are the first person that gives permission to just write. Everyone else it seemed to me would get into the precision of writing. I loved English in school, but I never got the whole adverbs, nouns and such. I recognize them just not the structure. Besides, I write the way I speak, which isn't always a good idea. So I really thank you and I'm watching more of you vids.
I do that stuff too! Tidying up here and there so I can avoid getting to the really important stuff. It's natural I think. Having permission to just take a crack at it I think really can open a lot of doors. Just trying things often works out better than you think, and if it doesn't, at least you learned something to avoid in the future I guess. Yeah, I do try to stay away from the technical side if I can, I write by feel really, and I think a lot of that stuff can be fixed in editing, but you can't really fix the heart of the story with grammar rules and such!
@@KierenWestwoodWriting I agree. I've been watching a Master Class of one of my favorite authors, Dan Brown. When I read the Da Vinci Code, from the prologue to the last sentence of the book, I was held. Couldn't put it down and got angry when I had to. The same thing happened when I read The Deep by Peter Benchley. At 67, If I could create a novel like that, where my reader couldn't put it down. That would be, too cool for words! I'm an artist. To me, there's something more satisfying in creating a picture with words, than with a pencil, or paint. I'm learning so much from various writers about style and pacing. Sometimes I get overwhelmed, especially when they talk about formulas and structure. "I'm a fly by the seat of my pants kinda girl", to coin a phrase. I have to say, it's really nice meeting you!
Thank you so much for this!!! It really helped. Until now, I didn't realize how much my expectations were interfering with my writing process (constant search for better words on Chatgpt, the mental analysis of balancing imagery and dialogue ). You probably know the rest. More of these videos, please (if possible).
Thanks so much for this video! A lot of it is very practical, especially for me as a person who's browsed through quite a few videos on how to start writing, these exercises were super helpful and freeing to practice with. I ended up with about 25 words per minute, which would end up with about 1.5k words in an hour!! I didn't even think that was possible for me to come up with those kinds of numbers, but now I know it's possible if I dedicate enough time to my writing. Thanks again! I'll check back soon with progress updates
Was kind of looking and very much hoping for some outer element to help walk me out of my head, which is in a very tough place at the moment, and you showed up in my internet rambling’s. Your approach is lovely and has actually got me writing. Thanks!!
I finally got done with this exercise today after procrastinating about it for weeks now, and I have to say thank you. I really enjoyed it and I can say I learnt something from it as well. Cheers!
Your video is so helpful! I was looking for some writing exercises, because as a beginner I feel like I'm not ready to dive into writing a full length novel from zero. I am very restrictive to myself, that's why my pace usually is 200 words per hour. I did all three exercises with you, and found out that my actual speed is 50 words per 3 minutes. Today I wrote 400 words of my story in only 20 minutes. Insane! And I was actually enjoying it. Writing didn't feel like a chore, a hard work with no joy. I hope this warm up will boost my creative freedom. Thank you
Yessss that's exactly what we want! Honestly, a lot of progress with writing gets unlocked from figuring out how YOU do things and what works for YOU. There's no wrong answer, so if something gets you writing, lean into it. I'm really glad this could help.
Thank you for this videos. I didn't go to university for writing. And I did doubt my self too. But I know I have it on me since my first writing I was 8 years old. I been learning process from reading, search, video's like yours. I'm good at story telling but still learning on script writing. My story coming from my own experience. My life story is my teachers. Writing is my savior and my companion during dark times of my life. I have written so far 8 story base on true events with fiction.
I want to say that your videos mean so much to me. I have been writing a sci-fi dystopian novel with my friend, and your videos get me motivated and in the mood.
Thanks for this video. It's exactly what I needed. I've struggled with writing prompts and the advice to "Just write". Your exercises are great. I hope you give us more.
I loved this so much. Thank you. This is undoubtedly the dose of what I needed to continue my writing journey with creativity and passion. The first exercise was pure magic. The second exercise was challenging yet valuable again in terms of focusing on good character development. In the last exercise, I felt that I flowed mostly. It's a story I will follow or incorporate into my trilogy concept ( my passion project). Thank you for what you do and how you do it. This powerful guidance you provide is engaging, and it speaks to my heart and soul🎉
Hi Kieren, just watch this video. I am trying to aspire to be a writer and your video really gave me the good vibes that this could actually be possible. Just wanted to let you know that you certainly inspired me and will be looking forward to all your videos. Thanks and wishing you great success! Kabir
I love these prompts! I got so into them that I ended up writing for far longer than 3 minutes each. I know that wasn't the point, but I had trouble stopping. Thanks so much for posting! I'm definitely subscribing, and looking forward to more videos! ❤
I found this to be so helpful - thank you so much! I didn't know that I needed to hear someone else say it is okay to write even if you don't know HOW to write a story :)
Absolutely! Sometimes you just have to jump in and give it a go, but there can be loads of barriers to doing that I think, even if we don't realise it.
Thanks for the advice man, I tried these exercises and it's incredibly helpful.The last one was especially helpful and I started writing a lot more, ideas just came flooding me as I was writing.I started with writing about something as insignificant as me waking up to wanting to write a full on mystery novel.I truly appreciate your help because I really want to become a writer and there's many other things I want to do but I just absolutely love writing, it's amazing how words on a page can completely transport my mind into a whole new world I love it!!
ok so i’m at 8:20 and i just want to say im amazed..aesthetically the video is so pleasing loved everything but more importantly i dont think this is JUST for people who are contemplating writing the part i’ve just watched is so much valuable for any endeavor really..thank you so much
You love to help others, I can feel it, I can understand, and I do appreciate it. I tried to change the channel, but it felt like you only spoke to me, and this felt right. I do appreciate the time you spent to help us, particularly when you said , "If English is not our first language," in my case, it's my 5th, language, it's challenging sometimes. Thanks tremendously.
This video is great. I did all three exercises and I was surprised with what I got down. I found the dialogue exercise the most challenging. Thanks for this.
The last time I wrote a short story back in 8th grade. To my pleasant suprise, I found it actually not too difficult to get started with the 3 exercises. The key is as you say is to start, and then rest will happen. Any tips for teenage horror? I appreciate this video so much.
That's great! Glad the video worked for you and I agree, a lot of it is just getting past the initial blank page. I haven't got anything specific for teenage horror I'm afraid, but hopefully there might be some other useful stuff on my channel!
Thank you so much for this video. It's the first time that I have found someone so encouraging. Those three exercises were brilliant and it was easy for me to complete them. Looking forward to hearing more from you and will be listening to the other content of your RUclips audios. Thanks for your time and interest!
How sad that is! People talk about themselves when they criticize so let it be water off a ducks back! It took me a long to understand Other people's opinions are none of my business 😂😂😂
the book I wrote started from a vivid dream I had, wrote down the main parts that finally developed into a novel. I wrote other novels that I have yet to publish. thanks for the info.
I want to finally write a book because I enjoy creating stories. Some of the stories I want to write are adventures that I wish I had in table top RPGs, but didn't have the opportunity due to sometimes not having a group to play with, and when I did, the kinds of stories I wanted to play in and the mood of the game were not what the GM or players were creating so I just want to create my own stories that I have control over what happens in the plot and what kinds of characters are the story.
The 1st exercise was interesting. The 2nd was fun. The 3rd was more difficult than I expected but I got more out of it than the first two. Thanks for helping me get started on this path. I have put it off for far too long.
Thank you for this video. These exercises and your kind words help me a lot. I was struggling with writing and kept having these thoughts where I felt like maybe I wasn't made for this. But this is the first video that helps me get the word out!! Thank you :)
Thanks for the video. Of all the videos I have ever watched, yours is the only one that helped me to follow through with the exercises. I appreciate that you wrote along with us, and the music also helped. Thanks a million. I just found your video and I just had to subscribe.
Wow!!! i absolutely loved the video, the "try now" exercise sessions in between were not expected but they were absolutely helpful in challenging yourself as a new writer. At first I frowned upon them and thought with my eyes up in the back of my head .... "oh here we go" then after the first 2 tries, I decided ... why not? I didn't get very far, didn't complete the entire paragraph but 3 sentences later I actually saw a paragraph for my book begin to come to life. I loved it and the self challenge made me see that there is an opportunity brewing. Now the challenge for me is, staying focused on that one paragraph at a time and not moving ahead of myself, Organizing my thoughts and consistency. Thanks again, "new subscriber"
I actually like that this was more like a therapy than strictly techical ways on how to improve your writing because the biggest block for me, and probably a lot of others, is mental. I tend to overthink too much and try to flesh out the entire story before I even started writing. Then I'll change my mind about something bcs I thought it wasnt good enough originally and one "correction" leads to another until I say "you know what, this whole idea is meh, I need a new one" and cycle repeats. That way I spend most of my time in my head instead of on the paper. That being said, your exercises really helped and made me write without thinking too much, and I got to say, I was pretty pleased with those few lines I wrote during three minutes. That combined with words of encouragement in the first half of the video, helped me realize to not overthink it, but to just write. Thanks man, great vid :)
I'm late getting to your comment, my apologies! But yes, I absolutely know what you mean. I call that state 'analysis paralysis'. It's very easy to get stuck in that state of not being able to move forward, because it feels very convincing and legitimate, there are always good reasons to revisit something , or figure something out, or go back and mess with things, so you can't always get past that mentally. Instead, you have to hit the 'manual override' button with exercises like these that just jump start you a little bit and get things moving! I'm really glad this worked for you!
Thank you very much, dude! I've been thinking to start writing for years and I've been watching videos about writing and story every day these last few weeks, I've even read Stephen King's book On Writing during this time but I've never actually started putting words on the page untill this very video. The hardest part for me, I feel, is coming up with something to say, especially an idea 'worth' saying, that's what probably freezes me the most. Paradoxically on the last exercise I've encounter the least difficulty on that front.
That's always a hard part I think. It tends to help me if I remember that I can find that 'meaning' and that thing that's worth saying along the way. It doesn't have to be all figured out upfront. Sometimes you don't know what you want to say until you start. Also, some stories are just stories and they're fun or they're sad or they're exciting and that's all, and that's fine too!
I thoroughly enjoyed the 3 exercises, sir; it really got me writing. Thank you; its a very good writing video I came across on RUclips for beginners to learn and start writing.☺😊👍👏
Thanks so much, I just recently (like within the last week) decided to go all in with taking my writing seriously and this video helped me to tell my inner critic to shut up lol. Also, I loved the exercises and the part where you mentioned that you didn't need to know everything to get started, like grammar and how to develop a plot or characters, those were the main issues holding me back.
I’m really glad it could help a bit! It’s natural to feel stuck by all of that stuff, but just writing something is often the best way to make progress, the rest of it can come later ☺️
Just did this now. While I am not aiming for a book... writing is still a core component of any story telling medium! (comics and animation) The first exercise I actually started by writing the cold open for a story I moved away from a decade ago. This was not as hard as I thought, but it really didn't change much from my original attempt other than focusing on what they were feeling, rather than just the events. The dialogue scene was pretty hard, by far the hardest... Also having Piccolo and the Staryk Queen interact was pretty interesting to say the least. Since I already did an opening scene, I wrote an opening scene from another point in the story that I thought might be a better starting point. I didn't get as far, I spent far more time with exploring the senses than anything else. Was still giving me some good ideas for later! Overall it was pretty fun and encouraging!
Nice to hear from you😊 Yes I'm often doing the same exercise when i try myself to improve my writing skills. Hopefully i can say, it’s better now. My aim to improve writing language skills.
Thanks a lot for such inspiring words. Lot of stories come to my mind but I never write them down because I think grammar is weak, sentence structure is not correct and so on. But now I will write for myself.
This was a really good informative video!❤ Not sure if I did it correctly, but for the dialogue exercise, my characters were the adult me and the (inner)child me. As an adult, I was having a lovely conversation with my inner child about how she was feeling and what did she want for breakfast. I felt as though I was talking to what could be my daughter. It felt great and flowed well.
This was actually really easy to follow along. Thank you for breaking it down into smaller more manageable steps. Once I heard you remind me that it can't be wrong or that no one would be able to read it unless I allow it, well that made things a lot easier to start typing. I actually wrote a decent starter paragraph for my first fantasy book I've had in mind for a couple years. Thank you
Hello Kieren. I'm not one to comment a lot ... I loved this video and enjoyed the exercises too. I've subscribed and want to really look at your content going forward. Thanks for doing your thing which is helping this retired engineer the ability to see creative life.
Thank you, this was such a beautiful video! The exercises are super fun to follow along, no matter the result :) And to anyone reading this, there is no need to criticize yourself. Love yourself, encourage yourself and treat yourself the best, not just while writing but in life. Embrace yourself for who you are, cherish what you created and there will be progress. Enjoy the journey :)
Thank you. I've been struggling with my inner critic and I just felt like I didn't knew enough to write a story. These exercises really helped me lower the stakes to something more reasonable.
When I woke up this morning I did not think I was going to write a dialogue between Harry Potter and Gandalf about coming back from death, but here we are! These were great exercises and really helped me out today, thank you!
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
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Exercise 2 was Hannibal Lecter and Winnie the Phoo. I fixed it up a little. But it was fun.
The Silence of the Honey Bees. "Hello Phoo." Long sniff by Lecter. "You ate a special honey this morning." Phoo gulps. "Yes. I did." Lecter sniffs again. "Pollen from citrus trees in a field west of Marrakesh. Ahhh. Wonderful choice. Tasty honey to be poured over sweetbreads." "I don't eat bread Mr. Lecter. As you know I am here for my colleagues at the FBI. They got me into a sticky situation with this interview." "Oh, honey." "No not honey, but close." Phoo licks a drop of honey from his paw. "Sorry." Thank you Kieren for this video. These exercises were a lot of fun and they are refreshing. I think it helped my writer's block. This is a great video.
My problem is I flipflop from thinking I'm trash to the best author who ever lived
Haha I feel like that too and it’s entirely random!
@@KierenWestwoodWriting Part of the process
Unfortunately, that's pretty common. Hopefully knowing that makes the lows easier to bear.
That's pretty normal.
So your protagonist is bi polar 1?
Thank you for this inspiring video! It reminded me of when I started my own writing journey. One tool that really helped me along the way was Belikenative-it’s been invaluable for refining my writing. I’ve used it to fix grammar, paraphrase tricky sentences, and simplify complex ideas, which made the process less overwhelming and much more enjoyable. For anyone just starting out, finding tools or techniques that resonate with you can make a big difference!
Absolutely! As an author, Belikenative has significantly streamlined my writing process. It assists with grammar corrections, paraphrasing, and simplifying complex ideas, which not only saves me valuable time but also ensures that my work remains clear and polished!
Was beginning to accept I'm not a writer but "if you write, you're writer" love that! Thank you!
It's like my guitar student asking, when they finally become a guitarist. If you play guitar, you're a guitarist. Nobody will stop you on the street to check your license. And even if you've only been at it for a month, you're already a better guitarist than 99% of all the people around you.
if you fight pilots, then you're a fighter pilot
or is it a pilot fighter
good advice either way
I followed the 3 exercises. The third one is the hardest.. After these exercises, I wrote a short story with 1510 words. So I was able to write a total of close to 2000 words today. The last time I wrote a short story was 3 weeks ago. Thank you. You are very inspiring and motivating.
That’s a great result! ☺️
I used to write every day for years, but inner critic kinda kicked my butt. This really helped me write again. Thank you so much!!!
Really glad it could help ☺️ thanks for watching!
That is great I’m nine and I’m new for writing stories:)
Hi. I’m the person you made this video for. Nice to meet you.
I always appreciate how supportive and positive and encouraging you are with yourself and other writers. Too many of us take up writing with dollar signs and movie contracts clouding our vision. That's the Hollywood-ized version of what a writer's life should be like, but it's 100% NOT reality. When reality finally does sink in, we think we failed, and we get discouraged. Media makes it it hard for us to shatter that initial disillusionment, but we MUST do it!
Absolutely, that's definitely the angle I want to come at it from. There's lots of writing advice out there, but not nearly enough encouragement!
My desires to write comes from when I was 10 (I think.1st year of comp). I wrote some short examples at school. One of which I filled my English book. That book circulated around the teachers. By the time I brought my work home, no one at home believed I wrote it.. They said I copied it. Even my mum. I lost the wil to write after that. And for the life of me, I cannot remember what the book was about. What I do remember is how I started the 1st chapter is the reason what got my teacher's attention. Like others started with "once upon a time" mine started with a discussion between two people. That's all I remember about that story. I'm 54 now and I've been playing with the idea of writing something, maybe short stories to start. But I just feel at a loss.
Never too late to write. You are a writer at heart. Writing is such a beautiful art, and we are the artists imposing our will on the canvas.
Its funny how things are preceived differently from person to person. Because if that was me, everyone thinkinh that i didnt write the passage because it was so good, wouldve boosted my eagle to never stop writing again. I wouldve took that situation as the biggest compliment 😂.
Im sorry you felt that way and that their reactions caused you to NOT write again.
Imagine if you were telling everyone now as a best selling author "When i was in first grade, I wrote a short story so good that no one believed i wrote it. Not even my mom believed me that i wrote it. I knew then that i had something in me. And here we today, im a 5x best selling author" ❤
Write you a book before this lifetime is over! You got this 🙌🏽
@TheAMDiaries THIS can be your FIRST STORY! The story of that 10 years old little girl.
I’ve listened to a million writing videos lately since I caught the bug to write a novel, but this one has to be the most inspirational and yet the most practical of them all. The exercise to write dialogue for favorite existing characters is so fun and accessible. Writing an opening paragraph that *intentionally* doesn’t have to be good is really freeing. Thanks for the encouragement and the easeful entry points.
Thank you so much! I'm really glad it came in useful. I think just allowing ourselves to write without expectations often does lead to progress :)
I haven't written anything since I left school in the 1980s, yes I'm old, but I had a go at the exercises and really enjoyed them. Thank you for a wonderful supportive video.
Aw Andy! Your age is completely and utterly irrelevant.
Those who place no limitations on themselves as older adults...Those who don't see a number as a hindrance of any sort...they are rare.
I don't see the lack of older adults taking their dreams on as a sign that they shouldn't.
Instead I see the few who do...and I know that others just haven't yet believed the same of themselves.
You do whatever makes you happy. Whatever you want! It's your life.
You deserve to be happy.
Your age changes nothing. Assumptions are just that. They're air. The stigma and or opinions of society are just that. They bare no meaning...
You do what makes you feel good!!! ❤
You're NEVER too old.
It is NEVER too late.
As long as you're alive, and as long as you're a human...Live your life however you would like. Don't let those unrealistic beliefs hold you back.
❤❤
Awesome! Same here let’s do this together lol! And congrats for getting back in the game! Good luck!
Time’s gonna pass anyway is the greatest advice, especially for creative endeavors. I’ve heard that years ago and started writing. I don’t feel daunted nor pressured whenever I’m writing after that.
The timing of this video is insane. Just when I was thinking of giving up the idea of writing a story before I could even start, thinking I was too incompetent. I'm actually impressed with the dialogue I wrote in those exercises. All what I had to do is break the ice and put my ideas on paper regardless. This video allowed me to do that. Thank yo so much ✨It was really helpful.
That's great! It's encouraging to know that the exercises help. I really do think there's some secret power in breaking the ice and getting words down.
Thanks for letting me know this helped, I'm really glad it did.
I just did the 1st exercise. I'm full of smiles. My heart is bursting, like confetti has burst from it. It's fun. 🎉 Thank you.
That's great! Follow that feeling. Put that bad experience aside for now (as much as you can) and just be as creative as possible. It was always there!
The first thing you write will be garbage. But write that garbage story, finish it & then you will be a step further down the line than you were before you started it. I've gone back & read things I wrote 30 years ago, & thought--Oh, what was I doing there? Read more, & expand your reading horizon. Step by step you will learn the craft. Start with just writing one good sentence. Then, expand that to a paragraph. You're on your way.
Absolutely!
I have watched many, many videos about writing and I always come back to your channel. You're the most down to earth, genuine writing RUclipsr I've come across, and I feel like I actually learn real, useful things from watching your videos, where other videos usually come off sort of like Buzzfeed listicles with with surface level advice like "don't overuse adverbs." Kudos to you, and thanks.
Thank you! This is the best comment I've had in a while! Exactly how I want my videos to come across. I appreciate it!
Exercise 3 is definitely the best one of the three. I cringe over everything i write and never think anything is good enough. This can cripple my writing for months. This video is great!
The algorithm blessed me today!
This wasn’t a video that I was searching for however, I’ve been recently clicking on a lot of ambient music playlists for writing so it makes sense that the algorithm sent me this direction.
Immediate sub! I love the positivity and the encouragement
Thanks for subscribing ☺️
Maybe the algorithm connected it because I said something about ambient music playing during the exercises?
Whatever the case, glad you’re here! Welcome!
I finally convinced myself to follow this video and get my butt down and write alongside you. Thank you. Ill keep coming back to this video to try and make this a habit
Go for it! Stick with it, it'll be worth it!
I’m finally going to dig my heels into the ground and finish my book. I really enjoyed your video and look forward to watching more. You just found yourself one more subscriber.
Thank you! Good for you, go for it!
I tried all the 3 activities, honestly it was fun just writing and not worrying if I am doing good or not, just letting words work their way on my notebook. I definitely enjoyed it.
Reading plays helps with dialogue patterns and pacing. I acted and directed for many years, which is why I prefer to write dialogue rather than setting descriptions! :)
I can definitely see that being useful!
I like how you incorporated the timings into the video. I think the hardest thing is when you start and have a blank page and unlimited time to write anything, it's just too easy to get distracted. But when you have only 3 min and a clear instruction, you start to think it's not so hard after all!
Will definitely use this video to practice some writing 😊
Thanks! It's a strange thing, but you're right. Having that limitation I think pushes my perfectionism away a little bit and subsequently leads to getting something down quicker.
Absolutely love your videos. You are the only writing advice channel I have come across that seems to be rooted in truth. There are no strict rules, just suggestions. Keep it up, you deserve whatever success comes your way.
Thank you so much! I definitely just want to suggest, and not dictate. I can't tell someone else's story, but if I can help them to tell it, that's what I want to do.
I followed along all three exercises, and it was a lot of fun! I didn't even feel like I made any significant progress with anything I've been stuck on with my current novel, but I didn't care, I just had fun writing.
Great! Sometimes it's good to remind ourselves that it's supposed to be fun I think. A lot of work, yeah, but not always.
Thank you Kieran, that was so useful and most of all so encouraging and re- assuring. The best thing I've seen yet on writing
Felt great doing exercise 1 actually.. I didn't even know when three minutes was up. I just kept writing as it came to me😄😄
That's great! By all means, if you get into that flow-state, just shut me up for a while and keep going with it! I was hoping that might happen for some writers!
Thank you @KierenWestwoodWriting 👍👍
Hello Kieron - my name is also Ciaran, and I’ve had my story idea in my head for years now. I have only JUST started writing it out after thinking about the world, plot, ideas etc for years.
My problem is I have ADHD and dyslexia so I have the creativity in my head but since I was a little kid I have really struggled putting brain to paper and I have been using AI to help me sculpt the words, sentences and grammar.
It’s helped me massively and hopefully one day many years from now I will click publish
Thank you for your videos.
Thanks for being here, fellow Ciaran! Glad the channel could be useful for you. I'm glad you've found a method that works for you, that's a side of AI I'd never really considered before. You've opened my eyes a bit there.
I trolled through countless number of videos on this topic, desperately searching for a tranquil English-speaking person, as I find American videos grate on my nerves! Thank goodness for algorithms, as through them, I found you! I found your video very inspiring & highly educational. I shall follow you and hope to use all your advice to get my writing hobby off the ground. Thank you so much, God bless xx
haha is that because of their constant inflections at the end of every other word?! it absolutely grinds my t*ts. English people do it too, but I find Americans do it FAR more.
Watched this due to my growing addiction to "You can do the thing!" videos I've been watching to try to get through some mental blocks and debilitating anxiety.
I admit, I am only passingly interested in writing, and my interest is more because of.. how wordy I can't help but make things. If I could apply it creatively, maybe I'd do some impressive things. Really, I just like the idea of artistic expression and thought writing might be a way to get things out if I could get through my mental dam.
But, I find the sentiment this, and the other video you made on the exact same topic years ago, to be one of the best ones I've seen. In that, encouraging is all well and good, but I feel like the idea of "You can't improve on nothing" is something I really needed to hear, and haven't seen before in these videos. Writing is especially bad about it, because yours is the 4th "how to write" channel, and the others were all more "how to make writing ideas" and "don't do this thing that annoys me that other writers do" marketed on RUclips as "how to write".
Not sure if I'll apply this to writing or not; I'm isolated enough that I am unsure how people interact in general, which really gives me some mixed feelings on the idea of me trying to depict anything. But I am definitely applying the sentiment that connected so strongly to me on my other hobbies.
Thank you! Even if it's not strictly your type of thing, I appreciate the insight.
Thank you for reminding me that I don't need to be in a hurry, and that consistency and repetition are more important than a massive daily word count.
This was really helpful for improving my mindset. I get in my own head quite badly avoiding the start of the process, but these simole little exercises felt really good for just getting my mind to let go and just try.
Thank you for this.
A lot of us thoughtful writer types get in our own way I think, I'm the same.
Sometimes just taking over and pushing through can get the ball rolling, I'm glad it was helpful!
I really enjoyed this video!! I've been a huge reader this year and it sparked my desire to write my own series. I have ideas that are pouring out of me. I'm actually excited to get started and personally don't care if I don't make money, I wanna do this because I believe it to be a good creative past time. Like an outlet for my creativity. And I want to write this specific series because it's something I would TOTALLY read. I'm taking a lot of inspiration from my own life, so the main character would be based off of myself. I guess it's like a fictional idealized world for myself. I think that my ideas are so good and I'm excited to put them down on paper.
Starting from a place of excitement, and aiming to write a story that you want to read is a good start! It'll take you further than you think, just don't give up if initially it's tough, it'll get easier.
Love this video!! Would love to maybe see another sort of “write with me” where you talk us through short exercises like that. It was super helpful!
Another one coming in a few days! :)
Hey man, I have to share with you that I used to write a lot of short horror stories, and just fiction out of my life experiences, and I thought I was awesome. I also got validations from people around me - but one day it just stopped- and I haven’t been writing for almost 10 years now. Though I always had some kind of yearning to get back to it but didn’t know how to , especially with work and family life.
But I have to say - taking 15 minutes to follow your steps, is really helping me to hear that voice in me that I’ve abandoned for so long, so I really want to thank you for this!
Step one - easy
Step two - tricky (I had David from King’s Breathing Method and The Dude)
Step three - surprisingly easy every time!
That's great! I'm really glad it could get you moving again.
Sometimes just taking over the brain and starting the mechanics of writing can kick-start you a bit. You don't always have to wait for the ideas or the muse.
Awesome that it helped, and thanks for letting me know!
This was an awesome video. My brain is the main thing that holds me back and I know it. Ive been writing since I learned how to ride a two wheeled bicycle but basically have never shared anything I have written with anyone. These past few years Ive been getting closer and closer to building up the courage to just start but sometimes I look at the blank page and all of a sudden my mind seems to reflect that empty space. These tiny exercises you gave here were really nice and I had fun with them. I appreciate your work.
You are a beautiful soul brother, thank you of this amazing content, to me it just felt like someone took my hand guiding me to meet with my long forgotten creative self... with a simple and gentle greeting, I was surprised that my self was vary happy to reach out to say "Hi" we talk a lot after that... Thank you so much Kieren
Thanks so much! That's how I want it to feel really, there's not enough encouragement out there for writers getting started. Good luck with it!
The therapy session you gave were incredible. It was like someone was reading my thoughts exactly as they were. When you asked to write something in 3 min and choosing the character I know really made it a lot easier. I started writing and didn't expect what it turned out to be. It was not very much but it was more than what I was trying to write for a past one year. Thanks and keep it up
I'm really glad it made it easier for you! Sometimes overriding all those questions and just going straight into the process really works well.
I’m taking up writing again after probably 15 years, and this was so encouraging. Thank you!🙏🏻
I loved the writing exercises. I have 3 novels started, and i never give myself the freedom to just write. I indent, check spelling, etc. The exercises gave me freedom to write, to not be so critical, and it was fun. Thank you for your videos. You are the first person that gives permission to just write. Everyone else it seemed to me would get into the precision of writing. I loved English in school, but I never got the whole adverbs, nouns and such. I recognize them just not the structure. Besides, I write the way I speak, which isn't always a good idea. So I really thank you and I'm watching more of you vids.
I do that stuff too! Tidying up here and there so I can avoid getting to the really important stuff. It's natural I think.
Having permission to just take a crack at it I think really can open a lot of doors. Just trying things often works out better than you think, and if it doesn't, at least you learned something to avoid in the future I guess.
Yeah, I do try to stay away from the technical side if I can, I write by feel really, and I think a lot of that stuff can be fixed in editing, but you can't really fix the heart of the story with grammar rules and such!
@@KierenWestwoodWriting I agree. I've been watching a Master Class of one of my favorite authors, Dan Brown.
When I read the Da Vinci Code, from the prologue to the last sentence of the book, I was held. Couldn't put it down and got angry when I had to. The same thing happened when I read The Deep by Peter Benchley. At 67, If I could create a novel like that, where my reader couldn't put it down. That would be, too cool for words!
I'm an artist. To me, there's something more satisfying in creating a picture with words, than with a pencil, or paint. I'm learning so much from various writers about style and pacing. Sometimes I get overwhelmed, especially when they talk about formulas and structure. "I'm a fly by the seat of my pants kinda girl", to coin a phrase.
I have to say, it's really nice meeting you!
Thank you so much for this!!! It really helped. Until now, I didn't realize how much my expectations were interfering with my writing process (constant search for better words on Chatgpt, the mental analysis of balancing imagery and dialogue ). You probably know the rest. More of these videos, please (if possible).
It’s a mental game, it really is. I was hoping these exercises might be some kind of bypass for that, just to get things moving ☺️
Thanks so much for this video! A lot of it is very practical, especially for me as a person who's browsed through quite a few videos on how to start writing, these exercises were super helpful and freeing to practice with. I ended up with about 25 words per minute, which would end up with about 1.5k words in an hour!! I didn't even think that was possible for me to come up with those kinds of numbers, but now I know it's possible if I dedicate enough time to my writing.
Thanks again! I'll check back soon with progress updates
Awesome video!!! A bright lighthouse for new and old writers alike
Thanks so much 🥰
Was kind of looking and very much hoping for some outer element to help walk me out of my head, which is in a very tough place at the moment, and you showed up in my internet rambling’s. Your approach is lovely and has actually got me writing. Thanks!!
Sometimes all it takes is that nudge from something outside of our own thought processes. Glad I could help! :)
I finally got done with this exercise today after procrastinating about it for weeks now, and I have to say thank you. I really enjoyed it and I can say I learnt something from it as well. Cheers!
Your video is so helpful! I was looking for some writing exercises, because as a beginner I feel like I'm not ready to dive into writing a full length novel from zero. I am very restrictive to myself, that's why my pace usually is 200 words per hour. I did all three exercises with you, and found out that my actual speed is 50 words per 3 minutes. Today I wrote 400 words of my story in only 20 minutes. Insane! And I was actually enjoying it. Writing didn't feel like a chore, a hard work with no joy. I hope this warm up will boost my creative freedom. Thank you
Yessss that's exactly what we want!
Honestly, a lot of progress with writing gets unlocked from figuring out how YOU do things and what works for YOU. There's no wrong answer, so if something gets you writing, lean into it.
I'm really glad this could help.
I've been in the doldrums for a while now, so it's refreshing to hear some positivity for a change. Great presentation, Kieren. Nice one.
Thanks for watching! Hopefully it'll pass for you soon.
Thank you for this videos. I didn't go to university for writing. And I did doubt my self too. But I know I have it on me since my first writing I was 8 years old. I been learning process from reading, search, video's like yours. I'm good at story telling but still learning on script writing. My story coming from my own experience. My life story is my teachers. Writing is my savior and my companion during dark times of my life. I have written so far 8 story base on true events with fiction.
I want to say that your videos mean so much to me. I have been writing a sci-fi dystopian novel with my friend, and your videos get me motivated and in the mood.
That's great! Thanks so much for being here :)
Thanks for this video. It's exactly what I needed. I've struggled with writing prompts and the advice to "Just write". Your exercises are great. I hope you give us more.
Thank you! I will do ☺️
I loved this so much. Thank you.
This is undoubtedly the dose of what I needed to continue my writing journey with creativity and passion.
The first exercise was pure magic.
The second exercise was challenging yet valuable again in terms of focusing on good character development.
In the last exercise, I felt that I flowed mostly. It's a story I will follow or incorporate into my trilogy concept ( my passion project).
Thank you for what you do and how you do it. This powerful guidance you provide is engaging, and it speaks to my heart and soul🎉
I'm really glad it helped for you!
Hi Kieren, just watch this video. I am trying to aspire to be a writer and your video really gave me the good vibes that this could actually be possible. Just wanted to let you know that you certainly inspired me and will be looking forward to all your videos. Thanks and wishing you great success! Kabir
I love these prompts! I got so into them that I ended up writing for far longer than 3 minutes each. I know that wasn't the point, but I had trouble stopping.
Thanks so much for posting! I'm definitely subscribing, and looking forward to more videos! ❤
I found this to be so helpful - thank you so much! I didn't know that I needed to hear someone else say it is okay to write even if you don't know HOW to write a story :)
Absolutely! Sometimes you just have to jump in and give it a go, but there can be loads of barriers to doing that I think, even if we don't realise it.
This is an incredible video. Insightful, supportive, practical. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Thanks for the advice man, I tried these exercises and it's incredibly helpful.The last one was especially helpful and I started writing a lot more, ideas just came flooding me as I was writing.I started with writing about something as insignificant as me waking up to wanting to write a full on mystery novel.I truly appreciate your help because I really want to become a writer and there's many other things I want to do but I just absolutely love writing, it's amazing how words on a page can completely transport my mind into a whole new world I love it!!
I am a fan of step by step methods.
ok so i’m at 8:20 and i just want to say im amazed..aesthetically the video is so pleasing loved everything but more importantly i dont think this is JUST for people who are contemplating writing the part i’ve just watched is so much valuable for any endeavor really..thank you so much
All the videos I have watched so far (from different channels)on writing, this one is the best…. Thank u for sharing 😊
Thanks so much!
You love to help others, I can feel it, I can understand, and I do appreciate it. I tried to change the channel, but it felt like you only spoke to me, and this felt right. I do appreciate the time you spent to help us, particularly when you said , "If English is not our first language," in my case, it's my 5th, language, it's challenging sometimes. Thanks tremendously.
Adored the 3 minute exercise. Liberating! Thank you for your video.
This really helped, thank you!!!
The first one was good!
The second was HARD.
The third was easy!
The one that was supposed to be hardest was easiest? That's great!
This video is great. I did all three exercises and I was surprised with what I got down. I found the dialogue exercise the most challenging. Thanks for this.
Thank you! ☺️
You have such a nice tone! Thank you for sharing these thoughts. I'll do my best to write my books asap. Thanks for your encouragement!
The last time I wrote a short story back in 8th grade. To my pleasant suprise, I found it actually not too difficult to get started with the 3 exercises. The key is as you say is to start, and then rest will happen. Any tips for teenage horror? I appreciate this video so much.
That's great! Glad the video worked for you and I agree, a lot of it is just getting past the initial blank page.
I haven't got anything specific for teenage horror I'm afraid, but hopefully there might be some other useful stuff on my channel!
Great video. I wish I’d had a guide like this one when I first started out writing at 15.
But I don’t regret it. 😊
Me too really, I realized a while ago that telling people to 'just get started' wasn't all that helpful, hopefully this is!
What a school teacher you'd make ! You inspire many.
Thank you so much for this video.
It's the first time that I have found someone so encouraging.
Those three exercises were brilliant and it was easy for me to complete them.
Looking forward to hearing more from you and will be listening to the other content of your RUclips audios.
Thanks for your time and interest!
Thanks for watching! There isn't enough encouragement out there I find, only criticism.
How sad that is!
People talk about themselves when they criticize so let it be water off a ducks back!
It took me a long to understand
Other people's opinions are none of my business 😂😂😂
the book I wrote started from a vivid dream I had, wrote down the main parts that finally developed into a novel. I wrote other novels that I have yet to publish. thanks for the info.
I was literally opening up Word to write as you began talking about pausing to free write. We’re in sync dude!
Ayyy! Great minds!
I want to finally write a book because I enjoy creating stories. Some of the stories I want to write are adventures that I wish I had in table top RPGs, but didn't have the opportunity due to sometimes not having a group to play with, and when I did, the kinds of stories I wanted to play in and the mood of the game were not what the GM or players were creating so I just want to create my own stories that I have control over what happens in the plot and what kinds of characters are the story.
That's one of the best things about writing I think, you can tell yourself stories that you want to read that don't exist yet!
The 1st exercise was interesting. The 2nd was fun. The 3rd was more difficult than I expected but I got more out of it than the first two. Thanks for helping me get started on this path. I have put it off for far too long.
Thank you for this video. These exercises and your kind words help me a lot. I was struggling with writing and kept having these thoughts where I felt like maybe I wasn't made for this. But this is the first video that helps me get the word out!! Thank you :)
Thanks for the video. Of all the videos I have ever watched, yours is the only one that helped me to follow through with the exercises. I appreciate that you wrote along with us, and the music also helped. Thanks a million. I just found your video and I just had to subscribe.
Thanks so much! I'm really glad it helped. I'm going to make more videos like this for sure.
You really grabbing my hand to write...thank you
You're video editing skills are on fire, man! I love this channel, keep it up and keep writing!
Thanks mate! Appreciate you sticking with me :)
Wow!!! i absolutely loved the video, the "try now" exercise sessions in between were not expected but they were absolutely helpful in challenging yourself as a new writer.
At first I frowned upon them and thought with my eyes up in the back of my head .... "oh here we go" then after the first 2 tries, I decided ... why not?
I didn't get very far, didn't complete the entire paragraph but 3 sentences later I actually saw a paragraph for my book begin to come to life. I loved it and the self challenge made me see that there is an opportunity brewing. Now the challenge for me is, staying focused on that one paragraph at a time and not moving ahead of myself, Organizing my thoughts and consistency. Thanks again, "new subscriber"
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for sticking with it :)
I love how you answer comment Thanks, it feels like i have a teacher right here
I have very little interest in writing but so much of this also applies to art as well, and music.
I have to tell you - I have watched A LOT of these writing advice videos. You're one of the best, hands down. Thank you.
I actually like that this was more like a therapy than strictly techical ways on how to improve your writing because the biggest block for me, and probably a lot of others, is mental. I tend to overthink too much and try to flesh out the entire story before I even started writing. Then I'll change my mind about something bcs I thought it wasnt good enough originally and one "correction" leads to another until I say "you know what, this whole idea is meh, I need a new one" and cycle repeats. That way I spend most of my time in my head instead of on the paper. That being said, your exercises really helped and made me write without thinking too much, and I got to say, I was pretty pleased with those few lines I wrote during three minutes. That combined with words of encouragement in the first half of the video, helped me realize to not overthink it, but to just write. Thanks man, great vid :)
I'm late getting to your comment, my apologies!
But yes, I absolutely know what you mean. I call that state 'analysis paralysis'.
It's very easy to get stuck in that state of not being able to move forward, because it feels very convincing and legitimate, there are always good reasons to revisit something , or figure something out, or go back and mess with things, so you can't always get past that mentally.
Instead, you have to hit the 'manual override' button with exercises like these that just jump start you a little bit and get things moving!
I'm really glad this worked for you!
No need for apologies, I'm the one who saw the video 2 months later haha. Completely agree with you and thanks again. Keep up the great vids
Thank you for letting me discover my weird and wonderful writer sub -consciousness again. What a breeze of freshness!!
Thank you very much, dude! I've been thinking to start writing for years and I've been watching videos about writing and story every day these last few weeks, I've even read Stephen King's book On Writing during this time but I've never actually started putting words on the page untill this very video.
The hardest part for me, I feel, is coming up with something to say, especially an idea 'worth' saying, that's what probably freezes me the most. Paradoxically on the last exercise I've encounter the least difficulty on that front.
That's always a hard part I think. It tends to help me if I remember that I can find that 'meaning' and that thing that's worth saying along the way. It doesn't have to be all figured out upfront. Sometimes you don't know what you want to say until you start. Also, some stories are just stories and they're fun or they're sad or they're exciting and that's all, and that's fine too!
@@KierenWestwoodWriting I see, thanks again, this video has been really helpful!
3" exercise quite enlightened. Thanks for this video. Helpful indeed.
I thoroughly enjoyed the 3 exercises, sir; it really got me writing. Thank you; its a very good writing video I came across on RUclips for beginners to learn and start writing.☺😊👍👏
Thanks so much, I just recently (like within the last week) decided to go all in with taking my writing seriously and this video helped me to tell my inner critic to shut up lol. Also, I loved the exercises and the part where you mentioned that you didn't need to know everything to get started, like grammar and how to develop a plot or characters, those were the main issues holding me back.
I’m really glad it could help a bit! It’s natural to feel stuck by all of that stuff, but just writing something is often the best way to make progress, the rest of it can come later ☺️
Just did this now. While I am not aiming for a book... writing is still a core component of any story telling medium! (comics and animation)
The first exercise I actually started by writing the cold open for a story I moved away from a decade ago. This was not as hard as I thought, but it really didn't change much from my original attempt other than focusing on what they were feeling, rather than just the events.
The dialogue scene was pretty hard, by far the hardest... Also having Piccolo and the Staryk Queen interact was pretty interesting to say the least.
Since I already did an opening scene, I wrote an opening scene from another point in the story that I thought might be a better starting point. I didn't get as far, I spent far more time with exploring the senses than anything else. Was still giving me some good ideas for later!
Overall it was pretty fun and encouraging!
Thank you for an amazing and inspiring video! I was amazed at what I was able to come up with in these exercises.
warmed up with a daydream of being at the coast,all the feels of wind and water!
Nice to hear from you😊 Yes I'm often doing the same exercise when i try myself to improve my writing skills. Hopefully i can say, it’s better now. My aim to improve writing language skills.
Thanks a lot for such inspiring words. Lot of stories come to my mind but I never write them down because I think grammar is weak, sentence structure is not correct and so on. But now I will write for myself.
This was a really good informative video!❤
Not sure if I did it correctly, but for the dialogue exercise, my characters were the adult me and the (inner)child me. As an adult, I was having a lovely conversation with my inner child about how she was feeling and what did she want for breakfast. I felt as though I was talking to what could be my daughter. It felt great and flowed well.
Oh I love that approach, speaking with your inner child like that is a great idea.
If it felt great and flowed well, you definitely did it right!
This was actually really easy to follow along. Thank you for breaking it down into smaller more manageable steps. Once I heard you remind me that it can't be wrong or that no one would be able to read it unless I allow it, well that made things a lot easier to start typing. I actually wrote a decent starter paragraph for my first fantasy book I've had in mind for a couple years. Thank you
Thanks for watching, I'm glad it worked for you!
Hello Kieren. I'm not one to comment a lot ... I loved this video and enjoyed the exercises too. I've subscribed and want to really look at your content going forward. Thanks for doing your thing which is helping this retired engineer the ability to see creative life.
Thank you! Very much appreciated!
Would love more of these.
There's a few more in this playlist, and plenty more on the way:
ruclips.net/p/PLmCyFUqEq-8X_iF4akdi7lFVIFdHDC547
Thanks for watching!
I have a side hustle idea for you. Mediation videos on RUclips. Your voice is so calming.
The writing exercise really worked! It felt good. Thanks!
Thank you, this was such a beautiful video! The exercises are super fun to follow along, no matter the result :) And to anyone reading this, there is no need to criticize yourself. Love yourself, encourage yourself and treat yourself the best, not just while writing but in life. Embrace yourself for who you are, cherish what you created and there will be progress. Enjoy the journey :)
Perfect! Exactly :)
Thank you. I've been struggling with my inner critic and I just felt like I didn't knew enough to write a story. These exercises really helped me lower the stakes to something more reasonable.
Sometimes it’s just a matter of shaking that stuff off, but it’s easier said than done!
When I woke up this morning I did not think I was going to write a dialogue between Harry Potter and Gandalf about coming back from death, but here we are!
These were great exercises and really helped me out today, thank you!