Writing challenge set
At the Writers 2000 meeting on 28 September members received a phrase and word count challenge to exercise their writing skills.
They have until 26 October to write 65-word piece including the phrase “an old hat” and a 200-word piece including the phrase “he took it down”.
Members discussed methods in the writing process that work for them. Every month the group holds competitions for members in which they must write stories of exactly 65 and 200 words on a given phrase. Chairperson, Jake van der Wilden asked the big question: How do you begin your writing once you have the phrases.
Answers varied:
- Writing down whatever ideas the phrases bring to mind.
- Using mind maps of thoughts the phrases inspire.
- Allowing the phrases to swirl around and permeate in your mind.
- Writing the phrases out and putting them somewhere visible (e.g. on your fridge). In this way one thinks about them every time one sees them.
Token prizes are awarded for the first, second and third places in each category and members always enjoy seeing the different interpretations members bring to the phrases. Writing to a specific word quota is a challenge and requires discipline and self-editing. If you feel you have a knack for writing, why not have some fun, challenge yourself and see if you can write a story using these phrases? The phrase is included in the word count.
The next meeting of Writers 2000 is on 26 October at the Inyoni Creek Clubhouse in Lyndhurst. Author of Stepping Out and Entanglement and 2013 UJ Debut Prize winner Steven Boykey Sidley will be the speaker.
Details: Chairperson Jake van der Wilden 082-223-9353, 011-616-0305 or anjo@internext.co.za.
