IF YOU DON'T USE IT...

I stopped by to visit a friend the other day and was hit with a refresher course in a very simple truth.

The friend I met with was once a highly talented guitarist. He had played for my wedding. He had even played with Marty Robbins back in the day, and once met Elvis on a riverboat while playing Elvis's songs (if my memory of the story still serves me). 

When I stopped by, I saw the friend's guitar case out, and I asked him to play a couple of tunes. Under mild protest, he retrieved the beautiful classical guitar and proceeded to check the tuning. The following songs were fun, but also a little sad. His fingers no longer nimbly danced across the strings. His memory of the words were lost, not due to old age, but to the weeds that had grown over memory paths from long ago. 

It wasn't until later that I realized what I had seen. If you don't use it, you'll lose it. That is probably true of most creative exercises, but I can't help but apply it to the writing process (and that's a little scary). ​
I write novels. If you've ever even attempted  to write one, you quickly realize how much time you spend not writing. There's the initial seed of an idea and the watering and slow growth into an outline (for those of us who outline). There's research, false starts, and rethinking before we ever get to the actual writing stage. After the initial writing is done, there's time to let the manuscript rest and then editing begins (similar to writing, though definitely not the same). After that, there's time to polish further and promote. The time between starting to write your novel and writing the next can be a long time.

Here are four simple ways to keep and improve your writing chops, so you don't lose them.

1. Write A Blog.
Hey, look! I'm doing it right now. Bang out a couple of thoughts every week. If you're really inspired, post something every day. You'll build your platform and keep your creative gears spinning.

2. Write Short Stories.
Much easier said than done. Personally, I find writing a 3,000-word short story more daunting than embarking on a 90,000-word thriller. That said, there is a very real return on investment in keeping those creative juices flowing (even if in a truncated format).

3. Keep A Journal.
This one's great because you can write whatever you want and it doesn't have to be good. Or decently punctuated. As a side benefit, you'll have a record of your life that you can look back on and see where you were at a particular season of your life. I would suggest you use a different format than your normal writing. If you normally type, switch it up and put pen to paper. If you use a computer, try out that old typewriter from the consignment store. Find ways to open up new paths in your brain.

4. Weave the Words to Poems and Songs.
Similar to short stories, this gives you the benefit of writing while working on something fresh and adventurous. Poets and songwriters are regarded with an air of mystery granted to few others. See some of my poems/songs here.

Just like my friend, we all have the potential to put our skills on the shelf and lose them. The challenge is to fight the siren calls of apathy, urgency,  and a million other distractions. Instead focus on growing our writing chops!

Have any additional ideas? Please continue the conversation below!

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