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Tips & Exercises

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Exercises

Poetry

Poetry and medicine

First of all, read poems about illness. Read Jo Shapcott’s Of Mutability, Anthony Wilson’s Riddance, Hugo Williams’…

Carole Bromley
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Tips

Poetry

Poetry and medicine

In 2018 the NHS turned 70, and there has been an increased interest in writing about illness. Three anthologies have been…

Carole Bromley

Tips

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Finding your character

Sometimes characters turn up like old friends and just start talking to you like you’ve known them all their lives. Other…

Jake Arnott

Exercises

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The Hot-Seat

This follows from the above tip and is another actor’s exercise and one that works in a group setting. This is…

Jake Arnott

Exercises

All

Finding perspective – editing exercises

In order to edit your own work, you have to be able to step back from it. The less familiar it…

Antonia Hodgson

Tips

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Finding perspective

Finishing the first draft of a novel is a moment for celebration. You’ve made it. Congratulations! But whether it’s taken you…

Antonia Hodgson
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Exercises

Poetry

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Theatre

Mapping your show

At the beginning of a process it is useful to get every thought and idea out of your head and onto…

Stef O’Driscoll
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Tips

Poetry

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Theatre

Developing a one person spoken word show

When developing your own one person spoken word show, or putting a set of poems together to be shared with an…

Stef O’Driscoll

Exercises

All

How to pitch your book

If you have finished your manuscript, (or if you have a good idea of how your manuscript will progress) write a…

Kit de Waal

Tips

All

How to pitch your book

Whenever I’m teaching a masterclass or talking to people about their work, one of the most interesting questions I ask is…

Kit de Waal
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Exercises

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Discover the value of walking

Read this poem by Thomas Traherne. In it, he describes the value of walking but – more crucially – the importance…

Helen Mort
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Take an idea for a walk

Many experiments have shown that we think well when we’re active – after a walk, people perform better on tests of…

Helen Mort

Exercises

Comedy

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Film & TV

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Radio

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Theatre

Create a visual map of your play

Write a sentence of prose for each scene, one per cue card. This should concisely tell you what is happening in that scene. It’s difficult, so don’t rush it. And make sure your sentences are ACTIVE.

Evan Placey

Tips

Redrafting a script

We all know about the agony caused by a blank page. Staring at a blinking cursor willing it to write itself. Even non-writers know about this. But I’m not convinced starting is the hardest or most painful part of the process.

Evan Placey
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Exercises

Do the shuffle!

Why not try this narrative shuffle, in the same vein as that act of estrangement with your writing personas. Cut up…

Fred D’Aguiar
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Tips

All

Read yourself as a stranger

Remember your reading voice, how you sound when you read your own work aloud (assuming that you read aloud as a…

Fred D’Aguiar

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