In Pamela Painter's chapter "You and the Piano Bench," she talks about writing exercises. Specifically, how we can all benefit from them, even if you think they're just for beginners.
I don't think it's a secret that I love writing exercises, constraints, all that jazz. I wouldn't say I'm a grizzled ol' pro at writing, but I've been doing it for a long time, and I've tried a bit of everything, and I usually don't have a problem sitting down and writing something, so I feel like I can have an opinion on the matter. Plus the exercises in this book are amazing and if you're against exercises, you'll be missing out.
Painter says that exercises are ways of learning "tricks" from other authors by trying to do what they've done. Instead of mimicking them, you're making it your own. I love her example of how a single prompt will get twenty totally different stories from a workshop. And it's true - the instant you take those elements or that exercise and think about it, you're changing it. By the time you put your words on the paper, you're creating your own story.
"Doing exercises trains you to appreciate the value of an overheard conversation, a newspaper story, or a friend's anecdote" (2) Painter says. And isn't that what Dybek was telling us to write in our notebooks? Stuff you notice because it sticks out to you, even if you don't know what to do with it yet. You might find it fits into one of your existing pieces. It might become its own story. Or you might find yourself using a prompt or completing an exercise when that fragment comes to you and helps you create something amazing.
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