Synopsis: The Writer’s Creative Workbook is a practical and insightful guide into the joyful craft of mindful writing.
Focusing on the transformative process of writing and conscious creativity, this beautifully illustrated part-manual, part-journal explores the holistic value of writing for writing’s sake.
Author Joy Kenward invites story-tellers, poets, travel-writers, journalists and letter-writers – in fact anyone curious about the ancient wisdom of mindfulness and its relevance to the modern creative voice – to embrace affirmations, meditations and Buddhist wisdom.
With practical exercises and astute notes on dissolving creative block, planning, time, and caring for your words, this is a must-have companion to help any creative wordsmith flow, flourish, and be mindful.
Why I like it
Most days I am reviewing books, either fiction, or non-fiction and while I am reading I am often fascinated about the structure of the book, how it is written and how it will develop; but there is always joy when the skill of the writer is such that it transports me away from that observation into becoming completely absorbed in the characters, the location and the story as it unfolds.
If you want to develop your own writing style and are looking at 2020 as the year to finally make this happen, The Writer’s Creative Workbook could be an inspiring place to start.
Joy has created a workbook set out over ten chapters, that can be used as a ten session course. Throughout the book there many opportunities to stimulate your creativity. In a very supportive style her questions encourage reflection, discovery, and creative ambition as well as an opportunity to recognise the joy that writing can bring both to the writer and the reader.
One of my favourite parts of the book is the chapter when she considers Fiction – Another World. As she describes,
‘We don’t need a definition to enjoy reading fiction, and we don’t need any excuse to enjoy writing it. Fiction opens up all the imaginary worlds we could wish for.They may be worlds very like our own, or they may be visions of entire fantasy. In the best stories, the reader feels they have been taken by the hand and walked through the world of the story, seeing and hearing it in their mind just as clearly as their own day-to-day life.It can be great fun to create settings – wide landscapes, tiny rooms, oceans, forests – and to place fascinating characters there. Welcome to wonderland ’
Beautifully illustrated by Ruth Allen, and full of suggestions, prompts, and space for you to write, The Writer’s Creative Workbook is a delightful exploration of how to find your voice, and develop your own unique way of writing and above all enjoy it!
Highly Recommended!
If you enjoyed this, you might also like to look at our reviews of the following:
The Writer’s Eye – Amy E. Weldon Observation and Inspiration for Creative Writers
The Artist’s Way Morning Pages Journal – Julia Cameron