Daily Nourishment for April 23, 2024: Which Stories Have Been Omitted?
Daily Nourishment Read Time: 40 seconds
Pause/Prompt/Practice Time: 15 minutes
“Craft is the history of which kind of stories have typically held power—and for whom—so it also is the history of which stories have typically been omitted.” - Matthew Salesses, Craft in the Real World
Pause.
Set a timer for two minutes, close your eyes, and rest.
Prompt.
Here’s more from Matthew Salesses: “Craft is the history of which kind of stories have typically held power—and for whom—so it also is the history of which stories have typically been omitted.
That we have certain expectations for what a story is or should include means we also have certain expectations for what a story isn’t or shouldn’t include. Any story relies on negative space, and a tradition relies on the negative space of history. The ability for a reader to fill in white space relies on that reader having seen what could be there. Some readers are asked to stay always, only, in the negative. To wield craft responsibly is to take responsibility for absence.”
Practice.
Set a timer for 12 minutes and begin the writing exercise below from Craft in the Real World:
In five minutes, write as many sentences as you can that follow this format: If s/h/t hadn’t __________, __________ wouldn’t have ___________.
(For example: “If she hadn’t tried to cross the road, her boyfriend’s car wouldn’t have flipped over.”)
Expand one of the sentences into a paragraph, including a full set of actions and character(s). Expand the paragraph into a scene.
Want More?
Read Craft in the Real World: Rethinking Fiction Writing and Workshopping by Matthew Salesses
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Upcoming Workshops & Gatherings
—This month’s Revision Stations Designed by Lauren Winner gathering will be on Saturday, April 27th from 10:15-noon CT.
If you have something that needs revision attention, you will not regret attending. Promise.
—May 5, 2024: Our next Thoughtful Readers Gathering is with Catherine Ricketts and The Mother Artist will be 5/5 from 5-6 p.m. CT.
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Today’s Daily Nourishment was provided by Charlotte Donlon.
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