Judy Reeves

After jumping around through the digital version of this book, I have decided I like Reeves's approach. I'm going to buy myself a physical copy of the book and a couple of notebooks (okay, so I don't need more notebooks, nor do I need more excuses to buy notebooks, but I'm going to buy some anyway) and try to make 2023 the year that I reestablish a daily writing practice. I did Morning Pages for years, but I like the focus of daily prompts.

This is a terrific book for getting a writer-wannabe writing. There is an abundance of discussion about writing itself - how to get motivated, how to write better, how to improve your writing habits, how to access your "inner muse". But in addition (and what was most appealing to me) there are writing prompts for every day of the year, along with monthly writing session. While I may not ever become a published writer, I have appreciated Ms. Reeves' book for getting me writing.

Reeves has put together a book with a lot of good prompts - they are short and not overly specific, and she's given one for every day of the year. Interspersed with these are bits of advice on finding time to write, being in and running writers' groups, avoiding writers' block (or getting stuck, as you like), and on generating new material. Some of the suggestions stray widely into the bizarre, such as when she suggests you walk around naked in your backyard; others are much more practical, show more such as keeping a notebook with you at all times and making notes of others' writing that particularly strikes you.

Reeves advocates something called "writing practice" where every day you spend time writing freely and messily without editing or revising. This generates a body of material that can be mined and refined for stories, novels, essays, and the like. She places particular emphasis on silencing your inner critic and editor during these sessions, and saving those functions for later on. One notes, however, that the "later on" didn't quite occur with some of the passages in this book - there are some rather glaring typos, misused words, and odd sentence fragments that feel accidental rather than deliberate. It's distracting, especially in a book on writing.

My main criticism of this book is that it takes on a familiar, touchy-feely vibe, not only with the nakedness, but also with its emphasis on how emotional writing is supposed to be and how in touch with one's feelings one ought to become. Reeves doesn't do a good job of expressing these things in a fresh way, and she's repetitive. She's also sort of the Martha Stewart of writing, with baskets of postcards and cut-up lists of sentences and words printed on card stock and whatnot. If you're trying to hold down a day job while you're writing, a significant portion of her advice is maybe not going to be so useful to you.

Overall, though, it's a good resource, and I've found her prompts a lot more helpful than those in other, similar books - many have prompts that are either super-specific, totally ridiculous, or both, locking you into a factual scenario rather than opening up possibilities. Reeves's don't do that. That alone probably makes the book worth the price. show less

I've had this little book-and-cards set for a few years and I find it a resource for important reminders and good prompts. Several stories have come out of the prompts collection. I find it useful for getting my head back into writing space after a long time away, or for keeping myself focused when in the middle of Something Big. Not an earthshaking collection of wisdom, but worth having and using.