Test Drive: The Start-Up

On Friday, Dec. 11, I will start a new series on my blog called the Test Drive.  This is where I find writing references, apply them to my works, and post about the results.  I will mostly pick books that:

1. have built-in writing exercises or lend themselves well to the creation of exercises, and
2. are similar to resources available online in order to expand on the topics under discussion.

Hence, the title of this series.  Off hand, I can't count how many writing books I have accumulated over the years, but I can count on one hand how many times I directly incorporated all I learned into a writing piece.  Hands-on experience not only makes sure I am applying the lessons, but I will also get a potential product to market out of it.  A win-win situation.  Same for you, I hope.  That is why, I'm trying the writing techniques out on my own fiction, and inviting you to do the same, either along with me or after you obtain the writing reference for yourself.  But if NaNoWriMo has taught me anything, it is this:  not only is it more fun to write as part of a community, but doing so makes you more productive.  If you can, join in and let me know how it works for you, that way we can motivate each other and I can improve the series.

So what can you expect to see?  Well, even though this is a test drive of my Test Drive series, the format is to consist of:

• an article on a writing technique
• writing exercises
• progress reports and results posts
• snippets
• a final review of the reference at the end of the series

Oh, and if you join in and blog about it, let me know and I'll backlink to it in my posts.

Anyway, when will the above be posted?  On Fridays, but beyond that, I'm afraid the timing of the posts is set by my writing pace.  The series will be archived on my blog, however, so that you can pick and chose which techniques and exercises you wish to try and in what order.  However, I intend to give the reference a thorough workout. 

Now that you know the rundown of the Test Drive series, what's next?  Well, on Dec. 11th, I will post my writing reference choice, preliminary goals, and any other preparatory information needed to get us ready for the 18th, the day of the first real exercise.  Until then, I'll leave you with this article about outlines--articles, by the way, will continue to be posted on Fridays when there are no Test Drive posts.

See you all on the 11th!