One of the best things about being writers is that we get to play with reality. When we craft fiction, poetry, and even creative nonfiction, we can bend and twist the boundaries of our identity, the identities of our speakers and characters, and even the world around us.
Of course, there are varying degrees of reality contorting. One could tell the first-person account of the life of a three-winged dragon in the fictional land of Ingatek, or one could write a poem that relays a factual account of an observation but tell it from the perspective of a different person.
"Playing" like this can be fun, exciting, and it works the creative muscle in our writers' brains that makes us stronger writers. Even hardcore nonfiction writers can benefit from the cross-training taking on different perspectives provides. Being able to see the world and events from another's point of view forces us to notice different details, make different interpretations of events and relationships, and possibly reconsider our own place in the scheme of things.
So today I offer a simple writing exercise in perspective. Use it as a quick warm-up for the day's writing, or take it and run with it as far as your imagination (and time) will allow.
Exercise:
Consider a locale you frequently visit - it could be the library, a bar or restaurant,
a park, or even a neighbor's house. Create a list of at least twenty-five descriptive words associated with that particular place.
Write fast and try to complete your list in 3 minutes or less.
Using your list, write a short story or poem about being in the place from the perspective of a young child.
Keep in mind appropriate vocabulary, how children relate to adults and other children, how a child's breadth of experience (or lack thereof) might impact what/how he or she experiences in the same place as an adult.
And have fun with it! You never know where a writing exercise might lead...
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