10-Minute Writing Workouts To Try

Being short on time shouldn't stop you from writing. 

Sure it may be hard to fit a whole hour-long writing session into each day, but it's never impossible to find the time to write if you really want to make it happen. 

You can write while you take the elevator to your job, while you wait for the bus, or while you take an extended bathroom break. ( If you take too long you can just explain it away as something disagreeing with you - I mean come on all humans use the bathroom.) 

If you're struggling with trying to make the most of your short writing time then here are 10 10-minute writing exercises that you can use to fit writing into your day no matter how busy it may be. 

Open a notes app on your phone or grab that receipt from your morning coffee and let's get to writing. 

Stream of Consciousness

Set a timer for 10 minutes and write continuously without pausing or censoring yourself. There's no goal here, it doesn't have to be complete sentences or even complete thoughts. Think of it as a race to get down as many words as possible before the timer goes off. 

Flash Fiction

Challenge yourself to write a complete story in just 100 words. The difference between flash friction and stream-of-consciousness writing is that you are trying to have your story have a clear beginning, climax, and end. 

Character Sketch

Choose a random object or person and create a detailed character sketch. Write about physical attributes, personality traits, and give them a whole backstory within the time limit. 

Dialogue Dash

Write a quick dialogue between two characters, highlighting their unique voices and their conflict. You can later on turn this conversation into a whole scene by filling in the setting and the narration. 

Image Inspiration

Find an image that reminds you of your story and spend 10 minutes describing it in vivid detail. Engage all the senses and paint a picture with words - of the picture. 

Poetry Sprint

Challenge yourself to write a short poem within the given time frame. Focus on capturing emotions, creating imagery, and experimenting with poetic devices.

Sentence Expansion

Start with a simple sentence and expand it into a paragraph, exploring various details, descriptions, and emotions related to the initial idea.

List of Descriptions

Choose a specific topic or theme and write a list of associated descriptive words or phrases. 

Freewriting Prompt

Use a writing prompt or a single word as a starting point and write freely for 10 minutes. This is mostly like stream-of-consciousness writing except you have a starting point o get you off the ground. 

Reflection Journaling

There's nothing wrong with the only thing you are able to write about in a day is your day. Journaling is a great exercise for the mind. 

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No matter how you motivate yourself to make the most of your ten minutes the most important part is that you try to use them, not set the timer and then sit and stare at the blank page for ten minutes. 

Get to writing.

With Love, 

B. King

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