Reddit mentions of The 3 A.M. Epiphany: Uncommon Writing Exercises that Transform Your Fiction

here's the prompt book i mentioned, and this is a nice summary of good prompts online. Also a big fan of writing.com's writing prompts IOS app, if you have an iphone (unsure if there's an android equivalent). Cheers!

I have a book called 3 AM Epiphany that is filled with writing exercises. I just open the book to a random page and to the exercise that comes up.

I've been doing 1 everyday for quite a while now. The one I did last night was #120 Chapers: Write a very short story using chapters and chapter headings that interact with the content. Come up with the chapter titles first, mix them up, and then let the story arise naturally from the title chapters. 500 words. (The book's description of each exercise is significantly more thorough, usually a whole page). I wrote a story about a hitman getting killed by his mark.

Another was, #92 Father and Son. Write A very short story about a Father and Son doing some kind of unusual activity. 400 words. I wrote about a father giving his son ayahuasca for the first time.

Last, from 3 days ago, #33 Goodness: Write a short story about a character who likes to help other people who rarely thinks of himself first. Don't punish them for it, don't make a big deal out of it, and give little or no background information about the character. 500 words. I wrote about a therapist helping a woman who has night terrors and keeps encountering a demon.

I feel like limiting what I can write about actually makes me more creative. It is also forcing me to deal with situations and relationships that I wouldn't have thought to write about on my own. I also enjoy that I often have no idea where the story is going to go when I set down my pen.

I haven't been writing very long. I have a lot of trouble coming up with smaller things to write about because all of my ideas are novels. I'm not quite ready for a novel yet(I'm thinking about doing nanowrimo however). These exercises have been good for me, my writing ability has improved noticeably and I have smoothed a lot of the rough edges off of my prose by looking back on the previous days exercises and circling problems(thought verbs, passive verbs, etc..)

Good Luck.

If it helps, this is something I use: click this link for the book that I speak of. It has so many ridiculous prompts that are terribly fun. Also /r/WritingPrompts can be helpful too. I have had so many random prompts turn into stories that left the prompt and went CRAZY. You got this!

I don't know if it will help you write a memoir, but The 3 A.M. Epiphany has helped me re-approach writing fiction. It's writing exercises to help get your creative juices flowing.

Well, writing in general with your own ideas is always the biggest plus. But if you're wanting to use a prompt book or something I suggest the 3am Epiphany or Gotham Writers Workshop: Writing Fiction

I practice storytelling all the time- whenever I get the change (parties are good for this), Also read all you can- reading seriously helps to develop your vocabulary and find a style you like, and really who doesnt like a well-read human?

I write as stress relief with the goal to get better at storytelling (I freaking love listening to stories and wish I were as good at it as some of my friends or Olan Rogers or whoever.) I struggle with coming up with topics to talk about, so I love writing prompt books! This one (amazon link) is much more of a textbook-y one, and this one (amazon link) is lots of fun, too!

i recommend:

http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Down-Bones-Freeing-Paperback/dp/B0035A3PSQ/ref=pd_sim_b_71

http://www.amazon.com/M-Epiphany-Uncommon-Exercises-Transform/dp/1582973512/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1325037885&sr=1-1

• Play with software tutorials (Maya, Illustrator, art making stuff basically)
  
• Watch absurd amounts of Top Gear
  
• Do some writing prompts from my prompt book
  
• Find people to hang out with / talk to / game with (I type while sitting in a super boring lecture)
  
• Pet an animal if one is present
  
• Come up with new card / dice games with my deck of cards and six dice that I carry around in case of boredom or being challenged to a duel
  
• Play a random game from my hundreds of Steam games
  
  Pretty much I default to doing what I'd be doing if I had work, since it's basically the same.