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I love the winter Olympics.
It's exciting to watch the athletes go for the gold. Whether they're skiing, skating, snowboarding, bobsledding, curling, running the luge, or doing the half-pipe, the winter Olympians inspire.
These amazing athletes give it their all, and then find the strength to give even more.
Strength. Endurance. Perseverance. Wouldn't an Olympic athlete make a great character to write about?
Try doing just that. Create a fictional character who competes at the Winter Olympics. Which sport does he or she participate in? What motivates this character to practice a sport at the very highest level?
Write a paragraph using a first person "I" point of view. Let your athlete tell us what it's like to win a gold, silver, or bronze medal.
Or let your character speak about coming so close, but not earning a medal. After all, most athletes at the Olympics don't. But they still keep going.
I find that inspiring for us writers. We may not win a gold medal, but we keep going, too. Go, writers!
I don't know about you, but I'm becoming more and more inspired by the Olympic athletes I read about or see on TV.
The volley players are jumping beans. The swimmers are fish. The runners are blurs of movement. The divers are sharp knives in motion.
What motivates a person to become an Olympic athlete? What kind of strength--physical and mental--is required to compete at that level?
Even if we're watching from the couch, we can be inspired by the sheer amount of beautiful energy we see on the screen.
What if we tried to experience--through our writing--what the athletes are going through?
Close your eyes. Imagine you're an athlete at the starting line, on the diving board, at the edge of the pool, behind the net. What's going through your mind? What are you telling yourself as you prepare for the most important competition of your life?
Write down your thoughts, and have fun starring in the biggest sports arena in the world!
Have you been watching the summer Olympic games?
I'm super inspired by the athletes who run, bike, spin, jump, race, swim, twist, sprint, lift, and hurdle. They perform amazing feats with their bodies that don't seem possible.
What about writers? We perform amazing feats, too. We create fantastic tales from our imaginations. We bring characters to life. We keep going even though we may not be the next J.K. Rowling (or Michael Phelps).
Don't we deserve a medal, too? I say YES!
Write down 5 reasons why you should win an Olympic Gold Medal in Writing. Here are mine:
1. I show up at practice every day to write.
2. I warm up for the day with a writing exercise.
3. I struggle through the rough bits and keep my goal in mind.
4. I sprint to the finish when the story end is in sight.
5. I do the heavy lifting of revising to make my story better.
What are your 5 reasons? Make your list and take a bow. And don't forget to hum your national anthem!
