Write About an Object

We try to find ways to write about abstractions such as love and fear, friendship and pain. The use of concrete objects assists writers to tell their tales.

Describing the item takes an excursion into details. Robert M. Pirsig in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance coaches a writing student to focus on describing a brick.  "The more you look," Pirsig writes,"the more you see."

Creative Write:  Choose an item that evokes memories.  Hold it in your hand. Feel its texture and warmth or coolness. Add color and shapes. Does it have an odor?

Delve into it with words like opening an artichoke. Discover its center and heart. What would it say about its experience with you? If you flick it with a finger, does it have a ring or sound?  Will it break easily? Or is it broken in places, chipped in spots?

Use it to connect to an abstract idea.