i am the octopus

There is a book called The 3AM Epiphany (US link) by a man named Brian Kiteley.

A friend recommended the book to me.  It’s full of truly fascinating writing exercises and an approach to creative writing that I had not previously encountered.  The exercises initially appealed to my friend, I think at least in part, because they are all so short.  Some as short as 200 words.

It makes them seem eminently “doable.”  Additionally, it forces the mind to streamline, to figure out how to say as much with as little as possible on top of working with the requirements of each specific, and very compelling, exercise.  This is not always the best way to write but in my experience, it is always easier to add than to subtract so it’s a good way to train the brain.

In any case – the pieces I am writing under the heading of “500 Words of Fiction” are not specifically exercises taken from Kiteley’s book but they have been inspired by the whole idea of short, concise fiction-writing that be completed in about an hour if you really give yourself to it.

If I ever do a specific exercise from the book, I will reference the book, the specific exercise and give all manner of credit where credit is due.  At this point I am just trying to say “YES” to the ideas that come along and to simply WRITE.

I would definitely add The 3AM Epiphany (CAN link) to the library if you are a creative writer and if you are reading these short pieces then I thank you and I thought I should explain at least in part, where they are coming from.

The Octopus in Residence