By Karna Converse
It's summer, and there are now three teenagers in my house 24/7. They're coming and going at all hours of the day and night, the refrigerator door opens and closes just as often, and the quiet I'd grown accustomed to during the school year occurs only when my overgrown cherubs are sleeping.
It takes me a few days to adjust to the schedules, the sounds, the stuff, the wrestling, the wet towels, the friends, the unending need for food, the extra trips to the grocery store -- and to fully acknowledge the impact all this has on my writing day. But change is good.
I stay up late to watch a movie with one child. I go for a bike ride in the middle of the day with another. I join the third who's lounging with a book on the back patio. I “summer,” and instead of tackling writing projects that require substantial research, concentration, and time at the keyboard, I focus on my journals -- especially my Gratitude Journal, the 5" x 8" notebook I use to capture one or two comments about each day. And to keep the creative juices flowing, I combine my Gratitude Journal entry with Smith Magazine's Six Word Memoir project; I call it my Six Word Summer.
Once a week, I choose one highlight of my week and describe it in six words. That's it -- no other description or dialogue, no notes about setting or character, no universal message -- I simply capture the memory. Sometime down the road, I'll flesh out the details and re-create the experience in an essay.
I started Six Word Summer in 2011; last year, I added a photo to each entry and used photo-editing software to include the text. Here are a few of my six word favorites from the past two years:
- Haircut. College son's first since February.
- Shoulda stopped at that last town
- Bake for 30; devour in 5.
- Photo crasher: one. Reunion photographer: zero.
Wanna play? Pick one moment from your week and describe it in six words. Use a specific notebook to start your series or post your entry to your blog (and add my Six Word Summer badge to your post). Here are a couple of tips:
- Read newspaper headlines. They're often between five and eight words and are a great source for writing catchy phrases that are also informative.
- Allow time for brainstorming. Limiting your entry to six words isn't as easy as it sounds!
Have fun!
BIO
Karna Converse is a freelance writer who’s written everything from technical documentation and price proposals to newsletter articles, devotionals, personal profiles, book reviews, and essays. She’s been an on-again, off-again journal writer for 15 years. As one of Literary Mama’s blog editors, she started and has contributed nearly 100 writing prompts to the For Your Journal series. She started Six Word Summer to add a little creativity to her own journaling. You can keep up with her Six Word Summer 2013 here.
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