writing

It's recently occurred to me that there could be some method to this. And that I don't know anything about it. And that there's a lot to learn. My last English class was senior year of high school and the most creative we got was the "chunk method"- Topic sentence, point, quote, commentary, commentary. Wash, rise, repeat. Conclusion.

I've received some interesting advice since I started talking about writing more. Some exercises:

1) Get up every morning and write stream of consciousness for about 5 minutes. Don't read it for 6 months because it's all going to be shit and you'll just feel discouraged.
2) Write a paragraph. Write it backwards. Pick one word and write a sentence with it. You'll find yourself being concise and able to sum things up better.
3) Write every day. Whether you want to or not. Whether it's good or not. (this is the advice I hear the most)

I've recently started thinking about the act of writing fiction. I've never really considered it in any broad way. How does it come about? Is it always made out of experienced reality or can you just pull stuff from thin air? A mix of the two? It depends on the writer?

I'm afraid my writing will always be like my crayon drawings, or like photography- a replication of what's in front of me, instead of something new. But, of course, every fear offers a challenge to grow and expand. I remembered hearing advice to one of our waitresses at the Gage who wanted to be a writer: bring a little pad with you everywhere and write short sketches of characters you meet, see in a restaurant, handle your groceries at the store, or maybe little snippets of conversation or scenes that intrigue you. Just keep recording them and saving them for when you are trying to create something bigger.

I don't know what I'm doing or what I want to create. I'm just trying to practice this more so my papers are easier to write and little more interesting to read. It's fun too- my day has become this running narrative in my head, which I assume will fade with time. And it's a lot better distraction from school work than, say, cleaning my room. It's nice to do something without a goal- just something that's a journey to something, somewhere, somehow. A bit like traveling, I guess.

What do you think? Do you have any salient advice? Tricks of the trade? Exercises that open up new parts of the brain? I'll take all I can get.