Creative writing exercise: The Room

A creative writing exercise that trains you to maximise your descriptive language

There comes a point in every writer’s journey when you have to start training yourself to make creative decisions. Or rather, train yourself to make the most out of them. Because often, so many of these opportunities are overlooked entirely. That’s where this exercise might help.

It’s not specific to poetry as such. But the way I see it is, they’re all branches on the same tree. And as you experiment with alternative writing forms, a skill you pick up from one can invariably help another.

I developed this exercise whilst working on my début novel from 2019-2023. I’ve since used it in various workshops, including with some of my KS3 pupils, and it always produces great results.

This exercise - ‘The Room’ - encourages you to make as many small creative decisions as possible to achieve a big impact. It focuses on atmosphere, setting, and sensory language. It can also lend itself to mystery, horror, and intrigue. So, grab a pen, make yourself comfy, and give this a go.

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