When we write, we embark on a journey through ideas—ideally bringing a reader along with us. Depending on the journey, we need different levels of planning or preparation.

Pick a voice of a fictional character or famous author, and use it to discover things about your own writing voice.

What if we acknowledge procrastination as a necessary partner in the writing life — and indeed, life itself? How do we make peace with that?

Whenever we write for other people that writing becomes a vehicle for our intentions. Those intentions definitely color the writing voice. This month’s exercise will jar you out of any writing ruts by asking you to turn those intentions on their head.

By experimenting with other types of writing, you reinforce the broader sense of yourself as a real writer—whatever that means to you.

Did you know that the average American reads at a seventh- or eighth-grade level? Depending on what you’re writing and how many people you hope to reach, you might want to pitch your writing voice to that level.