Try This: Design Rules

Remember the joy of magazines, those glossy print publications with large photos and worlds of possibility? Like the nearly extinct newspaper, the magazine has left the modern world, diminished in size, scale and popularity. Still, I like the shiny pages providing a peek into other worlds.

They also make an excellent writing challenge.

When I want low-pressure word play, I reach for the nearest magazine and make a scramble.

Here’s how: Flip to a page, copy words and phrases onto your own paper, then rearrange words, lines, and ideas to make your own poem. You can add words of your own, or increase the challenge by using only words from the magazine page.

A tip for the thrifty (me!): Get free magazines at your local library.

The scramble is a great writing warm-up, a good remedy for writer’s block, and a fun way to create unexpected word pairings that expand your creative power. The key is to stop making sense, while also creating some cohesion. Play with your words!

Design Rules

Never block a window.

Spindle strife. Vault

the ceiling and hang

your mismatched urges.

Your more is more approach

makes a grand entry but

here’s a smart trick: get small.

Strike yourself from the room.

Let in light.

— Drew Myron
created from Real Simple, June 2024


Your turn! 
Make your own scramble (or scramble my scramble). If you feel moved, share your poem with me at: dcm@drewmyron.com 



Want more word play?
Wordcatching
Cut Up
Overwrite
Headlines
Wild Card
I Remember
Where I’m From