Kindle your creativity: 3 tactics to help you bolster your writing

Authors’ shining examples are out there, waiting to inspire

After 15 years of schlepping books from sea to shining sea, I can now fit all of my reading materials into my purse, thanks to Kindle.

I thought the thing I’d love most about my e-reader would be the extra mini-fridge-size space it leaves in my luggage for necessities like thick Marimekko sweaters and airport-size Fazer chocolate bars that I collect on my trips. It turns out that my favorite feature is “My clippings,” a tool that transforms my highlights and notes into text that I can transfer to my laptop.

After a couple of months of using my e-reader, I decided to review my clippings. What I found will help me — and, I hope, you — model the masters, or steal techniques from some of the year’s best writers to make your own writing more creative and compelling.

1. Use metaphor, not modifiers.