I wanted to develop my vocabulary to improve my creative writing skills without sitting under a fat grammar guide, as life is getting much busier now. I was looking for some miracle, new technique, or other way to improve and check my vocabulary skills. The technique described by Marilyn Horowitz is innovative for me but does not require a lot of special tools. It worked very well for me. I recommend this guide for any person like me who wants to adjust their writing and creative skills. The guide is easy to read, understand, and follow. 5 out of 5 stars ~ Anne Vane (Reviewer), Netgalley

The subtitle is Transform Your Writing in 15 Minutes a Day, and it is immensely practical and full of promise. It's not just about writing in a professional sense but is very much shaped towards synthesising the two sides of the brain and inspiring creativity. It also aims to improve the time management of anyone working with its system. Too many writing books are vague, but Marilyn's Word of the Day suggestion is really to the point and straightforward. ~ Watkins Magazine / Summer 2024, Issue 78, Review

A novel and effective approach to writing, "Word of the Day: Transform Your Writing in 15 Minutes a Day" by the award-winning author Marilyn Horowitz (with the assistance of Elizabeth Wiserman) is an inherently fascinating and thoroughly 'user friendly' DIY instructional guide to improving the scope, practice, and performance in the art and craft of writing. It's also a welcome tool for dealing with writer's block, experimentation and inspiration. ~ Midwest Book Review, https://www.midwestbookreview.com/wbw/may_24.htm#writing

Writers are asked to put a notebook by their bed so they can write first thing in the morning when they wake up and just before bedtime. Studies have shown that our most creative moments happen immediately upon waking and just before falling asleep. Writing adjacent to these moments, even briefly, gives writers access to their unlimited imagination, powerful tools of imagery, and the full scope of their memory. Being a writer since, I believe birth, or at the very least someone whose love of the English language has been evident since early school days, it’s books like these that draw me in from the get-go. Thus, and now having read it twice through, cover to cover, what Word of the Day: Transform Your Writing in 15 Minutes a Day by author Marilyn Horowitz does is help to clarify and bring into better focus the writer’s most likely jumbled thoughts. Helping to sort out, to differentiate what is actually need, and is good for the sentence, along with what keeps the readers attention, the prose is not only helpful, educational (if you allow it to be), but is thoroughly engrossing and highly enjoyable. And it does all this by providing the living tools from what can be found both within us and around us, which means as you take notations along the way, and from day one, you will clearly see the growth within your words/work by looking back at daily scripts and such; viewing their relative forms, their growth of confidence and maturity. And do not be scared or put off by this form of diligently schooled learning, no matter what age you are, for as the author herself says: The Word of the Day Practice is a fifteen-minute daily journaling process that will permanently upgrade your writing. By writing as soon as you wake up and learning to manage your time differently, the whole experience of your writing time can become my joyous and productive. ~ Anne Carlini - Exclusive Magazine, https://annecarlini.com/ex_books.php?id=649

As a new writer, this book is going to be immensely helpful with battling self-doubt and making accurate self-encouragement. The exercises and 30-day habit-forming journaling practice will be useful to any writer or aspiring writer. This book is very concise and packs a meaningful punch, helping you acquire the attitude needed to succeed. ~ M J (Reviewer), Netgalley

This very short but surprisingly helpful book includes very tangible tips for breaking through a writing rut. It will be helpful to all creative writers. ~ Aryn Prestia (Librarian), Netgalley

Word of the Day by Marilyn Horowitz offers a simple yet powerful practice to transform your writing in just 15 minutes daily. The book provides theory, exercises, and tips to help writers tap into their creativity, overcome writer's block, and develop their skills. Suitable for writers of all levels and genres, this book will inspire you to write more, write better, and write joyfully. ~ Sarah-jane Ward (Reviewer), Netgalley

Reading the beginning advice was helpful. I see this being useful for beginners and giving them somewhere to start ~ Crimson Books (Reviewer), Netgalley

This book is a journal with guidance on how to choose a word of the day and process through it. It brought my attention to something I hadn’t previously considered: a conflict word, A word that comes to mind while brainstorming that doesn’t seem to fit with the chosen word. The word of the day is an interesting daily process that helps a writer or creator generate more content more often. I enjoyed learning about this process, and I will definitely use it in my day-to-day creative work. ~ Brandi Clark (Educator), Netgalley

It’s clear and well-written. This is for someone who is either just starting to practise writing or has been out of practice for a while and wants to get back into things. ~ John Dodd (Reviewer), Netgalley

Useful tools to upgrade your writing skills. It was interesting and made me realise quite a ton of things. I will definitely work on this now on! ~ Rachel Gilson (Reviewer), Netgalley

This book is great for beginner writers like me. The author set the book up as a Workbook to improve your writing. I love the suggestions given. I'm also thinking of using her guidelines to help my little one with his writing skills. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. ~ Kina Tyler, Netgalley

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars. Word of the Day promises to transform your writing in 15 minutes a day. It is based on a simple yet powerful practice that helps writers tap into their creativity, overcome writer's block, and develop their skills. The author, Marilyn Horowitz, is a successful screenwriter, professor, and coach who has developed a unique method of teaching writing through the use of a single word. The book is divided into three parts: the first part explains the theory and benefits of the Word of the Day practice, the second part provides 30 exercises to get you started, and the third part offers tips and resources to keep you going. Each exercise consists of choosing a word, writing it in a circle, and clustering around it for two minutes. Then, you write a paragraph, a scene, or a story based on the word and the cluster. The exercises are designed to stimulate your imagination, challenge your assumptions, and expand your vocabulary. The book is easy to read and follow, and the exercises are fun and engaging. The author provides examples from her own work and from famous writers to illustrate the concepts and techniques. She also shares her insights and advice on various aspects of writing, such as structure, character, dialogue, genre, and style. The book is suitable for writers of all levels and genres, and can be used as a standalone guide or as a supplement to other writing courses or books. Word of the Day is a book that will inspire you to write more, write better, and write with joy. It is a book that will make you fall in love with writing again. ~ J. Kromrie (Reviewer) , NetGalley

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. Great suggestions and techniques that I can use as a writer, but also for teachers to use in the classroom. Giving my students a "word of the day" as a quick write technique, helped built their vocabulary and get their creative juices flowing. ~ Tina Athaide (Educator) , NetGalley

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. Whether you are an experienced writer or just beginning your writing journey, Word of the Day is an excellent book that shares an easy writing exercise for those interested in achieving a daily practice. Using her time-tried skills and knowledge, Marilyn shares the daily practice exercises, including blank templates, which enable creativity and encouragement for the dedicated writer. ~ Lesa Young (Reviewer), NetGalley

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars. Word of the Day : Transform Your Writing in 15 Minutes a Day. This is an excellent book for writers, and the genius is in its simplicity. The simple and quick technique will quickly connect writers to their basic story telling capabilities in a fun and playful way. It is based around the Mind Map concept and reaches right into your imagination before your inner critic has time to think about it. The book itself is an easy, enjoyable and quick read. Highly recommended, give it a try. ~ JC Cross (Educator) , NetGalley

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. I like how the exercises are simple, practical and repetitive. This would actually be a good way to build a habit and there are worksheets to fill out at the end of the book for the whole 30 days. Most people don't end up writing because they don't have time, but this helps you start using your time. ~ Lisa Davidson (Reviewer) , NetGalley

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars. I was (happily) surprised by how straight forward this book was. It has a wonderful simplicity which means you're much more likely to carry out the tasks. I'm only a week in to the 'word of the day' task and I can see how it's helping me to think more creatively. I also really enjoyed the motivational aspect of the book. It's easy to believe that good writers are born, but I like Horowitz's encouragement that you can improve all levels of writing by carrying out exercises which enhance your natural skills. ~ @history_girl_reading Lucy Hampton (Reviewer) , NetGalley

I actually had that happen to me where worlds collided. I have a part-time job in real estate, and my goal for this job is to increase the rankings of the various agents. It's really difficult and tedious and takes a while. And I put down that I was going to get someone's ranking up to the highest level that day, which wasn't on the radar at all. And it happened. It was miraculous and shocking. I started a little bit later. It wasn't a full two weeks, but things started to just dovetail and streamlined to where I wanted them. You see the before and after, like where things went off and even sometimes the pitfalls you just can't really avoid. So, you have to know to work around it. But definitely the scripted day started becoming closer and closer to reality, like in baby steps. ~ Liz, Word of the Day Webinar Student

Feeling uneasy and anxious about world events has been affecting my work and personal life. One morning, I picked up my journal and the Word of the Day I chose was UNCERTAINTY. From this word 29 flowed all kinds of negative words. But toward the end, my mindset began to change. Out of anxiety, anger, and frustration, new thoughts emerged, including new ideas; I learned to move out of my comfort zone, innovation, and opportunity. Now I am finding new ways to organize my time, increase my productivity, and focus more outward and not inward—and all from finding that the emotions and challenges from Uncertainty can be channeled into positive action and growth. ~ Beth, Word of the Day Webinar Student

Marilyn's classes are upfront and personal.... She seems to understand each of her students’ artistic direction and supports them with that knowledge. Her word of the day formula for storytelling is effective not only for figuring out one's writing, but for life's direction, too. ~ Nancy, Word of the Day Webinar Student

The Word of the Day Practice … helps to clarify and distill my thinking; it encourages me to be willing to voice what I really want (e.g., shift items from my “dreams” to my “goals/objectives”), and it brings up interesting connections I wouldn't have previously considered, necessarily … And finally, it is interesting to look back over the daily scripts and see the form they take over the span of several days/weeks. Thank you for sharing the information about the Big Apple Film Festival. I entered it after I saw it in your email, and my screenplay was a quarter finalist ~ Amy, Word of the Day Webinar Student

When I began using the word-a-day clustering process, I didn’t know where it would lead me. Perhaps it would open some creative portal in my brain that I hadn’t been able to access before. Soon I realized that word clustering could be used purposefully. When I was stuck at some plot point, clustering helped me think more freely about other possible paths. When I needed to understand the complexities of a character, clustering helped me understand what belonged and didn’t belong to that character. For a novice screenwriter like myself, who works alone, not in a formal writers’ room, word clustering became an invaluable tool. Recently, when I revised my first script so I could write the words THE END with confidence, I found that the clustering process helped me like a spiritual muse. And when I was finally done with that script, the clustering process didn’t clamor for attention. I understood that this spiritual muse is resting until I’m ready to call on it again. ~ Debra, Word of the Day Webinar Student

Marilyn is the queen of simplicity. Oh, writing is never simple and life doesn't go on autopilot once you hear her take on it, yet it will be something you won't want to forget or lose. Now that could be said of her classic “4 Magic Questions of Screenwriting,” in WOTD she actually does simplify a process. It's a thinking tool, and I, even as her techniques' most undisciplined user, can testify to getting clues, unraveling deadlocks, and trusting oneself when an idea seems to disconnect. ~ Sandeep, Word of the Day Webinar Student

Marilyn Horowitz and her “Word of the Day: Transform Your Writing in 15 Minutes a Day” method have an intensity, brilliance, and originality that are disarming and delightful. They seed the conditions for trust, creativity, and great finished work to emerge. When Marilyn tells you you’re a writer, do your voice and the world a favor. Believe her. ~ Lisa, Word of the Day Webinar Student