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Practice your writing by typing out classic literature. This method not only enhances your understanding of rhythm, structure, and nuances but also connects you deeply with the timeless flow of literary history.This is a BETA version.

Type the words from the book. We gave you 4 words to start with.

Mrs. Dalloway

by Virginia Woolf

Mrs. Dalloway is a novel by Virginia Woolf, first published in 1925. It is a modernist novel that follows a day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a society hostess in post-World War I England. The novel explores themes of time, memory, and the human psyche.

Read more about Virginia Woolf
Mrs. Dalloway
and the defects of her own soul. How he scolded her! How they argued!
She would marry a Prime Minister and stand at the top of a staircase;
the perfect hostess he called her (she had cried over it in her
bedroom), she had the makings of the perfect hostess, he said.

So she would still find herself arguing in St. Jamess Park, still
making out that she had been right--and she had too--not to marry him.
For in marriage a little licence, a little independence there must be
between people living together day in day out in the same house; which
Richard gave her, and she him. (Where was he this morning for instance?
Some committee, she never asked what.) But with Peter everything had
to be shared; everything gone into. And it was intolerable, and when
it came to that scene in the little garden by the fountain, she had to
break with him or they would have been destroyed, both of them ruined,
she was convinced; though she had borne about with her for years like
an arrow sticking in her heart the grief, the anguish; and then the
horror of the moment when some one told her at a concert that he had
married a woman met on the boat going to India! Never should she forget
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Why Type a Masterpiece?

Typing out classical literature is not just an exercise in patience; it's a deeply immersive way to understand the rhythm, structure, and nuances of great writing. By manually reproducing the works of renowned authors, you engage with the text on a level that reading alone cannot offer. This method allows you to feel the flow of sentences, the choice of words, and the intricate construction of paragraphs that make these works timeless.

Style is a very simple matter; it is all rhythm. Once you get that, you can't use the wrong words.

– Virginia Woolf

literati is a unique platform where writers can select from a vast collection of public domain classics to type out. This practice is akin to a musician playing pieces by the masters to internalize the elements of composition and performance. Just as the musician learns the subtleties of each note and chord, the writer learns the power of each word and sentence.

Prose is like hair; it shines with combing.

– Gustave Flaubert

Engaging directly with masterpieces allows writers to absorb the rhythm of the text, the ebb and flow of its pacing, and the beauty of its imagery. It cultivates an appreciation for the craft of writing and provides invaluable lessons in how to construct compelling narratives, develop characters, and evoke emotions in readers. Happy typing!

The only truth is music.

– Jack Kerouac

More on this topic:

"Imitate then innovate", an article by David Perell