What are you looking forward to? A simple writing prompt for these difficult times.
Write about an important person. Prompt #503
Write about someone who was, or is, important to you. Write how that person impacted you. Bonus points for a crazy coincidence . . . The unexplainable event . . . The hilarious accident. The outsized personality. Write about how that person impressed you or changed you. Today’s Prompt is inspired by Brandon Stanton and his Humans of New York project. I learned about Brandon Stanton around 2009 as he began his Humans of New York project. Intrigued, I pre-ordered his book, which is now a prized possession. From Brandon’s Humans of New York’s May 17 Facebook Page, about not being able to have personal interviews on the streets. I was initially worried about doing these interviews remotely. I thought that without the context of the street-—the stories might lose their sense of immediacy and randomness. But the experiment has been quite a success. These remote interviews have been a…
Chicken Soup for the Soul
About Chicken Soup for the Soul, from their website: Chicken Soup for the Soul, the world’s favorite and most recognized storyteller, publishes the famous Chicken Soup for the Soul book series. With well over 100 million books sold to date in the U.S. and Canada alone, more than 250 titles, and translations into more than 40 languages, “chicken soup for the soul” is one of the world’s best-known phrases and is regularly referenced in pop culture. Today, over 25 years after it first began sharing happiness, inspiration and hope through its books, this socially conscious company continues to publish a new title a month Please visit Story Guidelines page, which will answer many of your questions about subject matter, length, and style. Following the guidelines will give you the best possible chance of being accepted. For a list of new topics, complete with descriptions and deadlines, please visit Possible Book Topics page….
Entering a cave . . . Prompt #502
For this writing prompt, we’ll go through a visualization first, then I’ll suggest the writing prompt. Please remember: The prompts are only suggestions. Go with what is on your mind while you are writing. Listen to what you really want to write about . . . what you really want to say. Honor that. That is how to do a freewrite . . . go with what is uppermost on your mind The Visualization As we go through this visualization, you can tap on your chest, just above the breast bone, with the tips of your fingers. This is a calming and centering activity. As we go, take deep breaths, another calming technique. Sit back in your chair. Get comfortable. Take a deep breath in. Hold for a moment. Release. Imagine you are about to enter a cave. You see the opening to the cave and see the darkness ahead….
The Gift of Writing
Today’s guest blogger, Nona Smith, relates her experience about how her book, Stuffed: Emptying the Hoarder’s Nest, came about. Eight years after our friend, Al, died, and two weeks after his wife, Linda, was put to rest, my husband, Art, and I stood on their doorstep, key hovering at the lock. As the executor of their estate, Art had every right to be there. But still, we felt like trespassers. He gave a small shrug and turned the key in the lock. We pushed the door open, walked inside, and gazed around at the chaos that greeted us. In the living room, twin oak desks stood in front of a window, their drawers exploding with old mail, catalogues, writing implements, and paper. A couch, laden with a mountain of stuffed animals, was sandwiched between two Tiffany floor lamps. On the floor, handwoven rugs were piled on top of handwoven rugs….
A wish . . . Prompt #501
Write about a wish that came true.
Today I celebrate . . . Prompt #500
Today I celebrate Prompt #500 on The Write Spot Blog. That’s a lot of prompts! I didn’t know what would happen when I started this blog September 24, 2003. That seems so long ago, and yet it’s only 17 years. A life-time for some, a blip for others. Since that first blog post, my daughter married, both my sons married, two granddaughters were born, we renovated our yard, bought tons of groceries, did umpteen loads of laundry, and so much happened locally, state-wide, nationally, and internationally. And I learned to Zoom. There are 1,252 posts on The Write Spot Blog: Places to submit your writing, book reviews, quotes, and guest bloggers sharing their thoughts about writing. Hopefully some of the posts have been inspirational to help you and your writing. Since 2003, five Write Spot anthologies have been published. I’ve given talks about freewrites, blogging, and how to write about…
Fiction. Nonfiction. Creative nonfiction.
What are you writing these days? Some people find it difficult to concentrate. Others are filling pages with poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and creative nonfiction. It might be a perfect time to chronicle what is going on in your life . . . if you write this as a journalist would . . . just the facts, that’s nonfiction. If you add vignettes and personalize your story, that’s creative nonfiction. Here’s what guest blogger Nancy Julien Kopp says about fiction, creative nonfiction, and fictional narrative. Most people are aware of the difference between fiction and nonfiction. Fiction is made up, nonfiction is true. There is, however, a differentiation between nonfiction and creative nonfiction. Nonfiction is generally expository in that it describes, explains or is informative. If you wrote about leaves in a forest in Montana, your readers would probably learn a great deal about the topic. You would write it as…
What works for you? Prompt #499
“Everything that slows us down and forces patience, everything that sets us back into the slow circles of nature, is a help. Gardening is an instrument of grace.” — May Sarton During this shelter in place, have you discovered what works for you as an “instrument of grace?” Or: Are you feeling you should be doing something differently than what youare doing? Today’s prompts are inspired by the article “Gardens deemed ‘essential,’” — David Templeton, April 30, 2020, Petaluma Argus Courier.
An Award . . . Prompt #498
Write about an award you received or a recognition you achieved. Or write about a goal you accomplished.