Today’s prompt is inspired by a talk Ianthe Brautigan gave on March 5, 2001. Memoir is a journey. Just because it’s your life, don’t think you know the end. A beeper could go off and change everything. Life is like a box of chocolates . . . you don’t know what you got until you bite into it. Sometimes your life makes sense after you write and digest your findings. Ianthe suggests writing a memoir in an unusual way, not “this happened and then that happened.” To start: Write excerpts from your past. Write your stories. Don’t worry about where they will go. Tell your story as if sitting around a campfire. If you need inspiration: Make a collage from magazine articles/photos about what you want to write about. Look at these when you need a nudge to write. Once you start writing, let go of how you should write….
Why write your story?
Why write your story? So you can move on. Today’s post is inspired by Patricia Hampl’s book, “I Could Tell You Stories: Sojourn in the Land of Memory.” Tell your story so you can move on. “When a writer keeps things inside, it becomes a ball of tangled yarn. As each story is told, the ball becomes untangled. Writing from memory can help us to let go of those stories we tell over and over again. We may not even need to tell them again [after writing about them].” Note from Marlene: I think writing from memory can also be a type of self-help . . . a vehicle for transporting oneself back in time and getting in touch with what really happened. Patricia Hampl is an American memoirist, writer, lecturer, and educator. She teaches in the MFA program at the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis and is one of…
Your Inner Critic. . . Prompt #400
Your inner critic. How do you handle or quiet your inner critic? How do you tame your inner critic? Give your inner critic a make-over.
Worst habit . . . Prompt #399
Write about your worst habit. No thinking! Just write.
Nicknames . . . Prompt #398
Write about nicknames. Did you have a nickname growing up? If yes, did you like it? If not, what nickname would give yourself as a child? What nickname would you give yourself now? Write about nicknames.
Best or worst advice . . . Prompt #397
Best or worst advice you have ever heard or given. Just write!
Another reason to Just Write!
“Studies show that writing by hand, rather than typing, improves information processing as well as the ability to remember what you’re writing about. Take your learning to the next level by using your brain for what it does best: fusing existing and new information. . . . Crack open a book and once you’ve finished it, write a Goodreads or Amazon review. You might be surprised at what you come up with while mulling it over again.” — “Brain Fitness,” November 2015 Real Simple magazine. Note from Marlene: You will be helping authors and improving your brain fitness at the same time when you review a book and post on Amazon or Goodreads. And if you are inclined, consider writing a review of the Write Spot Books and post on Amazon. The Write Spot to Jumpstart Your Writing: Discoveries The Write Spot to Jumpstart Your Writing: Connections The Write Spot: Reflections…
Things I Can’t Forget . . . Prompt #396
Today’s Writing Prompt: Things I can’t forget . . . Take a moment and then . . . Just Write!
Lily Poetry Review
Lily Poetry Review is a print journal set to publish in the winter and summer of each year. “Our porch light is always on.” We must charge a nominal fee ($3) to cover the cost of submissions. The Lily Poetry Review is interested in promoting contemporary poets, poetry, flash fiction and literary citizenship. Please don’t send previously published material. Send no more than five pieces per submission. All must be contained in one document. Submission Guidelines
Just Write! Prompt #395
Want to write? Having trouble getting started? Stuck in a rut? Using prompts, or ideas, are a great way to free your mind and unstick your blocked mind. Set a timer for fifteen minutes. Choose one of the prompts below and Just Write! I remember . . . A childhood memory Something bad that turned out good Something you would like to see again Someone from your childhood How I really spent my summer vacation Or, write whatever is on your mind. Just write! It’s healthy. It can be fun. And it’s free!