“A two-week intensive writing push with an accountability partner.” “Craft Talk” by Jami Attenberg is the home of the #1000wordsofsummer project, a community of writers of all levels who are all supporting each other to write 1,000 words a day for two weeks. This project has been in existence since 2018. The next round starts June 17, 2023 and ends June 30, 2023. When you sign up, during the project, you will receive an email from Jami Attenberg encouraging you to write. Sometimes another published author will contribute their thoughts on creativity, productivity, and inspiration. Your mission, should you decide to accept: Write 1000 words a day for two weeks. “Craft Talk” is a community of writers who are accountability partners: that is the magic of this project. At the end of this challenge, you will have a big pile of words and a sense of accomplishment and hopefully the…
Author: mcullen
Marlene Cullen is enthusiastic about encouraging people to write, even those who think they can’t write. Her series of books, The Write Spot anthologies, features writing that entertains as well as inspires writing. Every story, vignette, and poem in The Write Spot books include writing prompts motivating readers to become writers.
Marlene hosts The Write Spot Blog, a treasure chest of inspirational gems for writers.
Fulfilling her passion for writing and sharing with others, Marlene has created unique writing environments such as Jumpstart Writing Workshops, where participants often experience transformational changes. Her workshops provide essential elements for successful writing.
Marlene is the founder of Writers Forum of Petaluma, a monthly literary event featuring presenters talking about the craft and business of writing.
Marlene's awarding winning short stories and essays have been published in literary journals, anthologies, and newspapers, including Tiny Lights, Building Bridges, More Bridges, Redwood Writers anthologies, and The Write Spot anthologies.
She is a member of the California Writer's Club.
Acceptance . . . Prompt #728
A writer and writing teacher I admire, Rebecca Evans, talked about an Entry Point as an opener when writing. Rebecca asked us to think of comfortable things. Things you’re wearing and you don’t even know you’re wearing, like eyeglasses. I thought that was interesting because I don’t like wearing my glasses. I usually take them off as soon as I get home from going out. About a week after Rebecca’s workshop, as I drove to my first errand, things looked blurry. I couldn’t read signs clearly. I thought, “I need to get my eyes checked.” I accomplished my errands. Got home. And did my usual, took my glasses off first thing. That’s when I noticed . . . I was not wearing my distance glasses. I was wearing my computer glasses. I guess the moral is things can be comfortable without our even noticing it. Or, maybe the moral is…
To Bee or Not Too Bee
To Bee or Not Too Bee By Caryl Sherman Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. What brings me comfort are the moments I sit outside, in my private little apartment garden, reading a book whose words intrigue and delight me. The big black shiny honey bees are flitting about my blooming flowers, sipping their nectar and laughing with joy. Yes, I can hear them. Maybe you can’t, but I have cultivated a special and long lasting relationship with them. They are my neighbors, and my friends. They fly to see me everyday. They are loyal and perpetually consistent with their love. I rise with anticipatory excitement as I hustle outside! Which one will I see today as I gleefully read to them aloud? Does it bring us comfort? Are we the same, even though we appear so different? We are living things. We matter!…
Comfort Food and more . . . Prompt #727
Excerpted from the May 2023 issue of the Sonoma County Gazette: Research over the past 20 years shows the same result time and time again: when we’re stressed, we want what researchers call high energy and nutrient-dense foods—those snacks, treats and meals that are high in fat and sugar. Comfort foods improve mood, reduce loneliness and connect us to cherished memories, often linked to childhood. A craving for comfort food typically stems from an extreme emotion, including happiness, meaning we reach for comfort foods even to celebrate. Comfort foods often trigger our reward system by releasing dopamine, a hormone and neurotransmitter. When we take a bite of that comfort food, whether it’s a hot fudge sundae, peanut butter and apples, tikka masala or a double bacon cheeseburger, dopamine floods the brain and gives us a huge boost of pleasure feelings. Any negative feelings we may have been experiencing before—stress, anger,…
Fractured Lit
Fractured Lit publishes flash fiction with emotional resonance, with characters who come to life through their actions and responses to the world around them. “We’re searching for flash that investigates the mysteries of being human; the sorrow and the joy of connecting to the diverse population.” Fractured Lit is open year-round and is available to all writers. We currently publish microfiction (up to 400 words) and flash fiction (401-1,000 words), with new writing featured on Mondays and Thursdays. We also offer contests throughout the year. We’re excited to launch a new contest for our flash writers. From May 15 to July 16, 2023, we welcome writers to submit to the Fractured Lit Flash Fiction OPEN. Fractured Lit publishes flash fiction with emotional resonance, with characters who come to life through their actions and responses to the world around them. We’re searching for flash that investigates the mysteries of being human, the sorrow and the joy of…
The Pulps
The Pulps (1890s-1950s) Made from the cheapest paper available, pulp magazines were among the bestselling fiction publications of their day, with the most popular titles selling hundreds of thousands of copies per month at their height. The pulps paid just a penny or so a word, so writers quickly learned that making a living required a nimble imagination and remarkable speed, with some working on several stories simultaneously. Contemporary fiction writers can learn from pulp magazines the importance of a tight, character-driven narrative; the necessity of imaginative descriptions and how to immediately grab the reader with an action-filled lead. Jack Byrne, managing editor of the pulp magazine publisher fiction House, wrote in an August 1929 Writer’s Digest article detailing the manuscript needs of Fiction House’s 11 magazines: “We must have a good, fast opening. Smack us within the first paragraph. Get our interest aroused. Don’t tell us about the general…
Writing That First Thing
“Remember that when you’re writing that first thing, you’re in an incredibly precious time. When you’re writing that book or that early story, write for yourself first and foremost. There’s going to come a time when that won’t be the case anymore, when there are going to be all these people who are involved. So, don’t be in any great hurry to publish or to get it out there into the world. Take your time to hone and draft that first book. Appreciate those early years where you’re writing for yourself because it never is quite the same once you start publishing.” Excerpt from a Writer’s Digest interview with Brandon Taylor. The bestselling (and Booker Prize-shortlisted) author discusses the interconnectedness of his work, the importance of short stories, and his latest release, The Late Americans. Interviewed Michael Woodson The May/June 2023 issue of Writer’s Digest is all about “Keeping It Short” —short forms of…
Writing
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Writing By Cheryl Moore A silver tongue would be nice A pen that wrote golden prose Or poetry would be better. How would it feel to be Billy Collins Whose books sit On my bedside table? His small journeys Make magic of the mundane Of ordinary daily events One poem describes Sitting at his desk words flow Seemingly without his bidding I sit at my desk Pen posed over paper Nothing comes out I could doodle a picture Make it look like a word And start from there Would it be like opening a tap With words pouring out Given enough time? My words wouldn’t be golden Nor even silver Probably just tin Maybe Billie’s don’t flow golden Until he works and revises As most good writers must…
I wish I had known . . . Prompt #726
I wish I had known . . . Response by Muriel Ellis: I don’t think I would really want to have known what my life would bring. Of course, I wish I’d done some things differently, made more time for the family I loved. I wish I hadn’t abandoned writing for so many years, over and over again. I certainly wish I’d known when I heard the grim news “malignant,” when it applied to lungs that it did not mean horrendous surgery with scant hope of recovery. And I wish that, before I knew all would be well, that I had actually written all those letters of accumulated love and wisdom that I planned to leave for my family—maybe even a page or two for assorted nieces and nephews and their offspring. Well, I didn’t. And, yes, I know it’s not too late, but that’s another story. Life is full…
Sweet Lit
Sweet Lit, A Literary Confection “The purpose of Sweet Lit, from its inception in a small apartment in Columbus, Ohio, was to: 1) recognize the ever-changing nature of the written word in an evolving literary landscape; 2) create a simple and readable digital platform for dialogic exchanges between poetry, short creative nonfiction, and graphic pieces; 3) publish diverse voices from all over the country and world; 4) foster and support emerging writers of any age from various social and economic backgrounds; 5) maintain lasting relationships with the writers Sweet Lit has published.” Sweet seeks poetry and creative nonfiction and anything in between. Sorry, no fiction. General submissions are open May 1st through June 30th for Creative Non-Fiction and Poetry. Graphic Essays are open year-round. Guidelines