Photo by Marlene Cullen Guest Blogger Suzanne Murray writes about the power of commitment and practice. Whether it’s for writing, meditation, exercise, or anything you want to do but feel resistance to, establishing a practice can help you move forward in magical ways. It signals to the universe that you are committed. Having a practice means that you show up every day, no matter what. Release all expectations of outcome or where you think you want things to go. It doesn’t matter how good you are or what you accomplish or what happens with the practice. You sit down to meditate and your mind goes wild with chatter the entire time, that’s fine. You show up to write and find yourself whining on the page, that’s okay. The point is to show up and practice. A lot of things are happening when you show up consistently to something. You begin…
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.
Delights . . . Prompt #751
There are big delights . . . being treated to a meal, a stimulating conversation where the other person looks right at you and hears you. Medium delights . . . And small delights . . Write about something that delighted you. Writing Prompt: Delights Prompt inspired by “The Book of Delights” by Ross Gay.
Kindness . . . Prompt #750
Write about a time someone was kind to you, especially when you didn’t expect it. Or, write about a kindness you witnessed. Or, a kindness you showed someone. Write Spot prompts about kindness: Kindness. Prompt #482 A Time You Fumbled. Prompt #602 Random Acts of Kindness. Prompt #698 #justwrite #iamawriter #iamwriting
Birth Day . . . Prompt #749
Remember self-care when writing about difficult topics: Get up, walk around. Take a sip of water or herbal tea. Choose something in your surroundings to look at when the writing gets difficult. Look at that focal point as a reminder to breathe. Take a deep breath in. Hold. And release. Take a few more calming breaths. Write this in your notebook or on a piece of paper. What I really want to say . . . I remember . . . I don’t remember . . . If you are stuck with writing, you can use one of these phrases and go from there. Writing Prompt: Birth Day Think about your Birth Day. Maybe you had many birthday parties. Maybe you had a handful of parties, or one or two. Maybe your Birth Day is a big deal and you wildly celebrate. Or, maybe you are the quiet type, preferring…
The Seasons of Being A Writer
Guest Blogger Megan Aronson writes about the seasons and cycles of life and being a writer. “I’ve been lost and reclusive of late as I deal with the most recent iteration of my grief-growth cycle,” my friend Candace Cahill, author of Goodbye Again, wrote in an online writing group I belong to. “Learning—the hard way, mostly—new things about myself and the challenges still ahead.” My eyes hovered over her words as her thoughts echoed my own. I wasn’t the only one who’d stopped at the words “grief-growth cycle.” Soon the comments were flooded with replies like, “Grief-growth cycle. I feel that. Never thought of it that way before.” In two sentences, Candace had fully encapsulated the collective experience of being a writer. Continually turning ourselves inside out on the page and off, we each instantly recognized the “grief-growth cycle” as the intersection of life affecting our writing, and writing affecting our…
One Cup At A Time
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. One Cup At A Time By DSBriggs Judith saw her hand reaching out and towards her mug. She noticed since her brain injury, she had to mentally plan any movement step by step. She closed one eye so that only one mug was in her vision. “OK. Lift the hand out of the lap. Make sure the arm isn’t taking a side trip of its own. All right, aim for the mug on the right. Uncurl fingers. That’s progress. No one has to unbend and stretch ‘em.” The knuckles on her hand were swollen and she noticed she was thinking in third person. “My knuckles, my knuckles are swollen. I have crooked fingers too.” She watched her arm and hand work in unison as she reached for her mug. She mentally told herself to grab as tight as she…
Change . . . Scary or exciting? Prompt #748
Is change scary or exciting for you? With a palpitating heart, sweaty palms, and a fluttering stomach, I changed the name of my Facebook/Meta Writing Page from “Writers Forum” to: “Marlene Cullen’s Write Spot,” to better reflect what this Facebook page is about. But, I wonder, why was I nervous . . . okay . . . scared to do this? I think the answer is: Consequences. I didn’t know if it would trigger an avalanche of problems. I was willing to take my changes. Sometimes you just have to take the plunge and make a change. Writing Prompt: Is change scary or exciting? Or: Sometimes you have to take the plunge. Write about a time you took a chance and made a change. What happened? #justwrite #iamawriter #iamwriting
September Light
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. September Light By Cheryl Moore From the terrace, over the wooden fence with its lattice trim, the hills glow golden. A shadow of eucalyptus stretches across, cutting off the light. Beyond, higher hills rise—these with a woodland coat, perhaps pines or other conifers, roll gently against the pale blue sky. A turkey vulture slowly circles with its ever-present eye. A fence running across the golden grass bisects the slope—earlier cattle grazed, gone now. The shadows grow—longer and longer—the glowing gold slowly dims as the sun edges lower and lower toward the earth’s rim. On this September day with the equinox not far away, the evening approaches more swiftly, in preparation for the long nights to come, short days of limited sun—another year passing, another year to come. Cheryl Moore grew up in the mid-west, went to college…
Start with a list . . . Prompt #747
A freewrite is . . . writing freely with no thoughts nor worries about the outcome. When you write in this unrestricted style, brush off the editor that sits on your shoulder. Let go of your worries and fears. Just write. Our big stories come from our little stories. Sometimes the big story is too much to write about. So, break it down into bite-sized pieces. Making lists might help organize your thoughts. Lowlights . . . Highlights Our normal, everyday lives contain lowlights and highlights. Spend a few minutes making some lists. List #1 Lowlights Regrets Things you wish hadn’t happened What you would like to do over List #2 Highlights Warm memories Happy thoughts What you would like to do again List #3 Just Weird Weird things that happened Writing Prompt #1: Choose an item from one of your lists. Write about what happened. Who? What? When? Where?…
Hop, skip, jump . . . Prompt #746
Below is a list of things you may have experienced. As you read the list, when a word causes a reaction . . . when you notice a feeling in your body . . . use that word or phrase as a writing prompt and start writing. Write about where you were and who was with you. If you ate it, played with it, read it, or wore it, write about it. Add sensory detail of texture . . . what did these things feel like? Add your memory of taste, smell, sound, and what the item looked like. And, of course, you may have also experienced these things as a teen-ager and as an adult. Just Write! Jello salad Hot Wheels Roller Skates Sugar Frosted Flakes Poodle skirt Hopscotch Petticoats Barbie dolls Marbles Jacks Skipping Nancy Drew books Jump rope Little League Drive-in movies Hula hoop Trampoline Parks Used…