Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Sunsets By Joop Delahaye Sunsets . . . always beautiful, no matter where or when. Blindingly bright in the beginning, can’t look at it, then softening, slipping into the distant ocean . . . the water extinguishing the brightness and the heat and allowing the usual yellows and reds to persist, until they faded to purple and gone. Sitting on a bluff at the Sea Ranch, or on Mount Tam’s west slopes, or the southern Oregon coast at Gold Beach, or on the Croatian coast at Sibenik . . . all notable, all full. The late rays seemed to have an enhanced power of penetration into the soul, the heart. Replenishing spent fuel rods, battery cells, warming the humors. The energy, the short-lasting blast easily pushes open the portals and shines into the nooks and crannies…
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.
A Walk . . . Prompt #722
Write about a walk you took. #justwrite #amwriting #iamawriter
A Visit to a Museum . . . Prompt #721
Write about a visit to a museum. #justwrite #amwriting #iamawriter
Memoir: Writing For Clarity
“I think most memoir writers write first of all for ourselves, not for any specific audience. We write for our own clarity. The painful admissions, the ways in which we are upset by ourselves, our actions, things we did, things we failed to do, all of that has to be honestly faced. No point in skirting the truth. Who would we be fooling? Ourselves?” — Abigail Thomas Excerpt from “Memoir is Exploration, So Keep Yourself Open: An Interview with Abigail Thomas” By Dinty W. Moore, Brevity magazine Abigail Thomas is the author of many acclaimed memoirs, including A Three Dog Life, Safekeeping, and What Comes Next and How to Like It. She lives in Woodstock, New York, with her dogs. Dinty W. Moore is the founder and editor of Brevity magazine and is likely out in his garden at this very moment.
A Day In Your Life . . . Prompt #720
Write about a day in your life. It could be about a miserable day. Or a spectacularly wonderful day. Or an ordinary day. Prompt: A day in your life. #justwrite #amwriting #iamawriter
Someone who . . . Prompt #719
Write about someone who . . . You would like to have a meal with. You want to have a do-over with. You have a question for. What is the question and why do you want to know the answer?
Connections . . . Prompt 718
Write about someone you could or should connect with, but you just can’t. Why should you? Why don’t you?
Discoveries and Inventions . . . Prompt #717
It seems there is a new-fangled contraption invented almost daily. Imagine . . . before there were cars, printing machines, and cell phones . . . when these were new . . . Horseless carriage . . . Motor wagon . . . Model T Printing Press . . . Manual typewriter, Electric typewriter Tin can telephone . . . Telegraph . . . Rotary phone with curly wire attached to a wall, Princess Phone Electricity, hot and cold water from a faucet. Imagine what our parents, grandparents, ancestors thought of these. Will you engage in the next innovation? Imagine what the next invention will be. Just Write! #amwriting #iamawriter #justwrite
Trompe L’oeil . . . Prompt #716
Writing Prompt: Trompe l’oeil Trompe l’oeil is a French phrase that means “deceive the eye.” It’s used to describe a style of painting that uses shading and perspective to make a two-dimensional painting appear to be three-dimensional. Wikipedia From Webster’s Dictionary: 1. A style of painting in which objects are depicted with photographically realistic detail. 2. Something that misleads or deceives the senses, illusion. Examples of trompe l’oeil: Creative Blog Write about: Trompe l’oeil. Artist David Zinn has been creating original artwork in and around Ann Arbor, Michigan since 1987. For more than twenty years, he freelanced for a wide variety of commercial clients while simultaneously sneaking “pointless” art into the world at large. His professional commissions included theatrical posters, business logos, educational cartoons, landfill murals, environmental superheroes, corporate allegories and hand-painted dump trucks, and his less practical creations involved bar coasters, restaurant placemats, cake icing, and snow. Now, thanks to…
How Photography Inspires Writing
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. How Photography Inspires My Writing By Simona Carini On January 18, 2016, walking around North Berkeley, I was brought to a halt by the look of a house: the right and left side were painted in different colors and the overall effect was that of a line bisecting the façade. I took a photo and resumed my walk but kept thinking about the house. At home, I wrote down what I had seen and the musings the sight had stirred, then distilled the material into my first poem “The Divorced House” which was published in the journal, Star 82 Review, together with the photo. At the time, I had been writing for almost 10 years, mostly about food and more recently memoir. Poetry was a new endeavor. As I developed my style and voice, I continued…