Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Memories By Frank Hulse Confession is good for the soul. So here goes: Something I’ve been gnawing on, off and on all day like a dog bone with just a little more flavor. I can remember my combination lock from my freshman year in college. I can remember what the locker room smelled like. It was directly adjacent to the indoor swimming pool so it was primarily chlorine—but there were more than a few other smells I won’t describe here. If I see a post or a picture from a high school classmate, I can immediately hear her/his voice. I can remember church camp out at Osage Hills State Park when I was in 8th grade and showing off in the swimming pool, more or less like a peacock when it fans out its train. I…
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.
Pastiche . . . Prompt #591
Today’s writing prompt is not the usual 15-20 minute freewrite. Instead, it’s a bit more challenging and will take time to pursue. When you are ready for the challenge . . . Create a pastiche. “Pastiche (pronounced pass-TEESH) is a creative work that imitates another author or genre. It’s a way of paying respect, or honor, to great works of the past. Pastiche differs from parody in that pastiche isn’t making fun of the works it imitates – however, the tone of pastiche is often humorous.” Examples of Pastiche The TV show 30 Rock is about a television studio, so there are plenty of opportunities for pastiche. In various episodes, the show mimics classic shows like “The Brady Bunch” or “Seinfeld” and major television events like the Olympics. From the tone of the show, it’s clear that these imitations come from a place of irreverent love, so they fall into the category of pastiche rather than parody. Pastiche is common in music,…
Ode To A Table
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Ode to a Table By Julie Wilder-Sherman Lined with age, scratched without intent, indentations of mountain ranges from 7th grade homework reside in her second panel. Rings of white from overly hot cups and larger spheres from sizzling casserole dishes placed upon hot pads too thin. Dents on corners from swift, careless movement, black pen lines etched through paper, bleeding into the wood. The long, suffering life of my dining room table, surviving, still standing with the family that unthinkingly scarred her. Julie Wilder-Sherman began reading books at an early age, encouraged by her mother who would allow her to take books to bed when she was as young as two years old. Raised in a family of readers, writers, performers, musicians, and political activists, Julie followed her dream of singing professionally and met her husband, bassist…
Cool Desserts . . . Prompt #590
July is National Ice Cream Month Write about a memorable ice cream or cool dessert. Or write about interesting or unusual ice cream desserts. Wicked Slush Dave and Julie Pokorny have created a destination experience in Petaluma, CA with their unique Wicked Slush. Soft serve with a twist. “Back East, it was Carvel. The creamiest, dreamiest, tallest, most improbable tower of soft serve ice cream, covered in chocolate magic shell. Remember? You had to crack through the shell to get to the goodness inside. Well, in Petaluma, we have Wicked. Creamy, dreamy, towering swirls of soft serve ice cream, made from local, organic Straus Family Creamery Dairy. Now imagine this in not only chocolate or vanilla, but in any one of 26 different flavors! And that magic shell? How about 6 different flavors? How about this concoction sitting in a crunchy sweet waffle cone? Yep. That’s how we roll at Wicked.”…
I Scream, You Scream
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. I Scream, You Scream By Nona Smith It’s been well over a year since I’ve done any grocery shopping at Safeway. Early on in the pandemic, it was Harvest, our other local supermarket, who quickly adopted safety precautions: it made mask-wearing mandatory, limited the number of shoppers inside the store at any given time, provided handwashing stations outside, and offered free Latex gloves. Safeway was slow to adopt protective measures, making me feel unsafe in Safeway. Fast forward eighteen months, and I’m fully vaccinated and in need of a cake mix Harvest doesn’t carry. Being as health conscious as it is, the shelves in the baking section at Harvest are laden with organic, gluten-free, paleo, KETO, dairy-free cake mixes. There are only a handful of non-organic, full-on gluten, white sugar mixes on the very bottom shelf….
Too dangerous . . . Prompt #589
Writing Prompt: It’s much too dangerous to talk about . . .
Dedicated to Dad
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Dedicated to Dad By William Frank Hulse III I was out on the back patio, grilling some hamburgers. After talking to the two dogs next door I sat down at a little café/bistro table my wife arranged as a little hygge spot for us. Out of the corner of my eye I caught movement and turned to see a beautiful yellow butterfly go passing by, on its way to a luncheon appointment I suppose. I smiled at the thought and then, for some reason, my father came to mind. He died 18 years ago but he has this clever way of making his presence known. Sometimes, it’s one of his nifty quotes that he borrowed from Will Rogers – a local hero of ours. Other times it’s his shadow that looms large when I’m guessing what…
An idyllic afternoon . . . Prompt #588
I have the good fortune of belonging to a Facebook Group called Hygge Life. A group that posts phenomenal photos and all positive comments. Recently, someone posted photos of her inspirational garden in Essex Coast, UK, with this invitation: “Hygge friends! Come take a little stroll with me to my favourite corner of the garden! We can sit a while and sip on our tea/coffee/tissane and gaze at the craziness of our raised veggie beds, the beginnings of the sweet pea pyramid, the formal and wild flowers and listen and watch as the busy white bottomed bees gather pollen! We can stay a while and chit chat about all things Hygge or . . . just listen, smell, and look at the wonder of Mother Nature. Come join me!” Writing Prompt: Imagine being in this garden, sitting at the blue table, across from a friend. What would you chat about?…
Personal Essay – Pivotal Event Plus . . .
A personal essay isn’t your life story. It’s a pivotal event. The narrator has an epiphany, or is changed at the end of the story. “Personal essays represent what you think, what you feel . . . your effort to communicate those thoughts and feelings to others . . . What is the point of your essay? Don’t belabor the point too much; let the point grow out of the experience of the essay. It might be true, in fact, that you didn’t even have a point to make when you started writing your essay. Go ahead and write it and see if a point develops.” — The Personal Essay More on personal essay: How to Write a Personal Essay Writing Personal Essays Personal Essay is Memoir in Short Form Still don’t know how to start? Gather your writing implements: Paper, pen, pencil, writing device, choose a writing prompt and…
Network
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Network By Deb Fenwick It’s new and improved! Try it! Don’t miss this opportunity. Buy now. No, not goodbye now. But look at this good buy, now! Amazon Prime straight to your door in 24 hours, guaranteed. And, if all goes well, gig workers will deliver your Starbucks just as your DoorDash lunch is arriving. Thank goodness for the bits and bytes that zoom unseen through your Wi-Fi and into a fiber-optic network that traverses the globe. It’s fast. And you are the master of your point-and-click world. Plants have a dynamic unseen life beneath the soil. In late autumn, perennials slowly go into a state of dormancy in response to cold weather and shorter daylight hours. Gradually, leaves and stalks disappear. Life continues underground, and roots go into a potent winter slumber. In spring, in…