How to flesh out fictional characters . . . Give them depth . . . Get to know them intimately. Let’s say your fictional character has just received devastating news such as a job loss, death of a family member or close friend. How does he react? What are her immediate thoughts? What actions does he take next? Imagine your fictional character had an epiphany about a betrayal, a loss, an old grievance. . . something new has been revealed. What does he or she do? Take a few minutes to write about the purpose this character serves in the story. Ready? Just write!
Tag: just write
No one knows . . . Prompt #254
Today’s prompt: No one knows. . . You can write from real experience, or respond as your fictional character would respond. No one knows . . .
Survival Kit . . . Prompt #253
What would you put in a survival kit?
Dead End . . . Prompt #252
Today’s Writing Prompt: Dead End OR: One Way
What did you expect? Prompt #248
Today’s writing prompt: What did you expect? Don’t think about it. Write about it. As soon as you can, write your response, your first reaction to What did you expect? Pro_Deluxe Photography by Jeff Cullen
New ways of looking at old- Prompt #247
If you have been writing for awhile, you might notice that you keep writing about the same things over and over again: how Aunt Luella always sticks her nose in everybody’s business; how Uncle Ray tells those awful jokes and doesn’t seem to notice that no one laughs; how Nonna’s getting on everybody’s nerves, should Aunt Silvie be put in assisted living and what the heck is up with Joey’s latest tattoo? We all have our stable of characters that we dwell about incessantly. Here’s an opportunity to look at old things in new ways. Inspired by the poem, The visible and the in- by Marge Piercy Read the stanza below (or the partial stanza), then quickly make a list of everybody this reminds you of. No prolonged thinking. You can always add names later. Ready? Go! First stanza of The visible and the in-: Some people move through your…
Random words plucked from a poem . . . Prompt #244
Random words (plucked from a poem) as a writing prompt. Tell a story, truth or not, with these words: heavy linger delicate footprints flat maroon foam hard perfume Or use the photo as a writing prompt. Set your timer for 15-20 minutes. Write. Polish. Post your writing on The Write Spot Blog. Photo by Karen Bobier
First Lines Make Great Prompts . . . Prompt #243
First lines from books can be sparks for freewrites. Read the sentence and then write whatever pops into your mind. Don’t over think it. Go with the flow and just write. Here are a few for you to play around with. “Some time ago, when I was 6 or 7 or 8 years old, it would occasionally happen that I’d walk into a room and certain people would begin to cry.” The Lost by Daniel Mendelsohn “The phone rang.” Booked by Die by John Dunning “Footsteps on the forest floor made a noise like paper crumpling in a child’s fist.” The Half-Life by Jonathan Raymond
Pranks . . . Prompt #242
What pranks have you pulled off? Were you successful? Did you get caught? Have you been pranked? What happened? What do you think about playing tricks on people? Is it funny? Rude? Cruel? Does it depend on the circumstances? Writing Prompt: Pranks
Well, that was an Interesting Experience . . . Prompt #241
Write about something interesting that happened. It could be a little blip, just a passing thing that happened. Or, it could be big. . . earth shattering. It could be about something that really happened or something imagined. The page is a big, wide-open place for you to play and experiment (what a funny word – ex-peer-ih-ment). Try a word here, toss a word there. Mix ’em up. Shuffle. Dance your words around. Write about an Interesting Experience.