Prompt: In a perfect world . . . Set timer for 12 minutes. Write. Post your writing here. Come on . . . share your writing with us. In a perfect world . . .
Tag: The Write Spot
In this photo . . . Prompt #55
This is a two-part prompt. Part 1: Get a photo of yourself. We’ll wait. Toe tapping . . . humming. Photo in hand? If not . . . close your eyes for a moment and picture a photo of yourself. Write, starting with: “In this photo . . . ” Go! Now! Write before reading Part II. Wait. . . did you write on the prompt? If yes . . . proceed to the next part. If not, take 10 or 15 minutes to write, “In this photo . . . ” We’ll wait for you to catch up. Maybe we’ll hum a little tune. . . la. . . de. . . dum. . . Ready? Part II: Add three sentences after every sentence you have just written. Start first additional sentence with “I felt” and then add two sentences after that. Example of adding three sentences to what…
Klutz or dazzling . . . Prompt #54
Tell a story from your past that has something to do with being a klutz or a time you were dazzling.
Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch by Constance Hale
Guest Book Reviewer Kathy Myers nails a review of Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch: Let Verbs Power Your Writing. If a mousy English teacher yanked the hairpins out of her tight bun, slammed down a couple of boiler makers, and shimmied around the dance floor at a biker bar, she could blame it on the copy of “Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch” tucked in her Borders Book bag. Constance Hale stimulates writers to accentuate and resuscitate their sentences with better verbs—the “little despots” that dictate what happens in the sentence. But it’s not just about verbs; it’s about better writing. It’s about smashing bad habits, and flirting with new ones. It’s about the rich history of our mutt of a mother tongue, and appreciation of its ongoing evolution. And because “the antidote to anxiety is mastery” each chapter includes prompts to “try, do, write, and play”, and thus makes this a worthy…
WriterAdvice seeks flash fiction, memoir, and . . .
WriterAdvice seeks flash fiction, memoir, and creative non-fiction running 750 words or less. Enlighten, dazzle, and delight us. Finalists receive responses from all judges. First prize is $200. Submit to the 9th WriterAdvice Flash Prose Contest by April 18, 2014. Complete details at www.writeradvice.com Is Writer Advice’s Manuscript Consultation Service right for you? Details here Scroll down column.
The nervousness of writing — Francisco Goldman
“When you’re beginning a book, or getting back into a book, as I am now, you have to learn to deal with the nervousness and stress of it. The blank page or the stalled page is incredibly intimidating. And you have to turn that nervousness – rather than into something that blocks you, rather than into something that makes you try to over-think, that makes you feel that you can’t proceed unless you have a clear idea of where you’re going – you have to harness that nervousness, almost like a natural force, and make it work for you. You have to trust that you’re just going to get inside the page and get inside the sentences, and you have to release the desire to feel in control and just follow the writing where it takes you and have faith that you’re eventually going to find the way. — Francisco…
What I want to say . . . Prompt #53
Today’s Prompt: What I want to say . . . Post your writing and watch for comments.
That’s what life is. — Ellen DeGeneres
I love stories that are inspirational yet have a lot of heartache, because I think that’s what life is. Life is filled with struggles and yet there’s always beauty, and that’s what I get from films. — Ellen DeGeneres, Parade Magazine, March 2, 2014 Photo by Jeff Cullen
Write the Scene. Prompt #51
Prompt #48 was about how to “Grow Your Character.” Prompt #49 was about setting the mood. Prompt #50 was “The Problem.” Let’s put them all together and write the scene. If you have freewrites on character, mood and a problem. . . use these elements to write a scene. Or, write a scene, using all new material. If writing memoir, write what actually happened, as best as remembered. Be sure to include details. Be specific. Not “car,” rather “1966 blue Dodge van.” “Scenes are capsules in which compelling characters undertake significant actions in a vivid and memorable way that allows the events to feel as though they are happening in real time. When strung together, individual scenes add up to build plots and storylines. — Make A Scene, Crafting a powerful Story One Scene at a Time, by Jordan E. Rosenfeld In Make A Scene, Jordan includes a recipe for…