You have ideas what to write about. But how do you get started? Do you sit at your computer, fingers poised above the keyboard . . . ready. . . but your mind swirls, goes blank. . . at a loss how to get started. How about starting your writing time like many famous author do? With warm-ups, using writing prompts. There are many blogs and websites with ideas for writing. One of them is my interactive blog, The Write Spot Blog. You can post your writing (~600 words) and receive comments on your writing. You can also use prompts posted on my Facebook Writing Page and writing prompts on my website. http://www.thewritespot.us/writingprompt.html The joy of writing freely . . . that’s what these prompts are about. How do you start your writing time? What are your rituals? Your writing habits? Or, do you Just Write?
Tag: writing prompts
Favorite food or drink. Prompt #99
Write about your favorite food or drink and the last time you had it/them. Photo of fruit salad, prepared by Meals From The Heart at the French Market in New Orleans. If you go there, go to this Cafe. Seriously good food. The BEST gluten-free crabcakes!
Fake it until you make it.
I facilitate Jumpstart writing workshops in Petaluma, California and here, online, with you. People new to writing have a hard time saying “I’m a writer.” So did I, until my writing teacher, Pat Schneider, made me say it out loud. And now I’m encouraging you to say it out loud. Come on. I’ll say it, too. I am a writer. Again, louder. I AM A WRITER. There now. . . and if you weren’t able to say it louder, fake it until you make it. No need to fake your writing. . . Just fake having confidence in your writing. And now . . . select a prompt and Just Write!
Life is just a . . . Prompt #98
Today’s prompt: Life is just a . . . Set your timer for 15 minutes and finish the thought. . . Life is just a . . .
Something that seemed wrong but turned out right. Prompt #97
Write about something that seemed so wrong but turned out right. Photo by Breana Marie
Why do you write?
“Life often has a way of making people feel small and unimportant. But if you find a way to express yourself through writing, to put your ideas and stories on paper, you’ll feel more consequential. No one should pass through time without writing their thoughts and experiences down for others to learn from. Even if only one person, a family member, reads something you wrote long after you’re gone, you live on. So writing gives you power. Writing gives you immortality.” — Antwone Fisher, Screenwriter and author Note from Marlene: I write to get out of my head and onto paper. Writing, with a pen or pencil, is an extension of my arm. When I picture my arm, it’s elongated by the pen, which in my mind, is always there. Computer typing — same thing — the keyboard is an extension of me. Writing is as natural and as much…
A man opens his mail box and finds. . . Prompt #96
Today’s writing prompt is inspired from the September 2014 issue of Writer’s Digest magazine. “A man opens his mailbox to find an envelope containing a set of instructions.” Set your time and write for 20 minutes. Set it aside for twenty minutes. Then read. Tweak, make a few changes, but not too many. The energy from that first and fast writing is usually spot-on. Write a short story of 750 words or fewer based on this prompt and enter Writer’s Digest Contest #60. Send your story using the online form at writersdigest.com/your-story-competition or send via email to yourstorycontest@fmedia.com (entries must be pasted directly into the body of the email; attachments will not be opened). DEADLINE: August 25, 2014
What do you do if . . . Prompt #95
You are in a bookstore in another city: ~ You see something you can’t live without, but you don’t have enough money to pay for it. What do you do? ~ You see a neighbor, alone, weeping. What do you do? ~ You see an acquaintance shoplift. What do you do? ~ You see two married acquaintances, without their spouses, heads and bodies close together, in a suggestive position. What do you do? ~ You are a young child and smile up at the grown-up whose hand you are holding but you don’t recognize the grown-up. What do you do? Pick one and write for 20 minutes. Note from Marlene: You can tweak prompts however you want. For example, with this prompt, the setting could be a deserted walkway near water, in a park, at a crowded Saturday market. You choose the setting and Just Write! Photo by Sasha Oaks …
Something you are wearing right now. Prompt #94
Write about an article of clothing, shoes, or jewelry. . . something you are wearing right now. Photo by Breana Marie
“Vulnerability is my strength.” — MK Asante
“I’ve always known that I had a story to tell about my education. I don’t mean school. I mean my coming of age.” — MK Asante, filmmaker, professor, hip-hop artist, essayist and memoirist. The Writer magazine, July 2014 “I didn’t have the courage to do it [write] until more recently. I was ashamed of some of the things I wrote about in the book. I didn’t want to deal with those things. As I had more distance, reflection and time, I realized that vulnerability is my strength, and everything I’ve been through is not something to be ashamed of.” How about you? Are you ready to write your story? You can jumpstart your writing with prompts posted on The Write Spot Blog.