Search results for: “trauma”

  • Do Not Be Afraid to Write What You Know

    Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Do Not Be Afraid to Write What You Know By Mashaw McGuinnis  An acquaintance of mine texted after reading some of my novel-in-progress. “Don’t try so hard with stereotypical language and trailer park folks . . . I don’t buy it.”…

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  • At Least . . . Prompt #804

    Before writing:  Stretch. Get comfortable in your chair. Take some deep breaths in and release. When you are ready: Prompt #1      Making lists List 3 things you don’t want to write about. Just a list. List 3 things that happened a long time ago that you are still angry, resentful or hold a grudge about.…

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  • I just want to . . . Prompt #709

    Today’s writing prompt: I just want to . . . If you have been following this blog, The Write Spot, you know what to do with this prompt. If you are new to this blog or new to freewrites, here are some posts about freewrites: Freewrites Another post about freewriting: “Natalie Goldberg talks about writing practice” “Freewrites:…

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  • Healing Starts When You . . .

    “Healing starts when you write about what happened and how you felt about it then, and how you feel about it now. And in order for our writing to be a healing experience, we need to honor our pain, loss and grief.” — “Opening Up By Writing It Down” by James Pennebaker “The Write Spot:…

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  • Presence and Connection

    Guest Blogger Dr. Doreen Downing talks about public speaking, especially for writers. As a writer, you may be able to put words on a page, but … do you have the confident voice to access your words when you must speak in public? If you don’t feel confident, and if you feel anxiety, doubt yourself,…

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  • What if we could change the past? . . . Prompt #671

    What if we could change the past? According to Sam Keen and Anne Valley-Fox, in “Your Mythic Journey,”  we can change the past simply by retelling it differently than we usually do. “The past is open to revision because memory is a function of present intention. You can turn your story over (and over) and…

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  • Write About Your Loss

    Write About Your Loss By Ninette Hartley “Well, he has a broken leg but that’s the least of his problems. He has suffered some trauma to his head. In this country we . . . how can I put it? . . . we would say he is brain dead.”   On the 13th of January…

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  • The Seagulls Came and I Knew

    Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. The Seagulls Came and I Knew By Norma Jaeger The seagulls came to the back yard. We didn’t live that close to the coast, Portland, about 80 miles inland. We had never had seagulls in the yard before, as best I…

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  • Adversity . . . Prompt #665

    The idea of using prompts is to inspire writing in a freeform style. There are no rules, except to write without too much thinking. Let your thoughts flow and capture them in writing. Give your inner critic time off during this writing. The challenge of freewriting is getting Self out of the way. With freewrites,…

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  • Resilience . . . Prompt #664

    “Resilience is the ability to scrape yourself off the floor relatively quickly after a giant trauma, medium-size setback or everyday disappointment. Resilience is a set of coping mechanisms we develop over time. This quality is determined by how we take care of ourselves, the people we surround ourselves with and what we do to find…

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