A Safe Place . . . Prompt #642

  • A Safe Place . . . Prompt #642

    Today’s writing prompt starts with a visualization.

    Sit back. Relax.

    Breathe in deeply.

    Release and relax as you breathe out.

    Let go.

    Let your mind relax. Settle into your chair.

    Nothing for you to do right now, except be here.

    Nowhere for you to go.

    Let your mind drift.

    Go back to a time when you were little … 4 or 6 or 7 years old.

    A time when the world was fresh to you.

    Filled with new sights, adventures and exploring.

    A time when there was magic in the air. Full of possibilities.

    Take a deep breathe in and settle into your comfortable space.

    No worries.

    No hurries just now.

    This is your time, in your special place.

    Imagine or remember what your world was like when you were 4 or 6 or 7 years old.

    When everyone was taller than you. Everyone seemed wiser than you.

    But you knew some things.

    Even at that young age, you had strong feelings about some things. 

    Perhaps a pet, or a favorite toy, or a special blanket.

    You had an attachment to something.

    Maybe you were attached to an idea like snowing on Christmas Eve, or the perfect family, or the perfect vacation.

    Take a deep breath. Feel your breath go past your lungs, past your chest, into your belly. And release.


    When you are ready, write about a safe place … either a real place from your childhood, or an imaginary place.

    You could also write about an item, a person or an animal that brings you comfort and joy.

    Other prompts that work well with this visualization:

    Back in the Day

    The way I found out about . . .

    Just Write!

    Marlene C

  • Jon Batiste, radar, and writing

    Jon Batiste

    “I believe this to my core, there is no best musician, best artist, best dancer, best actor,” he began. “The creative arts are subjective and they reach people at a point in their lives when they need it most. It’s like a song or an album is made and it’s almost like it has a radar to find the person when they need it the most.” — Jon Batiste, during his 2022 Grammy winner for best album acceptance speech

    I think writing can be included in the creative arts category.

    When we’re lucky, our writing radar picks up news and events when we need them to enhance our writing.

    And that includes writing communities like The Write Spot.

    Welcome! I’m so glad you are here.

    The Write Spot Resources Page:

    Writing Blogs and Websites

    Places to submit writing

    Community groups

    Writing magazines

    ~Marlene

    #justwrite #iamwriting #iamawriter

    Marlene C

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  • Brevity Blog seeks submissions

    Brevity Blog is the place to discuss issues related to the writing of creative nonfiction. “Though we don’t shy away from important issues in the writing community, the Brevity blog can also often be colloquial, personal, and at times irreverent or humorous, and our most popular posts tend to be those that are the least academic.”

    Appropriate topics for the Blog include the craft of writing nonfiction, issues in editing and publishing, writing conference and creative writing classroom experiences, interviews with writers or editors, prompts, close reading of essays or essayists, or specific issues that challenge us as we attempt to capture true experiences on the page. 

    Word Count: 500 to1,000 word range (sweet spot is 850).

    Brevity Online Journal also welcomes submissions.

    Marlene C

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  • The next thing . . . Prompt #641

    Writing Prompt:

    The next thing I want to do . . .

    Just Write!

    #justwrite #iamawriter #iamwriting

    Marlene C

  • On My Mind . . . Prompt #640

    Today’s Writing Prompt:

    What’s really on my mind . . .

    Just Write!~

    #justwrite #iamawriter #iamwriting

    Marlene C

  • Instructions for See’s Candy: A Love Song Learned from My Mother

    Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page.

    Instructions for See’s Candy: A Love Song Learned from My Mother

    By Susy Pareto

    “Life is a box of chocolates. Here’s how you do it,” she said without another word.

    Pick up a piece.
             chocolate filling
             marzipan
             truffle
             brickle
    Pause to note the smooth, warm texture between thumb and finger. 

    Now, bring it to your mouth,
    And slowly,
               steadily,
                          bite down.

    Teeth cut through the buttery darkness
    Like cutting blades on a garden clipper
    The sweetness seeps out like sap
               covers the tongue
               coats the palate
               transforms the sides into
                        cool
                        creamy chocolate-y cocoa-y
                        truffle-y nougat-y praline-y
                        other-worldly
                        let-me-lie-down and dreamil-y

    Eyes closed.
    Nothing exists but mouth,
    And tongue,
                twirling, swirling, luring
    All thoughts into one luscious lump of pleasure.
                  Chocolate.

    And I want you again, and again, and again 

    A lifelong love affair, long after she’s gone.

    Susy Pareto writes, gardens and lives in Petaluma, California. A former translator, she spent many years in Europe and holds a BA in Design and an MA in Linguistics. Her favorite pieces are as yet unpublished.

    Marlene C

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  • The Freedom of Freewrites

    The freedom to write whatever you want.

    Writing freely is like soaring with no limitations.

    Freewrites can lead to:

    ~ Ruminating, resulting in new thoughts.

    ~ Discovery, leading to innovative realizations

    ~ Revelations, finding the “aha”

    ~ Exciting, uncover fresh ideas

    ~ Jubilations, the joy of making connections

    Writing prompts can help generate writing.

    There are over 800 writing prompts on The Write Spot Blog, as well as a list of places where you can submit your writing.

    Just Write!

    #justwrite #iamwriting #iamawriter

    Marlene C

  • Riddled with Arrows

    Riddled with Arrows is an online literary journal dedicated to writing about writing.

    “We seek (short) metafiction, ars poetica, and writing that celebrates the process and product of writing as art. No restrictions on genre or form, so long as the work is about writing, straight up.”

    Theme Calendar

    Submission Guidelines

    Thank you, Guy Biederman, for letting me know about Riddled with Arrows.

    Guy’s writing, Affordable Shakespeare is in the 5.1 issue of Riddled with Arrows.

    #amwriting #justwrite #iamawriter

    Marlene C

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  • A place you miss. Prompt #639

    Image by Brigette Bruns Nobel

    Write about a place you miss.

    Or a place you have strong feelings about.

    Or a place you would like to be.

    Just Write!

    #iamwriting #justwrite #iamawriter

    Marlene C

  • Inspiration

    Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page.

    Inspiration

    By Brenda Bellinger

    Toward the end of his life, my father, who used to enjoy painting, would often say he couldn’t “get in the mood” or “just lost interest.” His easel stood waiting, a blank canvas in place and a table of brushes and paints nearby.

    Sometimes, writing can feel that way, as though you’re engaged in a stare down with a blank screen. Which of you is going to win? You can wait to be inspired (it might be a while), you can use a writing prompt or you can just let your thoughts spill onto the page in a stream-of-consciousness fashion and see what shape they take.

    The thing about inspiration is that it’s bound to strike at an inopportune moment like when you’re in the shower or you’re driving or you’re in that liminal space between barely awake and soundly asleep. Just in case the stars align, and it happens to strike when I’m ready and waiting for it, I always carry a small notebook and pen with me.

    We recently joined our son and his family for a day at Angel Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay. The weather was perfect and the ride over on the ferry smooth. They had reserved a campground for the evening and loaded some of their camping gear on a two-seater bicycle. Our almost six-year-old granddaughter alternated between riding on the bike and walking alongside. We were walking together enjoying our view of the bay when she said something about a blade of grass “swishing” in the breeze. She froze in her tracks, bicycle helmet still on her head and said “Nana, I need to stop right here and write a poem.”

    I loved how we all moved over to the side of the path and allowed this to happen. She found a place in the grass and sat down next to her mom. I handed her my notebook and pen and for just a moment, the entire world seemed to pause as a small poem about a butterfly emerged from the pure chrysalis of a child’s mind.

    Brenda Bellinger’s work has appeared in Small Farmer’s Journal, Mom Egg Review, Persimmon Tree, THEMA, the California Writers Club Literary Review and in various anthologies, including The Write Spot: Reflections, and The Write Spot: Musings and Ravings From a Pandemic Year (available at your local bookseller and at Amazon).

    Her first novel, Taking Root, a young adult story of betrayal and courage, is available through most local bookstores and on Amazon.

    Note from Marlene: Brenda’s Blog is a collection of thoughtful and entertaining reflections on what matters.

    “Inspiration,” was originally posted as “Carpe Momentum” on Brenda’s Blog, February 22, 2022.

    #amwriting #justwrite #iamawriter

    Marlene C

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