Creative Writing Prompts for Writers

Writing Prompts with Stones

2012-02-24T11:57:00.002-08:00

Erik Skipping Stones, a photo by KitAy on Flickr.

For today's creative writing prompts, we will reflect on stones. Free-write for 5 minutes from the prompt "stones".

After you write, see if there is anything from your writing you would like to turn into a story, poem, essay, etc. and go from there.

Story Starter: What did the young man in the picture do before coming to skip stones? What was his day like? Who is this character?

Writing Prompts based on Dennis O'Driscoll's "Spare Us"

2012-02-20T07:36:00.001-08:00

lilac bush in snow, a photo by tribbles1971 on Flickr.

Before we begin today's creative writing prompts, I would like to draw your attention to the featured poem on Poems (dot) com today. It is Dennis O'Driscoll's poem called "Spare Us." You can read it by clicking here.

Here is a little excerpt from it:

Spare us the bees raiding every flower in sight,
leaving no anther pocket unturned.
And the tantrum-throwing wasps,
in venomous mood, headbutting glass.

This is one of those inspiring poems I can grab onto and run with. And by that I mean, I can make my own list poem and free-write like crazy beginning with the words, "Spare Me."

However, what Dennis has done with his poem is quite clever and layered on many levels. I love that he has taken the images of spring and put them into a more unusual perspective as opposed to the stereo-typed dreamy, lovey-dovey images we often see in so many spring poems. (And yes, yours truly is certainly guilty of that, too!) I love that O'Driscoll's poem offers us a harsher perspective, but in the end, to me, it is still beautiful.

Creative Writing Prompts:

1. EVERYBODY: Please read the poem first. Then free-write for 10 minutes from the phrase "Spare Me. . ."

2. After you have finished your free-write, pick some of the lines that you might want to expand on and go from there to either write a poem that is more focused on a particular theme (this theme could be anything, it doesn't have to be seasonal) OR begin a story based on a character who is irritated with something you mentioned on your list OR write an essay about a season and the surprising images we encounter within the seasons. Relate them to the bigger picture of your life.

And for a teacher's bonus, I am providing a short set of study questions to O'Driscoll's poem. I always feel we can learn more about literature by studying the good stuff that is already out there.

May you all be inspired to write something today.

Happy Writing!

Study Questions for Dennis O'Driscoll's "Spare Us"poem.

1. How many stanzas start out with the words "Spare us"?

2. Of the stanzas that do not begin with "Spare Us," what do they begin with?

3. As for the stanza that starts with "Lump in the leaves. . .," where does that fall in the poem? Do you think it is effective? Why or why not?

4. Which season is this poem focused on? How many times is that season listed by name and which parts of the poem do they occur in? Give four examples of striking lines that refer to images of the season.

5. In your opinion, what is the most striking stanza in the poem? Why?

6. Please list the hyphenated expressions in the poem and circle your favorite.

7. Now make a list of 3-5 of your own hyphenated expressions.

8. Extra credit: Take one of your own hyphenated expressions from exercise 7 and write a short poem of 10 lines or less which includes that expression.

Silent Love Writing Prompts

2012-02-17T10:45:00.001-08:00

Love, a photo by Noël Zia Lee on Flickr.

"This love is silent." T.S. Eliot

Today's creative writing prompts are based on the subject of love without words.

Essay Prompt: Write an essay on the topic of love shown through actions.

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem about a scene where love is observed. Do not use the word "love" in your poem.

Story Prompt: In the picture we see a dog, and only a small part of a person. Write about this person. What kind of day has the person had? What comfort is found through the dog?

Happy Writing!

Writing Prompts: What Are You Afraid to Say?

2012-01-27T20:17:00.001-08:00

Untitled, a photo by dno1967b on Flickr.

When we speak we are afraid our words will not be heard or welcomed. But when we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak.
~Audre Lorde
--

Essay Prompt: What are you afraid to say? What do you think people are afraid to say or talk about these days? Write a short essay on this topic addressing one of those questions.

Fiction Writing Practice: Write a scene where one character confronts another one with something he or she has wanted to tell them for a long time, but was always afraid. How does the other character react? Write out the dialogue.

Poetry: Write a list poem addressing many things you have been afraid to say. It can be addressed to one person, or it can be a combination of things you are afraid to say to many people. It could also be a list poem of things you are afraid to ask.

Writing Prompts with Snow and Trees

2012-01-17T12:18:00.001-08:00

Snow getting more ridiculous, a photo by Joe Crawford (artlung) on Flickr.

For today's free-write, please start by free-writing from the image for 5 minutes without stopping

OR

free-write for 5 minutes from this phrase:

The snow on the trees reminded her/him of. . .

After 5 minutes, look at what you have on your paper and find a spark you want to explore through a story, essay, poem, song, or ???

Happy Writing!

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Valzhyna Mort

2012-01-11T09:23:00.000-08:00

I think the poet Valzhyna Mort from Belarus (the former Soviet Union) is pretty incredible. I would like to "share" this video of her poem "New York" which gives an awesome perspective of the city. I think the last two lines of the poem are incredible, and here is the text if you would like to read it. Notice how she plays with the theme of a magician throughout the poem.

For today's writing prompts, we have two choices.

Choice 1: Review the video two or three times and write a reaction to the video. You can do this in a casual style, writing what you like or don't like about it. Did any line or illustration particularly strike you? Why or why not? You can also do this in a review-like format with a more formal voice. Writing about other writing (and visual art in this case) is good writing practice, and you tend to become a little more aware of things when you critique other work in detail.

Choice 2: Pick a city or small town and write a description about it going for 5 minutes without stopping. You can then make this into a story, or you can do this via a poem with 25 lines or less. Try mimicking Mort's style, but with your own words. For example, Mort plays with a magician theme, so is a theme you can use to write about your place?

Let me know what you think of the video. I really appreciate the comments you have been leaving.

Happy Writing!

If you haven't read much by this poet, I highly recommend her.

Breeze of the Future Writing Prompt

2012-01-09T10:43:00.001-08:00

Sandstone Head, a photo by blmurch on Flickr.

Today, I'm going to steal a phrase from a fabulous Mark Strand poem which can be read on Writer's Almanac today. Please read the poem AFTER you try the prompts.

Free-write for 5 minutes to this phrase:

Let the breeze of the future. . .

After you free-write, you can take what you have written to turn into a story, poem, song, etc.

The phrase is from Mark Strand's poem "A Short Panegyric" and can be read here.

Writing Prompts About Hands

2012-01-05T20:09:00.001-08:00

hand ~ mano, a photo by sunshinecity on Flickr.

Many thanks to writer Karen J. Weyant for providing the prompts below.

Enjoy and Happy Writing to All!

********************************

Writing About Hands, Writing About People

by Karen J. Weyant

Many people believe that the hands can tell the story of a single individual life. Janet Zandy, in her book, Hands: Physical Labor, Class and Cultural Work, explains this: “Hands speak. In sign language they do the work of tongue and voice box. In greeting, they iterate multiple meanings. They augment orality. They reveal identity – the long fingers of a pianist, the rough, stubby hands of the bricklayer. The most advanced technology cannot completely eliminate the daily tasks performed by hands.”

Thus, writing about a person’s hands can be an important step towards writing about a person.

Writing about other people in clear concrete terms (without falling into abstract words such as kind, nice, angry, etc...) is a difficult task. One way of entering this task is to start with the hands. Using these two questions, see if you can tell the story of a single life:

1. Think of a person you know well, and then imagine his or her hands. What do they look like? Consider the fingernails, the knuckles, the wrists, the palms, even the veins. Are there scars? You can even consider connecting palmistry, or the art of palm reading, into your work.

2. Imagine these hands actually doing something. What stories are behind these hands? Are there jobs? Accidents? Livelihoods? How can the actions be depicted to tell a story?

In the past, my students have told fascinating stories of grandfathers and their farms, mothers teaching piano lessons, fathers and brothers working on their pickup trucks. Both of these questions may lead you to write a poem, a story, or even a personal essay! Good luck!

Karen J. Weyant’s work can be seen in 5 AM, Barn Owl Review, Cave Wall, Copper Nickel, Harpur Palate, River Styx and The Tusculum Review. Her chapbook, Wearing Heels in the Rust Belt, won Main Street Rag’s 2011 chapbook contest and will be published in 2012. She lives in Warren, Pennsylvania, but crosses the New York state border to teach at Jamestown Community College in Jamestown, New York.

She blogs here www.thescrapperpoet.wordpress.com

Happy New Year Writing Prompts

2012-01-01T06:58:00.001-08:00

Times Square New Years Eve Ball, a photo by LeSimonPix ★ on Flickr.

Happy New Year, Everybody!

Since it is the new year according to the standard calendar most of us live by, this prompt will ask you to reflect on something new you want to in your life this year. No, I'm not talking about a new house, sports car or anything tangible. I'm talking about a quality within yourself that will help you in your life.

Do you want a renewal of patience?

Do you want to have more gratitude?

Do you want more time for praise?

How about health or peace?

Do you want more time for writing?

Whatever you would like to add to this new year, I don't want you to just write about it, but I also want you to break it down into some steps that will help make it happen for you. Yes, a map to the goal always helps.

And good luck!

Part 2 is just for your writing goals.

Every year I ask my close writing friends to reflect on their writing. I like them to reflect on the goals they have reached and the success they have received over the last year.

And then, they set writing goals for the new year. And only goals that they have control over. For example, getting published is not a goal---unless you are talking about self-publishing. However, submitting to an X amount of publications is most certainly a goal you have control over, so that counts. The idea is to set goals that you can control, and hopefully, if you stick to them and nurture your writing, you will celebrate some success along the way.

What will your writing goals for 2012 be? Will you write an X amount of new poems? Will you try a new form? Will you revise the last few chapters of your novel? Will you write 3 new short stories? Will you start participating in a writing group or take a class? Will you subscribe to an X amount of journals? Will you set aside time every week for writing and/or submissions? How often will you give yourself time to write?

Set your goals, but first reflect on your goals from last year if you had some and see where you went wrong and right and let that starting point guide you.

Note: It is a good thing to review your yearly goals every 3 months (or more if you'd like) so that you don't lose sight of them. And of course, I believe in weekly goals as well.

And as always, you are free to comment and tell us which writing goal is going to be most important for you this year.

I wish you all the best!!!

Point of View Writing Prompt with Jessie Carty

2011-12-09T11:36:00.001-08:00

Character in black and white (IMG_9453a), a photo by Alaskan Dude on Flickr.

Jessie Carty is our guest prompter again this week. I hope you enjoy her prompt and have a great weekend!
*********************************************************************
Point of View Writing Prompt by Jessie Carty

In May of 2008 I had this idea that I wanted to write a series of poems called the fat girl poems. I’ve bounced around with my weight, but I also knew I’d be taping into the general “fat girl” experience rather than just my own.

Here is an example http://siblingrivalrypress.com/2011/07/21/class-reunion-jessie-carty-friends-perform-a-poem-from-fat-girl/ of one poem that is, perhaps, not completely from my point of view. (The link will take you to the poem below a video. The video is myself and two other wonderful ladies take turns reading the poem in a video. )

So, my challenge for you today is to write a poem or story from a point of view that isn’t your own, but maybe is a topic that is close to you. See how it challenges you!

BIO: Jessie Carty is the author of five poetry collections including the upcoming chapbook An Amateur Marriage (Finishing Line Press, 2012) which was a finalist for the 2011 Robert Watson Prize. She teaches at RCCC in Concord, NC. You can find her editing Referential Magazine or blogging at http://jessiecarty.com.

Jessie's most recent chapbook “An Amateur Marriage” is now on pre-order from Finishing Line (http://www.finishinglinepress.com/product_info.php?products_id=247).

Writing Prompts with Poet Jessie Carty

2011-12-03T11:04:00.000-08:00

This weekend, I'm thrilled to announce that our guest prompter is Jessie Carty, a poet from North Carolina.

First, read Jessie's poem, "An Amateur Marriage," from her soon-to-be released chapbook from Finishing Line press. Then follow her directions for your prompt.

An Amateur Marriage by Jessie Carty
On Saturday we shop
First we frequent
one of the big box
electronics stores
and plan video cameras
for vacation
or big screen TV’s
for Superbowl Sunday
Before stopping at the home
improvement warehouse
On Sunday
we strip down
an old coffee table
and stain it
laying haphazard lines
of walnut
It takes hours to set

While we wait
I comb your hair
feeling your scalp
for the natural part
I trim around your ears
where the strands
have grown long
these last six months

Prompt from Jessie:

The word amateur is fun to play with. According to Wikipedia “An amateur (French amateur "lover of", from Old French and ultimately from Latin amatorem nom. amator, "lover") is generally considered a person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science, without pay and often without formal training. Amateurism can be seen in both a negative and positive light. Since amateurs often do not have formal training, some amateur work may be sub-par. For example, amateur athletes in sports such as basketball, baseball or football are regarded as having a lower level of ability than professional athletes. On the other hand, an amateur may be in a position to approach a subject with an open mind (as a result of the lack of formal training) and in a financially disinterested manner. An amateur who dabbles in a field out of casual interest rather than as a profession or serious interest, or who possesses a general but superficial interest in any art or a branch of knowledge, is often referred to as a dilettante.”

Think of how I use it in the poem, and what implications come with the idea of an amateur marriage. Now write your own poem or story about an amateur something. Maybe make something amateur that you wouldn’t think of being amateur.

BIO: Jessie Carty is the author of five poetry collections including the upcoming chapbook An Amateur Marriage (Finishing Line Press, 2012) which was a finalist for the 2011 Robert Watson Prize. She teaches at RCCC in Concord, NC. You can find her editing Referential Magazine or blogging at http://jessiecarty.com.

Jessie's most recent chapbook “An Amateur Marriage” is now on pre-order from Finishing Line (http://www.finishinglinepress.com/product_info.php?products_id=247). Jessie says, "I didn’t write the poems in any particular order. I, in fact, didn’t realize I was writing these poems about marriage until I had about 10 completed."

Anne of Green Gables Writing Prompts

2011-11-30T11:05:00.001-08:00

Anne of Green Gables Museum, a photo by Smudge 9000 on Flickr.

Today it is the birthday of Lucy Maud Montgomery, the woman who wrote the Anne of Green Gables series.

In honor of Lucy's birthday, I am going to take two quotes inspired by the Anne series to guide us along for our creative writing prompts.

Prompt #1:

Mrs. Cadbury: Tell me, what you know about yourself.
Anne Shirley: Well, it really isn't worth telling, Mrs. Cadbury... but if you let me tell you what I imagine about myself you'd find it a lot more interesting.

I love this little conversation. For today's prompt, one option is to imagine yourself doing something you otherwise wouldn't be able to do. Perhaps it is telling someone a secret, or perhaps it is some extravagant act. You can write about it in either poetry or prose.

Prompt #2:

Anne Shirley: Don't you ever imagine things differently from what they are?
Marilla Cuthbert: No.
Anne Shirley: Oh Marilla, how much you miss.

For this prompt, take something from your world, and turn it into something it is not. You can write in either poetry or prose.

And today's writing prompts would not be complete unless I share a link with you that goes to one of my most favorite poems ever. I encountered it on Poetry Daily years ago. It's called "Like Anne Shirley's House" and it is by Faye George. You can find it by clicking here.

Bonus Poetry Prompt: Read the poem, "Like Anne Shirley's House," and then you write a poem that starts, "I want a house that. . . "

Writing Prompts With Laughter

2011-11-14T07:24:00.001-08:00

Laughing Out Loud, a photo by amslerPIX on Flickr.

For today's creative writing prompts, we will reflect on laughter. I love this picture of these kids, especially the one on the left. They look like they are having a good time, goofing off and enjoying themselves.

Story Prompt: Write a story that begins with two or three people who are laughing. Why are they laughing? Who are these people and what relationship do they have with each other? Write for 10 minutes without stopping.

Essay Prompt: What is something that made you laugh a lot? Write about it.

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem that contains laughter in it.

Peace Dove Writing Prompts

2011-11-11T11:56:00.001-08:00

peace dove, a photo by Jeff Attaway on Flickr.

Today for our creative writing prompts, we will reflect on PEACE.

Please read this poem by poet Mary Jo Balistreri. http://www.yourdailypoem.com/listpoem.jsp?poem_id=914

Essay Prompt: What are examples of letting peace begin with ourselves? Please elaborate on personal examples from your own life or examples you've observed through others.

Poetry: Begin a poem with this prompt:
If peace. . .

Story Prompt: Create a story that ends with a very small in appearance, but big in meaning, gesture of peace.

Happy Writing!

Writing Prompts with Polka Dots

2011-11-09T09:51:00.001-08:00

polka dot tea party, a photo by Shandi-lee on Flickr.

Today's writing prompts start with the image of "polka dots." For one minute, free-write what images come to mind when you think of "polka dots."

After the time is up, pick one or more images from your list to write a story, poem, personal essay, etc.

OR you can write a story based on the character in today's picture. Why is she wearing the red polka dot dress today? What is she waiting for? Who will she see?

Bonus Prompt:

Reflect on this quote and write a short sketch of a character, showing HOW this character travels in the manner of happiness.

"Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of traveling. " -Margaret Lee Runbeck

Writing Prompts with Autumn Leaves

2011-11-04T07:46:00.001-07:00

Autumn leaves, a photo by Ray Wise on Flickr.

So many beautiful leaves are everywhere out here---on the ground and some still on the trees. For our writing prompts, here are some starters you can use to start a story, essay, poem, song, etc.

1. Walking through the wet leaves, she realized. . .
2. The leaves were falling like. . .
3. The color of the leaves brought him comfort. . .
4. In autumn, there is comfort in. . .
5. The smell of leaves. . .

Halloween Writing Prompts 1

2011-10-31T06:26:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween! Here is my greeting to you all for a safe Halloween filled with lots of wonderful things.

Make sure you check out this poem by Donna Pflueger called, "The Autumn Witch of Oak Creek Canyon."

For our creative writing prompts today, we will reflect on things in the spirit of the supernatural. Give yourself the freedom to explore things that are out of the ordinary.

Here are some starters, and you can use them to write a poem, story, essay, song, or anything you would like:

1. When black cats prowl and pumpkins gleam. . .
2. The laughter I heard was like. . .
3. The moon glowed with wicked radiance. . .
4. All of a sudden, my friends were gone and . . .
5. There was something funny about that cat. . .
6. I never believed in ghosts until. . .
7. She always wondered what it would be like to fall in love with a vampire. . .
8. He had no idea he was falling in love with a witch. . .

And last, but not least, "It was a dark, stormy night. . . " (Sorry, I just couldn't resist!)

Writing Prompts: Your Whole Heart

2011-10-28T06:56:00.001-07:00

Hearts For Necklace, a photo by perpetualplum on Flickr.

Creative Writing Prompts with Hearts

For today's creative writing prompts, we will meditate on hearts.

What is the last thing you remember doing with your whole heart?

Write an essay, poem or song about it.

OR

Write a story about someone doing something with his or her whole heart. Perhaps something so meaningful it changes the character, or the people the character interact with.

Creative Writing Prompts at Shoal Creek

2011-10-26T06:34:00.001-07:00

Chert Glades 008, a photo by jsigler on Flickr.

Creative Writing Prompts

Above is a beautiful picture of Shoal Creek. Below is a poem, "Crossing Shoal Creek." For today's creative writing prompts, we will use the photo and the poem for inspiration.

Fiction Writing: Write the beginning of a short story that takes place in the setting of the picture. Write for at least 10 minutes without stopping.

Creative Nonfiction: Do you have any memories of any creek? If so, write about them.

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem that ends with the line, "so close we could have touched." You can title your poem, "Poem Ending With a Line by J.T. Ledbetter," or credit the line in a note at the end of the poem.

5-Minute Free Writes
Writing Starters:

Write with the following phrases as your starting points. All phrases are from J.T. Ledbetter's poem.

1. I waited for you to. . .
2. Like mists off the. . .
3. There was only the rain on the. . .

Enjoy the column below. It was last week's feature, and I was so moved by it I wanted to post it here. Thank you to this wonderful project that allows the article to be shared. I love this program and hope it will live forever.

American Life in Poetry Column #343 by Ted Kooser, Poet Laureate of the U.S.

Most of us have received the delayed news of the death of a family member or friend, and perhaps have reflected on lost opportunities. Here’s a fine poem by J. T. Ledbetter, who lives in California but grew up on the Great Plains.

Crossing Shoal Creek by J.T. Ledbetter

The letter said you died on your tractor
crossing Shoal Creek.
There were no pictures to help the memories fading
like mists off the bottoms that last day on the farm
when I watched you milk the cows,
their sweet breath filling the dark barn as the rain
that wasn’t expected sluiced through the rain gutters.
I waited for you to speak the loud familiar words
about the weather, the failed crops—
I would have talked then, too loud, stroking the Holstein
moving against her stanchion—
but there was only the rain on the tin roof,
and the steady swish-swish of milk into the bright bucket
as I walked past you, so close we could have touched.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2010 by J.T. Ledbetter, and reprinted from his most recent book of poetry, Underlying Premises, Lewis Clark Press, 2010, by permission of J.T. Ledbetter and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2009 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

Writing Prompts with SURPRISE!

2011-10-24T06:58:00.001-07:00

Surprise!, a photo by Greencolander on Flickr.

For today's creative writing prompts, we will focus on the element of surprise. Now, this cat is not faking it, that's for sure.

Creative nonfiction prompt: Think about a time when you were really surprised, whether it was a big surprise or a little one. Write about it for 10 minutes without stopping.

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem with an element of surprise, or write a poem with a surprising line in it.

Fiction writing prompts:
1. Write a short story where one character surprises another.
2. If you are in the middle of a novel, take one of your characters and put the character in a situation where he or she is totally surprised.

Free Write: Free write about this cat. Give the cat a name and explore his internal thoughts about whatever it is that has surprised him.

Creative Writing Prompts: The Sounds of Autumn

2011-10-03T05:24:00.000-07:00

Hello, everyone. Today's creative writing prompts involve the background of nature's autumn sounds and the beautiful visuals. All you have to do is listen and/or look, and then write what comes. I will provide some starter lines below to help you along, too. Feel free to write poetry, a song, an essay or story---go where the Muse leads you and ENJOY!

Starter lines:

1. She loved the sounds of the leaves as she walked over them. . .
2. Autumn is. . .
3. They kissed as the leaves fell all around them. . .
4. Of all seasons he hated autumn most because that was the season when it all started. . . .

Creative Writing Prompts with Free Association

2011-09-19T06:06:00.001-07:00

What Word are You?, a photo by TerryJohnston on Flickr.

For today's creative writing prompts, you will have a choice of words to work with that are generated by YOU. Below is a list of words, and I want you to write down the first word that comes to your head when you see the words. The rule of thumb on this one is not to think about it too much. Just write down the first word that comes to your head.

Then from your list, choose 5 to 7 words in one of the following:

1. A poem of 12 lines or less.
2. The first paragraph of a short story.
3. The first paragraph of an essay.
4. The first verse of a song.
5. A conversation between two characters.

Also, in the comments section, please feel free to list the words you come up with or a part of your writing.

Word List:

bamboo
tablecloth
magnet
lust
curler
paradise
heart
loss
rain
move
bus
alone
stamp
shade
glass
destroy
leap
Coca-Cola
key chain
truck
plop

Writing Prompts: Let There Be Peace on Earth

2011-09-12T07:08:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marked the tenth anniversary of 9-11, and where I attended worship, we ended with this song which moved me beyond belief.

For today's writing prompts, I want our theme to be "peace." Enjoy the video and the great quotes within.

Then write a personal piece of writing about how you can add one little fragment of peace in your life today. Could it be spending time in prayer or writing a special prayer for peace? Could it be enjoying a moment outside? Could it be writing a small stone that brings you peace? Could it be just lighting a candle and remembering a loved one? Would you like to write a song or poem about peace? Write about what you would like to do to add peace to your life today, then find the time to do it.

Writing Prompts with Willow Tree

2011-09-07T06:50:00.001-07:00

December 10th Ice Storm - The First Wave, a photo by regina.rice@att.net on Flickr.

Over the weekend, my youngest brother got married at the farm that belongs to him and his bride. As part of the ceremony, they planted a Corkscrew Willow on their land. I was quite touched. If you look at the branches closely, they twist together as they grow. What a wonderful symbol for a life of love togehter!

For today's writing prompts, please choose six of the words below to include in either a poem, a short story, essay or song. I have chosen words inspired by Luke and Christy's wedding.

twisted
ring
corkscrew
willow
branch
Celtic
fedora
rose
emerald
curl
promise
glow
love
firefly
life
radiance
fairy

Creative Writing Prompts: Keys

2011-09-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

Keys, a photo by Svadilfari on Flickr.

Today, we will kick-off our writing prompts with a phrase,

"I want a key to. . . "

Please write for 5 minutes without stopping.

After that, your assignment will be to turn your free-write into a poem of 10 lines or less.

OR

Fiction Writing Prompt:
Write the first page of a story that has the word key as the first line. Here are some example lines you can use or you can make up your own:

1. She never dreamed that she would find the key to. . .
2. Jake was quite sure that the key he stole would open the door to that house on the hill they said was haunted. . .
3. She always dreamed of keys. . .

After you get your first page, you can certainly continue if you'd like.

Essay Prompt:
Write an essay of 500 words or less about keys or write about something prompted by a specific key from your life.

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Ray Bradbury

2011-08-31T06:43:00.001-07:00

Morning Tea, a photo by Ornamelle on Flickr.

"Love. Fall in love and stay in love. Write only what you love, and love what you write. The key word is love. You have to get up in the morning and write something you love, something to live for." - Ray Bradbury

I hope you like the quote by Ray Bradbury and this lovely photo by Ornamelle.

For today's writing prompts, start by making a list of 10 things you love, and then pick just 1 and write for 10 minutes without stopping. You can turn that thing you love into a story, poem, essay, song, play, etc. Just write what about what you LOVE today. That is the key!

Creative Writing Prompts: Fun with Words

2011-08-30T06:10:00.001-07:00

Vine ripe tomatoes in my garden..., a photo by ruthalice43 on Flickr.

How many words can you make out of this phrase:

I love vine ripe tomatoes.

Spend a few minutes putting together a few words.

Here is a start for you:

real
reel
tame

AFTER your list is to your satisfaction, pick six to eight of the words to use in a poem, short story, essay or song.

Enjoy!

Lemons and Lemonade Creative Writing Prompts

2011-08-24T05:28:00.001-07:00

Lemon and Sky, a photo by fonticulus on Flickr.

We are living in a world today where lemonade is made from artificial flavors and furniture polish is made from real lemons. -Alfred Newman

Good morning! Perhaps you might have heard a quote similar to this one:

When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. I have several stands around here. James Brady

Our creative writing prompts today will be based on lemons vs. lemonade.

Fiction: Think up a situation that starts out as a lemon, but ends up being being lemonade. For example, I've read a true story about two people who were stuck in an elevator for hours and ended up falling in love. They got married.

Creative Nonfiction: Have you had any past lemon-like situations in your life that ended up being lemonade in the end? Write about one.

Poetry: Start with a negative image or situation, but end it with positivity.

Please fell free to post part of what you write. I promise I will read every comment!

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Willy Russell

2011-08-23T06:14:00.001-07:00

Honfleur - March 2009 - Real Cafe Culture, a photo by gareth1953 on Flickr.

Today is the birthday of English playwright and songwriter Willy Russell. For writing inspiration, Willy Russell loved to listen in on conversations. In honor of Russell's birthday, we will do just that for writing practice.

Writing Practice: Listen in to a conversation at a cafe, park, or anywhere. Write out part of the dialogue, then finish it up the conversation with your own ideas, but with the voice of the people you were listening to.
OR
Write out a conversation for any of the people from the picture.

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Here is some inspiring quotes for the day. You can respond to one of them in writing any way you would like: with a poem, essay or story.

Never part without loving words to think of during your absence. It may be that you will not meet again in this life.
Jean Paul Richter

Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.
Rabindranath Tagore

Creative Writing Prompts with Jade Bennington

2011-08-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

For your weekend writing pleasure, I'm happy to announce our guest prompter, Jade Bennington. She gives us some ideas about how to work through our dreams in journals and how to use them to inspire creative writing. I hope you enjoy these prompts by Jade.

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Dream Journal Writing Prompt by Jade Bennington

There are times when dreams come at night, so vivid and puzzling, that I awake feeling heavy with the desire to create something with them, to write them down and enjoy them, to make sense of them. I've found that writing down my dreams in a journal provides me with a great source of inspiration for future poems and projects.

It's been helpful for me to mark my dream pages to easily find them. Others might like to make a separate dream journal.

Poetry Prompt: Browse through past dream journal entries. Read an entry and consider what emotion is most obvious in the dream, whether it is a feeling of anxiety, contentment, anger, or joy.
Write out the dream in the present tense. Then, write a poem in which the most compelling dream image or emotion is described in concrete detail.
It can be interesting to weave together images from different dreams that are grouped together by a common thread or emotion.

Fiction Prompt: Write a story in which a fictional character comes face to face with a dream conflict, object, or person.

Here's an example of the dream writing process:

First, the journal entry.

5/11/10
I dream that my house is on fire. After the fire is gone, I discover that some of my journals which I no longer own are piled up behind the family room couch. I flip one open and find that a friend had gone through them, and with a red felt pen, had written notes in the margins.

To work with this entry and better understand it, I circled the main words, which were: fire, house, journals, friend, and red felt pen.

And then I wrote a line for each main word, if it could speak. For example, for fire, I wrote: "I show you your clinging." And for the red felt pen I wrote, "At my best, I correct, and at my worst, I hinder with censorship."

From here, I could write a poem which includes the journals stacked behind the family room couch.
I could write a story which begins with the main character discovering someone else's journals, or a story that begins with a fire.

There are many ways to approach dream writing. Sometimes the dreams won't fit into a poem or story, and that is okay. Writing out dreams can be an art in themselves and teach us something about our minds. This knowledge can better equip us for creative writing. So, let's see what we can create.

Jade Bennington is a published poet and fiction writer from Brooklyn, NY. When she isn't writing, she enjoys parks and gardens, classical and singer-songwriter music, loose leaf tea, and visual art. She is the author of the short story collection, On a Wobbly Beach Chair beside the Ocean and can be found blogging about creative writing at Blush of Dawn. She currently lives in southern Massachusetts.

Creative Writing Prompts: Let's Make a Sandwich!

2011-08-18T10:36:00.001-07:00

Rainbow Sandwich free Creative Commons, a photo by Pink Sherbet Photography on Flickr.

Really? Sure! Sometimes the prompts I choose are inspired by some fabulous pictures I come across. I absolutely LOVE this picture by Pink Sherbet Photography. Thank you Pink and Flickr!

The fun-write below is for everyone. After your fun-write, pick an exercises below from today's writing prompts.

PLEASE post your invented sandwich in the comments below. I'd love to read about them.

FUN-WRITE: Invent a sandwich, a silly or serious, one-of-a-kind sandwich. Justify why you choose it to be what it is. Give it a name. Make it fun, make it original.

1. Essay prompt: Think of sandwiches you've enjoyed throughout your life. They could be from your home, someone else's home, a cafe, camp, anywhere.

Make a list of 5 to 7 sandwiches.
Then pick one.
Free-write for a minimum of 5 minutes about the connection you have to that place, time, etc. associated with the sandwich. Is that memory really about the sandwich? Probably not. Go there.

2. Fiction Prompt: From your fun-write, invent a character that would eat the sandwich you created. Write a scene where the character either makes the sandwich or orders the sandwich. Show how the character either enjoys it or not. Give it a minimum of 5 minutes.

3. Poetry: Write an ode to you favorite sandwich in 20 lines or less.

Abstract Art Writing Prompt

2011-08-17T06:22:00.001-07:00

Messy Trail, a photo by Ecosalley on Flickr.

Today, look at the photo for one minute. Then free-write for 5 minutes without stopping.

After that, work with what you have and use it to create a poem, essay or story.

Happy Writing! I hope you are enjoying the writing prompts.

Writing Prompts Inspired by Charles Bukowski

2011-08-16T07:37:00.001-07:00

What Matters Most, a photo by Hryck. on Flickr.

In honor of Charles Bukowski's birthday, our creative writing prompts will be starter lines from within his poems. However, you don't have to write a poem. You can use the starter lines to start anything. Pick one and write for a minimum of 5 minutes without stopping.

1. It's not my death that worries me, it's. . .
2. Very little love is. . .
3. I walked away from. . .
4. I remember my father's. . .
5. The man across the table has watery blue eyes and a . . .

Writing Prompts Inspired by the Poem, "Something You Hope You Won't Have to Tell Your Daughter" by Shoshauna Shy

2011-08-15T07:32:00.001-07:00

Ultra Concentrated Joy!, a photo by soopahgrover on Flickr.

Today I want to direct you to an interview with poet Shoshauna Shy at Long Story Short. Please read the interview and the enjoy her poems throughout.

Today's creative writing prompts are inspired by Shoshauna's poem, "Something You Hope You Won't Have to Tell Your Daughter." First, read the poem at Long Story Short,. Then pick one of the writing prompts below.

1. Poetry Prompt: In the last stanza the poet refers to simple, everyday things like "the smell of dish soap" and the "swallow of lemonade." Make a list of ten simple, everyday things tied to one of the senses. After you make your list, use at least three of them in a poem, OR pick one phrase from your list to use as a title of a poem.

Examples:
The buzz of bees
The plop of ice-cubes
The smoothness of velvet
The roughness of wool

2. Essay Prompt: Have you ever been in a situation where you had to tell someone something that was difficult? Write about it.

3. Dialogue Practice: Write a scene where a character tells another either some very good or very bad news.

Happy Writing!

To find out more about poet Shoshauna Shy, please visit BookThatPoet.com

Word Stew Writing Prompt with Shaindel Beers

2011-08-12T12:42:00.000-07:00

Many thanks to Shaindel Beers for providing the "Word Stew" writing prompt below. Once you gather your words, you can turn them into a poem or a story or ????? The sky's the limit. Have fun!

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WORD STEW by Shaindel Beers

photo by Jeff Kramer

One of my favorite prompts, whether writing poetry or fiction, is a "word stew." I teach both Intro to Poetry Writing and Intro to Fiction Writing at Blue Mountain Community College, and my students and I "make" poetry and fiction stews every quarter.

What I do is write categories on the board, such as:

(1) A store or business --
(2) A color --
(3) An invention --
(4) A town or city --
(5) A make and model of car or truck --
(6) A band --
(7) A song by that band --
(8) An animal --
(9) A plant --
(10) A food --

I put enough categories on the board so that each student gets to pick a word or phrase for that category. Then, we each have to write a poem or story that includes all of those words. So, go out, find some friends, and have at it with this prompt! It's better to do with others because inevitably other people will pick words outside of your comfort zone and you'll have new material to work with that will force you to make a departure from your normal work.

Here's a poem that I wrote in a workshop I led at Prescott College when I guest-taught in Sheila Sanderson's poetry class:

If Tesla Had Aimed His Death Ray at Vortex, Kentucky

There wouldn’t be a girl at Target in her red polo shirt
and khakis, waiting for a boy in a Ford Ranger
who will drive up, steady as an assembly line,
singing Garth Brooks’ “Friends in Low Places,”
to pick her up from work. She would not stretch
like a lily on a stem, straining for the sun, to see if he is there,
in the indigo pick-up to rescue her from shoppers
too good for Wal-Mart who will let you know it
by unleashing a storm of insults the way Wal-Mart shoppers
are too meek to. When she gets in, he will change
from Garth Brooks to The Beatles out of respect,
and they will sing off-key about the octopus’s garden.
They will joke about getting a van and painting it
like a yellow submarine. You are happy for them,
Dear Reader, because you know that death is stalking them
like a panther. Time does not stretch like Turkish Delight,
and you are glad that Tesla did not aim his death ray
at Vortex, Kentucky, because these are your parents.
The quiet trailer park girl, the burly boy in the pick-up.

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Every time I do a poetry or fiction stew, I tell the students participating in the workshop how grateful I am for their words, because I would never have come up with that particular work without them. Tesla's death ray and Vortex, Kentucky? Those two items would have never converged in my mind if I hadn't been forced to do it in a prompt! Now, let's see what you can come up with.

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Shaindel Beers’ poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. She is currently an instructor of English at Blue Mountain Community College in Pendleton, Oregon, in Eastern Oregon’s high desert and serves as Poetry Editor of Contrary. A Brief History of Time, her first full-length poetry collection, was released by Salt Publishing in 2009.

Shaindel was raised in Argos, Indiana, a town of 2,000 people. She studied literature at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama (BA), and at the University of Chicago (MA) before earning her MFA in Creative Writing (Poetry) at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She has taught at colleges and universities in Illinois and Florida but feels settled in the Eastern Oregon high desert town of Pendleton. Her awards include: First place Karen Fredericks and Frances Willitts Poetry Prize (2008), Grand Prize Co-winner Trellis Magazine sestina contest (2008), First place Dylan Days Poetry Competition (2007), Award-winning poem published, Eleventh Muse (2006), Honorable mention, Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Awards (2005), Honorable mention, Juniper Creek/Unnamed Writers Award (2005), and the title poem from this collection, “A Brief History of Time,”was nominated for a Pushcart prize (2004).

Shaindel loves meeting her readers. You can find her on Facebook or on Twitter.

You can find out more about Shaindel Beers by clicking on her website below:
http://shaindelbeers.com/

Old Houses by Robert Cording : American Life in Poetry

2011-08-10T06:55:00.000-07:00

Old house, Dendron, VA

For today's creative writing prompts, first enjoy the photo and read this week's American Life in Poetry column below. After you gaze, enjoy and read, you can choose to either start a story from the setting of this old house, write a poem about any old house, or write an essay about any house from your life.

ENJOY!

American Life in Poetry: Column 333
BY TED KOOSER, U.S. POET LAUREATE, 2004-2006

Here is a lovely poem by Robert Cording, a poet who lives in Connecticut, which shows us a fresh new way of looking at something commonplace. That’s the kind of valuable service a poet can provide.

Old Houses by Robert Cording

Year after year after year
I have come to love slowly

how old houses hold themselves—

before November’s drizzled rain
or the refreshing light of June—

as if they have all come to agree
that, in time, the days are no longer
a matter of suffering or rejoicing.

I have come to love
how they take on the color of rain or sun
as they go on keeping their vigil

without need of a sign, awaiting nothing

more than the birds that sing from the eaves,
the seizing cold that sounds the rafters.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2010 by Robert Cording from his most recent book of poetry, Walking with Ruskin, CavanKerry Press, Ltd., 2010. Reprinted by permission of Robert Cording. Introduction copyright ©2011 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.
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American Life in Poetry provides newspapers and online publications with a free weekly column featuring contemporary American poems. The sole mission of this project is to promote poetry: American Life in Poetry seeks to create a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture. There are no costs for reprinting the columns; we do require that you register your publication here and that the text of the column be reproduced without alteration.

Old Houses by Robert Cording : American Life in Poetry

Wordle Writing Prompt from Mark Stratton

2011-08-06T21:22:00.000-07:00

For our weekend creative writing prompts, here is some inspiration contributed by Mark Stratton. He is offering a wordle which was made from a blog entry he wrote about going back to school this fall to study poetry.

You can use as many or as few words from the picture to write whatever you would like. No rules! Feel free to post what you come up with.

As another prompt option, you can respond to one of Mark's favorite quotes below:

"Success comes to a writer, as a rule, so gradually that it is always something of a shock to him to look back and realize the heights to which he has climbed."

— P. G. Wodehouse

‎"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason and intellect has intended us to forgo their use."

- Galileo Galilei

A huge thank you to Mark for contributing prompts this weekend. You can learn more about Mark Stratton by vsiting http://www.retaggr.com/page/yingko

Creative Writing Prompts: Ice cream! Mine!

2011-08-04T05:03:00.001-07:00

Ice cream! Mine!, a photo by Ollie Crafoord on Flickr.

Here is a link to a poem by a high school student named Tara Morris. The poem is called, "I am a Mint Chocolate Chip." Please read it at this great website that offers a new poem every day. It is one of my favorites, "Your Daily Poem."

After you read it, take 5 minutes and write a list of all the objects that are a part of your life and define you. I love that Tara started with ice-cream. What is your favorite ice-cream? Pick objects, but also pick situational things. The fact that the bus is not just a bus, but a "missed bus," tells us a lot.

After you make your list, please write in either essay or poetry form using favorite images from your list.

PLEASE feel free to post part of what you write today. I would love to read it.

Writing Prompts About Collections

2011-08-02T05:49:00.001-07:00

penguin orchestra, a photo by roboppy on Flickr.

Do you collect anything? Do you know anyone who collects anything? Please write about a collection--either yours, someoneelse's, a collection that does or could belong to a character from one your stories, or what kind of collection you would like to have if money or space were not a barrier.

I hope you enjoy the "cool penguins" today. I dedicate this to my little brother L. who has loved penguins since he was a kid. Here's to Penny the Penguin!

Here is an article from Ted Kooser's American Life in Poetry column about a woman who collects Noah's arks. Enjoy!

BY TED KOOSER, U.S. POET LAUREATE

Many of us are collectors, attaching special meaning to the inanimate objects we acquire. Here, Texas poet Janet McCann gives us insight into the significance of one woman's collection. The abundance and variety of detail suggest the clutter of such a life.

The Woman Who Collects Noah's Arks

Has them in every room of her house,
wall hangings, statues, paintings, quilts and blankets,
ark lampshades, mobiles, Christmas tree ornaments,
t-shirts, sweaters, necklaces, books,
comics, a creamer, a sugar bowl, candles, napkins,
tea-towels and tea-tray, nightgown, pillow, lamp.
Animals two-by-two in plaster, wood,
fabric, oil paint, copper, glass, plastic, paper,
tinfoil, leather, mother-of-pearl, styrofoam,
clay, steel, rubber, wax, soap.
Why I cannot ask, though I would like
to know, the answer has to be simply
because. Because at night when she lies
with her husband in bed, the house rocks out
into the bay, the one that cuts in here to the flatlands
at the center of Texas. Because the whole wood structure
drifts off, out under the stars, beyond the last
lights, the two of them pitching and rolling
as it all heads seaward. Because they hear
trumpets and bellows from the farther rooms.
Because the sky blackens, but morning finds them always
safe on the raindrenched land,
bird on the windowsill.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Reprinted from PoemMemoirStory by permission of the author. Janet McCann's most recent book is Emily's Dress (Pecan Grove Press, 2005). Poem copyright © 2003 by Janet McCann. Introduction copyright © 2009 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

Using Unfamiliarity to Create Dramatic Tension in Writing

2011-07-29T15:48:00.001-07:00

Hello, everybody. This week's guest prompter is award-winning writer Terri Giuliano Long.

Thank you to Terri and all my guest prompters who help us out and bring us unique lessons and ideas!

Please let us know how you like the prompts. Comments are always welcome.

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Use Unfamiliarity to Create Dramatic Tension
by Terri Giuliano Long

Setting and atmosphere provide a backdrop for stories and poems, creating a sense of reality that puts readers in the moment. That’s only their most basic function. Skillfully written atmospheric detail also increases tension and drama.

Although the two work together, setting and atmosphere are not interchangeable:

Setting: the story’s time (time of day or historical time period), location, weather

Atmosphere: prevailing mood, which can be established or affected by setting

Typical ways to use setting and atmosphere to create narrative tension include: 1) setting characters in opposition to nature; 2) using dramatic irony; 3) placing characters in an unfamiliar setting. For this prompt, I’ll focus on unfamiliarity.

In strange places, we think and behave differently than we do in familiar places, where we’re comfortable and we know what to expect. Settings unfamiliar in time or place evoke a similar sense of disrupted balance for characters and for readers.

Eric Larson’s riveting book The Devil in the White City, set in Chicago during the 1893 World’s Fair, pits protagonist Daniel Burnham against serial killer Dr. D. H. Holmes. Larson vividly evokes the sights, sounds, and smells of the period, luring us into the underbelly of this unfamiliar world. This tense situation is made even more dramatic by our lack of familiarity with nineteenth century Chicago. This world operates differently than ours, so we never quite know what to expect.

In his 2005 film Hostel, Quentin Tarantino uses an unfamiliar place to create dramatic tension. Three college students backpacking in Slovakia, looking for fun and adventure, encounter terror beyond their wildest imagination. In a familiar setting – say, the U.S. or England – where the students knew the language and had a reasonable chance of getting help if they needed it, the story would be less inherently frightening. In Slovakia, even before anything terrible happens, we feel a creepy sense of danger. The kids have absolutely no idea how this world works, or how to survive it; as that reality sinks in, it terrifies them, and it terrifies us.

Writing Prompt

a) Describe a familiar place. Maybe it’s your hometown or your alma mater, your workplace, your favorite city or rural area, the city or town where you live now. Use all five senses to evoke a tangible sense of this place. What makes it unique? Describe the weather, the people, the culture, the environment – the architecture or decor. What language/s do people speak? How do people interact?

b) Write a scene or poem set in the place you’ve described. Make the scene active, vibrant – write about a riot, a block party, a festival, a parade. Bring the place to life.

c) Think of a person who’d be unfamiliar in this place– someone far younger or older than you or the other characters (a grandmother walking in on a frat house party, for instance), a foreigner who doesn’t speak the language, a city dweller in the backwoods for the first time. Rewrite a scene or poem from his or her point of view.

What changed? How did a lack of familiarity affect the protagonist? Did anything unexpected happen? How might readers interpret and experience the scenes differently? If you’re intrigued, keep writing! See where the story poem takes you!

Terri Giuliano Long teaches writing at Boston College. Her award-winning debut novel, In Leah’s Wake, is the 2011 Book Bundlz Book Pick. Visit her blog: www.tglong.com/blog/ Or connect with her on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tglongwrites Or Twitter: @tglong

Blueberry Writing Prompts

2011-07-28T05:39:00.001-07:00

Blueberries, a photo by La Grande Farmers' Market on Flickr.

Have you ever picked blueberries? What are your memories of blueberries? What do blueberries remind you of?

1. Memoir Prompt: Write about a memory of blueberries.

2. Poetry Prompt: Do an acrostic poem with the word BLUEBERRIES written down the side of your paper. Make a reference to something that is shade of blue in four of the lines. Here is a rough draft starter example:

Blueberry picking time in Michigan, and I
Love the wild taste of blueberries fresh from the patch
Under a sizzling sky
Blue thoughts of pies, jam, and cobbler cloud my mind, this
Eternal summer to be frozen in a Ziplocfor winter blues protection, but
Right now you are fresh, real,
Ripe
I've never known sweeter blues than this taste of July
Endless rows of blue paradise
Succulent summer, so delicioius and short, I savor you in blue.

Abstract Writing Prompts

2011-07-25T14:51:00.001-07:00

Abstract Art, Dubai, a photo by Virtual BCM-Bobb & Company Marketing on Flickr.

"Abstract Art... is part of the constant change and vital searching that energizes every true art." (Leonard Brooks)

For today, we are going to do abstract writing prompts based on the picture above.

1. Free-Write Prompt: Write for 5 minutes about the energy you feel, see and hear from this work of abstract art.

2. After your free-write, write either a short essay or story (minimum of 300 words) or poem (10-20 lines) inspired by the painting. Use your notes from the free-write to keep you going.

Please feel free to post part of your work or what you think about the painting.

Happy Writing!!!

Nature-Inspired Writing Prompts

2011-07-25T05:26:00.000-07:00

Colorized Butterflies by Ang Kim

"I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in." George Washington Carver

Today, I'm asking you to tune into nature. Even if it is too hot to go outside, you can look out a window, find a picture, or remember something.

Free-Write for 10 minutes: Write something about nature that you have not noticed before. For example, I have zinnias blooming in my garden, and I was intrigued that Ifound one pink zinnia with two petals that are white. I've been going back to that image all weekend, and I think I would like to write about it.

Poetry Prompt: Look at your notes from your free-write and draft a poem from them. Any length, any style, even if it is a bad poem. (You can always turn it into a better poem later!)

Fiction Prompt: Look at your notes from the free-write and use an image to relate to a character. Write about a character that is connected to one of the images or discoveries you found in your free-write.

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Joy Harjo

2011-07-21T20:48:00.000-07:00

Happy Weekend, Dear Writers!

I have a great guest prompter lined up for you next week, but this Friday, looks like you get me again. I hope you are enjoying the blog and the prompts. Please let me know if you know of any artists or writers who want to contribute to inspiring others because I would love to feature them.

I came across this FABULOUS poem by Joy Harjo that is online at the The Writer's Almanac. Please go to the poem "Perhpas the World Ends Here" by Joy Harjo. Read the poem 3 times. Yes, that's right, 3 times.

After you read the poem, take some silence just to think. Reflect on tables you sat at during family gatherings over the years. Or even just your own every day table. What memories are sparked? For your creative nonfiction prompt, please write on the subject of table memories for 10 minutes.

For your poetry writing prompt, write an ode to a table from your life, a specific table.

And for your fiction writing prompt, practice dialogue. Think of a conversation from a kitchen table, or make one up. Write a dialogue with a little conflict. Use your relatives for character inspiration.

Happy Writing and have a great weekend everyone!

Love to all,

Anjie

Creative Writing Prompts with Random Words

2011-07-21T07:18:00.000-07:00

Random Words of the Day:

pinball, trickle, crawl, sin-sweet, knuckles, happiness, mess, purge, saint, soul, cranes, Swiss Army knife, bandanna, vote, swear, essence, sunburn, boat, veil

Writing Prompts:

1. Free-write about the feelings the picture gives you.

2. Write a 10-line poem with 5 of the random words.

3. Make 3 opening lines for a story using three of the random words in each sentence. Then pick your favorite line and write from that for 10 minutes without stopping.

4. Pick a word that prompts a memory and write for 10 minutes without stopping.

Enjoying Where You Are Writing Prompt

2011-07-20T06:52:00.000-07:00

This beautiful quote and painting is by a dear friend of mine, Chantal Hoey Sanders. She is one of the most positive people I know, despite her daily struggle with fibromyalgia.

For today's writing prompt, I want you to take this quote and run with it. Make it a poem, a story, an essay, or just free-write and explore in your journal. Write about where you are in this VERY moment and what you can enjoy despite your circumstances.

Thank you to Chantal for providing today's prompt. Blessings to all of you, dear writers!

Please visit Chantal's website to learn more about her and how she has found victory on her life's journey through fibromyalgia.
http://www.chantalhoeysanders.com/Chantals_Web_site/Home.html

Summertime Writing Prompts 1

2011-07-18T08:27:00.000-07:00

WATERMELON
© Vlasta Salnikova | Dreamstime.com

Creative Writing Prompts for Summer

It's going to be a hot one out here today, for sure. Today for our creative writing prompts, we are going to reflect on summer. Where I live, summer is a great time to eat fresh fruit (like watermelon) and vegetables. We also have a lot of colors with the flowers in bloom. We will use quotes today to jump-start our writing.

Free-Write Prompt

In June, as many as a dozen species may burst their buds on a single day. No man can heed all of these anniversaries; no man can ignore all of them. - Aldo Leopold

Free-write for at least 5 minutes on what you have noticed about summer recently.

Essay Prompt

There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart. - Celia Thaxter

Write about what you are grateful for in summer.

Poetry Prompt

What are some of your favorite summer foods? Write a poem about one of them. You might want to review Barbara Crooker's prompt on food before starting a summer food poem.

Good luck and enjoy! As always, feel free to leave a comment or an excerpt of your writing.

The Writing Scavenger Hunt with Miss Good on Paper

2011-07-15T05:59:00.000-07:00

Good morning, Writers! This weekend you can think of your creative writing prompts as an adventure. Our guest prompter is Miss Good on Paper and she has a fun and interactive set of writing prompts which I know I will look forward to using with high school students in a couple of weeks. I hope you enjoy them. Please let me know how the prompts work out for you---we read all your comments and appreciate them. Thank you, Miss Good on Paper, for sharing this fabulous idea!

OLD TREE TRUNK WITH NAMES AND DATES ETCHED IN
© Nick Stubbs | Dreamstime.com

The Writing Scavenger Hunt by Miss Good on Paper

I used to love scavenger hunts, searching for items and crossing off the found objects on my list. Who am I kidding? I still love scavenger hunts. It’s why I must make a list before going to the grocery store. It’s why I love holidays like Easter, when I can hide eggs and watch my nieces and nephews discover each hidden egg like it is buried treasure.

Writing can sometimes feel like a scavenger hunt, too. You search through your mind and your notes for the right detail, the perfect setting, the ideal word. Yes, it is sometimes tedious, but you have to admit that it’s pretty fun, too.

The scavenger hunt activity is one I use with students to help get them out of their chairs and into the world. After all, so much of the inspiration for writing doesn’t happen when staring at a blank page or screen. Real life is where you meet people who will become the basis of your characters. Real life is where all your story’s amazing details begin (even if you don’t realize it at the time).

Below you will find a list of items. You’ll need to get out of your seat and start searching. You may even need to leave your home to find some of these items; take your time and take the list with you on your next outing. Try jotting down your results because you’ll need all of this later.

When you’re finished finding each item, there is a related writing activity to help you quilt together all of the items on your list.

Writing Scavenger Hunt:
One piece of graffiti

One name of a store or restaurant·

One vivid and specific description of a person

Two pieces of dialogue (overheard from someone besides you)

Two smells (be specific)

Two hand gestures or facial expressions that a person makes

Three names of food and/or drinks you’ve never tried before

Three sounds (be specific)

Also:·

Touch something and write down a description of how it feels

Listen to a song (any random song will do) and write down one lyric

Find one specific thing that is beautiful, one thing that is sad, one thing that is grotesque, one thing that is funny

Writing Activity Fiction writers: Write a scene involving that uses as many of the “items” from your scavenger hunt as possible. Try to incorporate at least one character in your scene. Do not feel forced to use them all, though. Just like in writing, not every idea will fit. You may be able to save some of these items for another piece in the future.

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem that tells a story and uses sensory details from your scavenger hunt. Do not feel forced to use them all, though. Just like in writing, not every idea will fit. You may be able to save some of these items for another piece in the future.

As a writer your job is to pay attention and observe the world. Try to imagine each day as a scavenger hunt in which you are always collecting snippets and details to use for your writing. Let me know what you find on your scavenger hunt. I’d love to hear all the wonderful details!

Miss Good on Paper is a writer, blogger, and English instructor. She writes literary fiction and her writing has appeared in Iron Horse Literary Review, The Potomac Review, Pank, and many others. She is also the author of the blog, The Writing Apprentice. She lives in South Carolina with her husband and two cats.

Dairy Queen Writing Prompts: Practice in Imagination

2011-07-14T07:19:00.000-07:00

For today's creative writing prompts, we are going to do something a little bit different --- we are going to write a commercial. Have you seen the new Dairy Queen commercials? They are very fun commercials because of the element of surprise. They are not predictable at all, and they don't make any sense, which for me is the charm.

Watch the YouTubes of the Dairy Queen commercials, and then write one of your one with an element of surprise. Notice how the last line of the commercial is, "So good, it's ridiculous." I will also put one transcript below with stars on the line that you need to come up with. Please share your star line in the comments section. I would love to read them.

This is a great exercise in your using your imagination and will hopefully get you into a creative mood.   I have also put a picture at the end so that you can free-write from today's picture if you'd like. ENJOY your writing today!

TRANSCRIPT FOR DQ BUBBLE COMMERCIAL

At Dairy Queen, we don't stop at good enough. We don't just give you a birthday cake. We give you irresistible fudge and crunch between layers of vanilla and chocolate DQ soft serve.

*****And we don't just blow bubbles. We blow bubbles with kittens inside them. Because at Dairy Queen, good isn't good enough.   ******

(Meow. . . )

Delicious DQ birthday cakes. Fudge, crunch and DQ soft serve.  So good, it's ridiculous.

Study guide for the DQ Commercials

1. What are the two names used for this store in the commercial? How many times does the store name appear in the commercial?
2. Why do think the commercial format has stayed the same, but many commercials have been done with the same format?
3. Do you like these commercials? Why or why not?
4. What does a pinata and a kitten have to do with DQ? Nothing! But it is the format that makes the commercial work, and of course, the visual way the commercial is put together. Did you notice the audio at the end, too?
5. How do you feel after seeing these commercials?
6. Do you think these commercials are memorable? Why or why not?

Feel free to write you own kind of commercial for an imaginary company.

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Free-Write Prompt:

Please free-write from the picture for five minutes.

Lao-Tzu Writing Prompts 1

2011-07-12T06:26:00.000-07:00

DUCK IN FLOWERS
© Iperl | Dreamstime.com

Lao-Tzu Writing Prompts

Whether Lao-Tzu from China is a myth or actually lived, and whether or not Lao-Tzu was conceived when his mother gazed upon a falling star (after which he lived in the womb for 62 years before emerging after his mother leaned up against a plum tree), it is true that Lao-Tzu is considered the founder of Taoism and given credit for many insightful quotes. Today we look at one Lao-Tzu quote that will inspire our creative writing prompts.

"I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These things are you greatest treasures."

Essay prompts:

1. Do you agree that simplicity, patience, and compassion are the greatest treasures? Why or why not? Give examples.

2. Reflect on how simplicity can bring joy and contentment. How can you incorporate more of that into your life?

3. Reflect on patience. Do you need more? What do you think you can do to become more patient?

Story Starters for Fiction Writing:

1. She found pleasure in simple things like. . .

2. He was surprised by her act of compassion. . .

Poetry Prompt:

Write a poem that contains at least three simple things that bring you joy.

Writing and Imagery

2011-07-11T05:12:00.000-07:00

SWAN
© Dailos Ortuño | Dreamstime.com

Writing and Imagery Creative Writing Prompts

Today we will explore imagery. I want you to go to the poem which is featured on Your Daily Poem today. It is called, "Poetry" by Mary Jo Balistreri. Within this poem, you will find some strong nature images. Which one is your favorite?

Today, I want you to explore nature and collect a list of images. Please feel free to share your images in the comments section.

Poetry Writing Prompt:

Pick an image from your list and start a poem with it.

Memoir Writing Prompt:

Mary Jo's poem is filled with imagery that is based around the scene of camping. Do you have any memories of camping? Please write about one.

Fiction Writing Prompts:

Below are some story starters based on Mary Jo's poem. Pick one and write from that for five minutes without stopping.

1. When they heard a wolf's wail echoing from the woods, they were not afraid because. . .

2. She found comfort in the unseen sounds of . . .

3. Reflections were shining from. . .

Writing Prompts With Colors by Maribeth Fischer

2011-07-08T05:05:00.000-07:00

ORANGE ALBATROSS BUTTERFLY
© Debra Millet | Dreamstime.com

This weekend, I'm quite delighted to introduce a fabulous writer and instructor, Maribeth Fischer. I've had the pleasure of participating in a couple of Maribeth's workshops, and I always walked away with brewing poems and more insight on writing. This weekend's creative writing prompt puts you on a mission, so as you explore with the list she will ask you to start, I am requesting that you please share part of your lists in the comments section this weekend because we would love to read them. Thanks so much and enjoy your writing time!

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Exercise: Finding Orange by Maribeth Fischer

Orange was my nephew Sam’s favorite color, though I didn’t know this until after
he died just before his eighth birthday. Vaguely, I recall that when he needed hearing aids
at age five or six and could choose any color, he choose orange….At least I think he did.
Maybe it was purple, another favorite color; maybe one of each. I know, too, that in one
of my favorite photographs of Sam, taken on his seventh birthday, he’s wearing a bright
orange Buzz Lightyear Hawaiian shirt.

But not until his funeral do I recall actually knowing for a fact that Sam’s favorite
color was orange. I remember how the men—his dad and my brothers, Sam’s uncles--
wore orange ties with their dark suits. I remember too, how in the days before that awful
March morning when we buried him, my mother and I frantically drove from one art
supply store to the next looking for orange foam core to make storyboards of Sam’s life.
Mostly, I remember how after the funeral service, we released 200 orange balloons into

the grey Wisconsin sky.

In the months after Sam died, I began noticing orange everywhere: someone’s
orange t-shirt or the orange highway cones at a construction site; an orange moving
van, an orange silk dress in a shop window, the orange front door of a stranger’s house.
And then I began actively searching for orange, taking photographs of my discoveries. I

pulled over along a narrow two-lane highway one morning, cars honking as they swerved
by, to take a picture of a rusted orange mailbox in the rain. Another night, through the
windshield, I photographed a peach-colored sky. I stood in front of a children’s boutique
another day to snap a photo of a pair of toddler’s orange and white striped socks pinned
to a clothesline in the window. In traffic, I sped through yellow lights to catch up with a
bright orange VW or a truck with an orange license plate. I walked the beach, camera in
hand, and spotted orange beach umbrellas, sand buckets and beach chairs, and once, an
obese man in orange swim trunks. I collected shells with vivid orange markings on their
interiors, noticed that the entire side of a restaurant on the main street of my town was
painted bright orange!

Friends began giving me orange gifts: soup bowls, bath towels, pillowcases,
frying pans, wine glasses and earrings. Orange running shorts and running shoes, nail
polish, a small table, a wrist watch, an orange Cross pen, orange desk calendar, and from
my friend Gail, a Murano glass ring from Italy that for a year, I wore everyday on my
wedding ring finger. Even now, nearly six years since Sam died, when the man I love,
a man who never knew Sam, gives me a motorcycle helmet for my birthday, he spends
weeks searching for one with an orange stripe down its center. That orange stripe is what
makes the gift unique and meaningful and what makes the helmet—for a woman who
never rode a motorcycle before meeting this man—absolutely perfect. The orange stripe
tells me that this man loves me, that he pays attention to what makes me happy. In fact,
the real gift for me isn’t the helmet but the detail of that orange stripe across its top.

But what does any of this have to do with writing?

A lot.

Maybe everything

Especially if you understand that writing is about looking hard at what has

surrounded you perhaps your whole life and finally, finally noticing it. And not just
noticing it, but finding the meaning in it, and the beauty. As the poet W.S. Merwin once
said, “A poem results from a sudden awakening of attention.

For me the color orange is a poem.

A rusted mailbox in the rain.

EXERCISE: Pick a color that means something to you: It could be your favorite
color or the favorite color of someone you love or even a color you don’t like at all.
Start searching for this color. Every day. Right now: Wherever you are sitting, find ten
examples of this color. Do this for a week. Ten examples a day for seven days. Don’t list
the same example twice. And be picky. Try to make yours a list that no one but you could
have created. This might involve searching for the color. Going to new places. Taking
walks. Driving home a different way.

If your color is red, for instance, then noticing apples in the grocery store isn’t
really paying attention. Any one can find this example. Easily. Your goal is to notice the
surprising reds, the reds that appear when you don’t expect them.
Right now, I am sitting in a Starbucks and I am trying to notice the reds and yes, I
see the stop sign at the end of the parking lot (pretty typical) and the bright red “Mattress
Discounter” sign on the building across the street (more specific, but kind of ho hum),
and the red car (a dime a dozen) that just pulled into the lot, the red taillights of the cars,
the red Exit sign over the door…all kind of generic. But at least I am noticing things (
I wouldn’t have seen any of this had I not forced myself to pay attention. I hadn’t seen
any of these things, in fact, though I’ve been coming to this Starbucks for years). Then
I notice the knot of the blue-and-red striped tie of the man sitting nearby. He’s wearing
a gray sweater-vest and the tie disappears into the vest, so the triangle-shaped knot--
comprised mostly of the red stripe across its center--is all I see.

Two days have now passed since I wrote the above description, but I can still picture that man…not just his tie, but his grey sweater vest, his pink oxford shirt, his narrow face and silvery–gray hair (almost the same color as his vest) cropped short. This is part of the joy of noticing: you think you are just focused on one detail, but that single detail will gives you an entire picture.

Again, to quote W.S. Merwin: “IF you could get one moment right, it would tell you the whole
thing” he said in an interview. “And that’s true of your own life—each moment is absolutely
separate and unique, and yet it contains your entire life.”

So it is with details.

And this, in a nutshell, is what the best writing is about: finding the exact detail that
allows us to see a world we couldn’t have otherwise.

So seven days. Ten objects a day. This is not as easy as it sounds. In fact, it should

be a challenge. Keep in mind that if it’s easy to find your ten objects, chances are that
you are finding generic examples as opposed to specific examples that are unique to you.

Remember: The search is as important, perhaps more important, as what you
actually find.

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Maribeth Fischer's first novel, The Language of Goodbye, was awarded Virginia

Commonwealth University's First Novel Award for 2002. Fischer’s second novel, The

Life You Longed For, chosen as an April 2007 BookSense Notable Book, as well as a

alternate book selection the Literary Guild. Currently it has been released in five foreign

countries.

Fischer’s literary essays have appeared in such journals as The Iowa Review and The Yale

Review, and have twice been cited as notable in Robert Atwan's Best American Essays.

She has also received a Pushcart Prize for her essay Stillborn, as well as a Smart Family

Prize for her essay Lottery.

Currently, Fischer lives in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. In addition to founding the

Rehoboth Beach Writers’ Guild and serving as executive director of the Writers At The

Beach: Pure Sea Glass writing conference, which over 5 years raised and donated over

$65,000 to mitochondrial disease research in her nephews’ names, Fischer teaches

workshops in writing. She also speaks at medical conferences and to healthcare workers

about writing.

Writing Prompts: Have a Day of Swans, Hollyhocks and Splashing. . .

2011-07-07T06:37:00.000-07:00

STORMY HOLLYHOCKS
© Jdgrant | Dreamstime.com

On Tuesday, The Writer's Almanac featured a fantastic list poem by Lou Lipsitz called, "Have a -------_ Day." The poem is a clever list poem that brings the term "Have a Nice Day" to shame. Lipsitz' poem is a list of surprising wishes for your day. Here is a little excerpt from the middle of the poem:

. . . Have a day of endearing nonsense,
of hopelessly combing your hair,
a day of yielding, of swallowing
hard, breathing more deeply,
a day of fondness for beetles. . .

Creative Writing Prompts for July 7, 2011

Warm-up: If you are able, please read the entire poem by Lou Lipsitz. After reading the poem, create a list of your own fun wishes for what kind of day you want to have or you'd like someone else to have. Be outrageous and go wild. Have fun and hold nothing back. Write for 5 minutes without stopping.

Poetry Prompt: Model a list poem after the example poem. Weave your list into a poem with a clever ending.

Fiction Writing Prompts: Below are some story starters based on the Lipsitz poem. Pick one or make your own original to start a story from. Write for 5 minutes and see what you get.

1. He was looking forward to a day of diving into cool water. . .

2. It was a day of soaking rain and lightning. . .

3. The sisters were having a day of hair-yanking jealousy and meanness. It all started when. . .

Creative Nonfiction

Think of a fond summer memory. Write about your memory starting with the phrase, "It was a day of. . . "

my favorite things - julie andrews

2011-07-06T07:03:00.000-07:00

Today's writing prompts are centered around our favorite things. Enjoy the music by Julie Andrews. Then make a list of 10 of your favorite things. Try to make a phrase for each. For example, it's not just a rose, but "raindrops on roses," as the song goes.

After you make your list, you can chose to write an essay or a poem about one of them. You could also write a list poem titled, "My favorite things," and include all on your list and perhaps more.

This is good writing practice. No such thing as writers block on this one!

For fiction writers, if you have a novel you are working on, pick one of your characters and spend a time making a list of what your character's favorite things are. This can give you some insight as you continue on with your book. If you are not working on a novel, pick a character from one of your short stories and go from there.

Happy Writing! And please, in the comments section, give us a few of the items on your list. We'd love to see them.

Bikini Writing Prompts

2011-07-05T04:57:00.000-07:00

A girl in a bikini is like having a loaded pistol on your coffee table. There's nothing wrong with them, but it's hard to stop thinking about it. - Garrison Keiller

Happy Birthday, Modern Bikini!

It was on this day in France in 1946 that the Bikini was formerly introduced in Paris. The designer had a hard time finding a model to agree to pose with it, so he had to hire an exotic dancer. The bikini, introduced as the world's smallest bathing suit, was predicted to cause a cultural explosion grater than the nuclear explosions in Bikini Atoll, so that is where the name "bikini" comes from. Though it was formerly introduced in the 40s, Roman paintings and evidence from the Mayan civilization prove that the bikini dates much farther back than the 1940s.

Memoir Prompt: Write about a memory of a bikini--- seeing one, wearing one, etc.

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem about a bikini.

Essay Prompt: What do you think about bikinis? There are some countries where it would be quite scandalous to wear one. Do you think they are a good idea? Why or why not? Explore your thoughts and give examples to back up your opinion.

4th of July Writing Prompts 2011

2011-07-03T22:13:00.000-07:00

FIREWORKS
© Aleksandr Klimashin | Dreamstime.com

4th of July Fireworks Writing Prompts

Happy 4th of July!

When I was a child, 4th of July was a little scary. I was horrified of fire, and I can remember going inside the house or garage when it came time to light sparklers with my sister and cousins. Eventually, I got more used to them, but I would hold them from as far away from my body as I could, and I wouldn't twirl them and skip around like the other kids did. I have no idea where the fear came from, but to this day I am not very comfortable around fire.

I did love fireworks, though. My family would walk down to the neighborhood school where we would have a beautiful view of the fireworks show that was coming from the county fairgrounds. I loved the different colors and forms. Like most kids, I was disappointed to see it all end. But how I loved the grand finale when so many colors exploded at once! It always gave me such a magical feeling, a rush of excitement. And when I reflect on those times now, I can still feel that same feeling, and it is true happiness and sacredly special. I think I felt safe watching the fireworks because I knew they were so far away, but probably mostly because my family was all standing closely together without any other distractions, just the fireworks and us.

For today's creative writing exercises, you are going to make a list of places where you have seen fireworks. After you have about 5-10 things on your list, pick one and write a short memory about watching the fireworks in that place. Include how you felt, who you were with,what the occasion was, etc.

Fiction Writing: Pick a place from your list and start a short story in that setting. Write for 15 minutes without stopping.

Poetry Writing: Write a haiku with a reference to fireworks. See my post on haiku if you need to refresh the general rules.

Junk vs. Treasure Writing Prompts with Donna Vorreyer

2011-07-01T06:44:00.000-07:00

I'm happy to announce that today our guest prompter is teacher and writer Donna Vorreyer. I connected with Donna online when I came across her awesome blog that includes a featured called Poetry Tow Truck. She posts weekly poetry prompts, so poets will want to make sure they visit her blog. Today, Donna has created prompts for poetry and prose writers based upon the them of a junk drawer. I hope you will post a comment or even part of what the prompts inspires you to write. Enjoy and have a great weekend!

One Man’s Junk is A Writer’s Treasure:

Using Ordinary Items to Create Narrative

Writing Prompts by Donna Vorreyer

If you are a normal, red-blooded, human being, you have the equivalent of a junk drawer in your house. Oh, it doesn’t have to be a drawer. It may be a basket, a plastic box, a purse or even the back seat of your car. But you have a place where strange, everyday items collect themselves and live together.

Very often, it is hard to remember why some of the items were kept or how they got there. If you take inventory of the everyday items lying around your house (or even in this one place), you have the seeds for some new writing. Like William Carlos Williams says, “No ideas but in things.”

For today’s prompt, gather five everyday household or junk drawer items. Grab them quickly without too much forethought. Go do it. Now. (Not trying to be bossy, but having them before you read on works best.)

Now that you have your items, arrange them in order on the table. (Items 1,2,3, etc.) You will now use them to create either a series of small poems (or a short story, if you are a prose writer) with a narrative that incorporates these items as integral parts of the story.

As an example, I will share a few “snapshot” poems that were based on photographs of everyday items that I traded with poet/book artist Matt Barton. (His “inventory” poems were collected in a mini-chapbook called moments.) These poems start to create a story of a relationship that is damaged or over in some way:

corkscrew

I grew

accustomed

to flotsam

in the chardonnay

those gritty bits

of grief

between the teeth

you never

completely got it

not once

ornament

You prefer shiny orbs

all flash and sparkle

glazed with glass and glitter

Me the dull felt circle

made in second grade

hanging from a pipe cleaner

on an inside branch

toothbrush

frayed bristles

break free

and float around

my gums

brush against

the places

your tongue

used to

touch

For an alternate prompt, you could literally make an inventory list. (Item One: Corkscrew. Black plastic with a silver spiral. Small scratch on the turning mechanism…) That list itself could be a poem or a piece of fiction written in short vignettes.

Bio:

Donna Vorreyer is a poet/teacher from the Chicago area who has enough junk in her desk alone to keep her writing for years. Her work has appeared in many journals, including Rhino, Weave, qarrtsiluni, Cider Press Review, New York Quarterly, and most recently in Mixed Fruit and Referential Magazine. Her first chapbook Womb/Seed/Fruit was published by Finishing Line Press in 2010 and a second, Ordering the Hours, is slated for publication in 2012 from Maverick Duck Press. She blogs at Put Words Together; Make Meaning, which includes weekly prompts for writers on Saturdays. To find more her work, visit her website.

Writing Prompts with Sisters and a Cafe

2011-06-30T05:27:00.000-07:00

Café Tortoni, en Avenida de mayo, Buenos Aires

Robert Fiadone

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you have probably figured out by now that I love Ted Kooser's weekly column "American Life in Poetry." I think he picks quality, accessible poems ,and often they inspire me. I plan to feature the columns from time to time because a lot of these poems make great writing prompts. Enjoy this week's poem "More Lies" by Karin Gottshall, and you will find the prompts below.

American Life in Poetry by Ted Kooser, U.S. Poet Laureate

Some of us have more active fantasy lives than others, but all of us have them. Here Karin Gottshall, who lives in Vermont, shares a variety of loneliness that some of our readers may have experienced.

More Lies by Karin Gottshall

Sometimes I say I’m going to meet my sister at the café—

even though I have no sister—just because it’s such

a beautiful thing to say. I’ve always thought so, ever since

I read a novel in which two sisters were constantly meeting

in cafés. Today, for example, I walked alone

on the wet sidewalk, wearing my rain boots, expecting

someone might ask where I was headed. I bought

a steno pad and a watch battery, the store windows

fogged up. Rain in April is a kind of promise, and it costs

nothing. I carried a bag of books to the café and ordered

tea. I like a place that’s lit by lamps. I like a place

where you can hear people talk about small things,

like the difference between azure and cerulean,

and the price of tulips. It’s going down. I watched

someone who could be my sister walk in, shaking the rain

from her hair. I thought, even now florists are filling

their coolers with tulips, five dollars a bundle. All over

the city there are sisters. Any one of them could be mine.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2010 by Karin Gottshall, whose most recent book of poetry is Crocus, Fordham University Press, 2007. Poem reprinted from the New Ohio Review, No. 8, Fall 2010, by permission of Karin Gottshall and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2009 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

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Fiction Prompts:

We have done story starters before to generate fiction, but today's story starters involve you filling in a blank and then going from there. These starter lines are inspired by today's poem.

1. He likes a place that is lit by __________________ . . .

2. He watched someone who could be her ________________ walk in . . .

3. She carried a bag of __________________ to the __________________ . . .

Poetry Prompt:

I love the line, "Rain in April is a kind of promise/that costs nothing." Think about nature and the months and what kind of promises that cost nothing. Make a list of about 5 things, and then pick one to write a poem about.

Essay Prompt:

If you could add one thing to your life that doesn't exist, what would it be? Why? Write about it.

Picture Prompt:

Look at today's picture and write a scene between two people inside the cafe. This can be done in fiction or drama.

Red Truck Writing Prompts

2011-06-29T05:22:00.000-07:00

Today's prompt is brought to you courtesy of Red Oak Publishers. The whimsical picture, "Red Truck," is by Wisconsin artist Toni Pawlowsky. Toni's artwork is featured on both Red Oak printed cards (with verse or blank) and is free as an ecard.

Your writing prompts today will be based on the painting.

Fiction Writing Prompts:

1. Look at the picture and write a story about where they are going today. Notice how the dogs are all in place for a road trip. Where will this character take them and why? What will they do? What will they encounter?

2. Study the person in the painting and write a character sketch about her. What is her name? What are her hobbies and passions in life? What is her relationship like with her dogs? Where do they live? Write about this character for at least 5 minutes without stopping.

Poetry and Creative Nonfiction Prompts:

If you visit the Red Oak card site, you'll find a super awesome "quote-o-matic" machine that features a new quote every time you go to a new page or refresh the page. All quotes in the quote-o-matic are by poet Ellis Felker, Red Oak's founder. One quote states:

"A simple life is what I ask. Just a life full of hill sitting and west watching."

Write an essay or poem about the simple pleasures of summer that bring you peace.

Many thanks to Ellis Felker and Toni Pawlowsky for inspiring today's prompts. I discovered Red Oak cards years ago, and I HIGHLY recommend them. They are of excellent quality, the artwork is amazingly beaituful, and you can't beat the price. Spread some joy and send one of their free ecards today. The process is simple and there are no crazy flash ads or registration requited. You can get there by clicking here.
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About Ellis Felker and Red Oak Publishers

Ellis Felker founded Red Oak Publishers in 1976. It all started with the publishing of his first little book of poems, Childhood River. In 1983 he began publishing photographic cards and posters. Gradually he added the work of other fine artists and photographers to the Red Oak line.

From clowns to cows to crocuses, Red Oak cards depict inspired scenes from all across the world - or from deep within the imagination. All cards are available either greeted or blank, and all are printed on recycled paper using soy-based inks. On the back of each is the encouraging motto, 'Find the good - and praise it.'

Today, from their rural Wisconsin address, Red Oak distributes cards, posters and across the country.

Creative Writing Prompts with Swings

2011-06-28T04:32:00.000-07:00

Now that summer has arrived, there are a lot of swings swinging in full motion. I love swings. I have many childhood memories from under the maple tree where a simple wooden swing kept my little sister and I entertained for hours. In between my living room and entrance room hangs a blue hammock chair swing that brings joy and peace to my little boy. I always longed for a porch swing, but instead I have two gliders outside in the garden where I can enjoy sweet moments with my family. Before we begin our writing prompts today, please enjoy the poem "The Swing," by Robert Louis Stevenson. You'll find your writing prompts below the poem.

The Swing by Robert Louis Stevenson

How do you like to go up in a swing,
Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,
Till I can see so wide,
River and trees and cattle and all
Over the countryside-

Till I look down on the garden green,
Down on the roof so brown-
Up in the air I go flying again,
Up in the air and down!

Warm-up: Before you begin your creative writing prompts, take a few moments to reflect on different swings from your life and make a list of all the memorable swings you have ever encountered and where they were.

Creative Nonfiction Prompt: Write a memory about a swing from your past. Think about who you played with, what you might have worn as you played, and what feelings you had. Write for as long as you'd like.

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem about one of the swings from your list.

Fiction Writing Prompt: Look at the picture below and dream up two characters who are coming to this swing to have a conversation. Write out their conversation as dialogue practice. OR You can use two characters from a story or novel you have been working on.

Jackson Pollock Writing Prompts #1

2011-06-27T06:57:00.000-07:00

"Galaxy" by Jackson Pollock

On this day in 1926, Frank O'Hara was born. Frank O'Hara was an American poet, From 1953-1955, O'Hare served as an editor for Art News magazine. O'Hare found inspiration in art for his work, including the art of Jackson Pollock. Above, is the picture"Galaxy" by Jackson Pollock. You can browse more paintings by Jackson Pllock at the All Posters website.

Free-Writing Prompt: Study the picture above for one minute. Then free-write for 5 minutes without stopping. Just write what comes to mind. After 5 minutes, try to work your free-writing into a poem, essay or story.

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Creative Nonfiction Writing Prompts:

"When I am painting I have a general notion as to what I am about. I can control the flow of paint: there is no accident.” - Jackson Pollock

a. Applying this statement to the art you do, whether it is writing or dancing or painting, do you agree or disagree with this statement about controlling the flow of _______ (words, paint, movement, etc.)? Why or why not? Write about it.

b. Write about the theme of control over something you have or something you don't.

Writing Prompts and Insight about Creating Realistic Characters with Mark Konkel

2011-06-24T05:25:00.000-07:00

For the weekend, we have creative writing prompts by a friend of mine, author Mark Konkel. He has also has provided us with an article about how to create believable characters. Teachers take note--you might want to use this article as a resource for your class. I hope you enjoy the article and the prompts. Please leave us a note and let us know how you like them. Also, feel free to give us a little bit of what you come up with from a prompt.

Happy weekend!

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Creating Realistic Characters

by Mark Konkel

Fiction is driven on two wheels: plot and character. Oh, books on craft and writing teachers will highlight all the elements of fiction, setting, conflict, symbolism, etc., and all of those things are important, of course, but they’re little more than accessories. Change the setting of a story, and the same story can still be told – those familiar with the twenty-seven (27!) James Bond movies will agree. The setting changes, but Bond himself stays basically the same. Change Bond, and what do you have: Austin Powers. Not the same kind of story at all.

Plot is the most important thing in fiction, because it encompasses all the other elements. It’s pretty hard to change the conflict, the characters, or the setting without changing the plot, too. Despite that, plots are pretty easy to come up with (notice I didn’t say good plots are easy to come up with) primarily because there are just a few basic plots, seven or twenty or thirty-two, depending on which site you choose to believe.

Characters, however, are a different story. Creating real characters that aren’t flat or cliché is one of the most difficult things for a writer. Until now. Creating memorable, compelling characters is simple (notice I didn’t say “easy”) Just give your characters these three traits: Strong, but restrained emotions, self-justification, and surprise.

Consider one of the most famous characters from literature: Huckleberry Finn. Huck’s emotions are strong, but restrained, he justifies or rationalizes his own behavior, and he surprises. Take his emotions. He doesn’t share them with other characters; Huck only discusses them with the reader. He’s frightened of his father, but never actually says that. He’s suspicious of the Duke and King, but reveals that only to the reader. And he’s in anguish about slavery in the Bible compared to the slavery that he sees. But he never challenges that hypocrisy; he only challenges himself. His emotions are restrained.

Huck also justifies his own behavior. He explains why he takes off in the raft (to get away from his father), he explains why he goes south on river rather than north to the free states (to connect with the Ohio river, then head north), and he explains why he tears up the note to Miss Watson telling her about her escaped slave, Jim (because freeing slaves is wickedness, and Huck was born to wickedness.)

And Huck surprises. The most common forms of surprise are contradictory character traits, the minister who swears, the monster who’s afraid of a tiny mouse, the prostitute with a heart of gold, etc. Huck surprises by his intelligence, his sense of morality, and his resourcefulness. Raised by a drunken father, but Huck is able to resist the propaganda of the Duke and the King. Huck is destitute, but he sees money as a burden. And unlike the adults around him, Huck, the poor, uneducated, son of a drunk – he’s the one who understands the hypocrisy of slavery.

The secret to creating memorable, compelling characters lies in these three traits: strong, but restrained emotions, self-justification, and surprise. Simple, but not easy.

Writing Prompts by Mark Konkel

1. Pick out any domestic or business situation - husband and wife talking, mother and child watching TV, two kids playing any sort of a game, colleagues working on a business presentation, boss firing an employee, two coworkers falling in love -- anything at all, just make sure there are no more than two characters. The twist is that one of the characters is clearly extremely frightened by something unknown AND the frightened character will NOT reveal the source of his or her fear to the other character, OR to the reader.

2. The beginning lines are:

The woman wore a white dress which, despite that it wasn’t tight-fitting, short, or exposing desperate cleavage, nonetheless interrupted the board meeting. She wasn’t even that sexy, what with her big hips and varicose veins, but she was standing on the ledge outside the executive conference room. I took the floor, and made a motion for a break, Carlisle seconded it, but before we could vote on it, Gardner said “For God’s sake, Michael!”, then rushed over to her, presumably to see if she had an employee badge on. If she did, we might be liable.
Continue the story from there.

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Poetry Prompt: For those looking for a poetry prompt this weekend, Anjie recommends stopping by Adele Kenny's blog, "The Music In It" for an awesome prompt about rain.

Happy Writing!!!

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Mark Konkel

Based in Wisconsin, Mark Konkel has been writing and teaching for ten years. He’s fifty-one years old and works full time as a teacher and a certified public accountant. He earned his accounting degree from Lakeland College and his Master of Fine Arts from Vermont College. His primary hope is that readers find his stories meaningful and enjoyable. His writing appeared in Faraway Journal, Quality Women’s Fiction (the special Men Write for QWF issue), Read This Magazine, Kaleidotrope, Abacot Journal, Cause & Effect Magazine, River Oak Review, Mississippi Crow, Nano Fiction, Heartlands, American Drivel Review, The Binnacle, Sinister Tales, Free Verse, Timber Creek Review, and Transcendent Visions, he’s been a guest writer for On The Brighter Side, and his first novel, Disaster Park, a sci-fi work, is available from Blue Leaf Publications.

Mark admits he can’t listen to television, radio, especially commercials, and overheard conversations without automatically noting and correcting grammatical errors.

To learn more about Mark and his writing, please visit the following links:

Publisher: Blue Leaf: http://www.blueleafpub.com/dpinfo.htm
Print Edition http://tiny.cc/d61un
e-book Amazon: http://tiny.cc/p36eb
e-book Barnes & Noble http://tiny.cc/zm0ql
Review: http://tiny.cc/i7ie1
Review: http://tiny.cc/q3r1f
Review: http://tinyurl.com/4qy8gbz
Interview: http://tiny.cc/1e3je

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Creative Writing Prompts About Feelings

2011-06-23T06:07:00.000-07:00

For today's creative writing prompts, I would like everyone to look at the picture and write down what you think the girl might be feeling, and/or what she might be thinking in her head. (Examples: I can't believe she did that to me! OR What am I going to do now?) Write for about two minutes.

Creative Writing Prompts

1. Creative Nonfiction Prompt:

Have you ever felt any of the emotions from the list? Write about it.

2. Fiction Writing Prompt: Write the scene about what happened to the girl before the picture.

OR

Dialogue Practice: Write a scene about the girl and someone else coming into the picture to ask her, "What's wrong?" Use one of the phrases from your list to get you started. Write about a page of dialogue for writing practice.

3. Poetry Writing Prompts:

Pick an emotion or phrase from your list and write a poem of 15 lines or less with that theme.

OR

Write a poem of 15 lines or less about how you are feeling right now.

A Room From Your Past

2011-06-22T06:10:00.000-07:00

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Ted Kooser:

A Room From Your Past

Today we are going to be thinking not of houses from our past, but rooms. Start by making a list of 10 or more rooms you remember from your past. They don't need to be places you lived in; they could be rooms in places you visited, a cottage you might have stayed at, a hospital room, a room from a school, etc.

After you make your list, and only after you make your list, read Ted Kooser's poem, "A Room in the Past."

Here are some simple reflections and study questions to help you take in the poem and notice how it works:

Study Guide and Questions to "A Room in the Past" by Ted Kooser.

1. Notice how everything describing the poem is concrete until you get to line 5. What is abstract about line 5?

2. Look at lines 9 & 10. There are phrases of time in both. In line 9, it is "just" to imply something had just happened, but what is the time phrase in line 10?

3. Look in lines 13 and 14 and notice how Kooser brings the outside into the room. What three words are things that are from nature?

4. On line 14, the poet makes a personal connection by mentioning someone. Who is it? Why do you think the poet mentions this toward the end of the poem?

5. In lines 15 - 17, a supernatural and abstract concept are combined. Then the poem is finished off with a very concrete image, which brings it all to life and makes it all real.

6. How many adjectives are in the poem? You will notice there aren't many and they aren't fancy. Remember, don't overdo adjectives and adverbs in your poems. Be aware of every one you use to make sure it is truly adding to the poem and moving it along.

7. Notice how in line 3, Kooser uses the word "you" to draw the audience in.

Poetry Prompts:

1. Pick a room from your list and work on a poem that includes some elements of nature and/or the supernatural. Address the audience as "you" in the early part of the poem, just like Kooser did. Bring a person into the poem (and that person can be you), but not until the poem is at least half way finished.

OR

2. Write a poem that ends with "Turning his/her back on the rest of us, forever." When you are finished, you may want to rewrite your last line so it is not exactly like Kooser's last line, but for now, use it as your guide.

Fiction Prompt:

1. Write a story that takes place in one of the rooms from your list. Add an element of the supernatural to your story. Write a minimum of 300 words.

OR

2. Write a story that starts with an opening scene in the kitchen from the picture.

Creative Nonfiction:

Write a memory about one of the rooms on your list. Write a minimum of 300 words.

Sumer Solstice Writing Prompts

2011-06-20T22:30:00.000-07:00

Creative Writing Prompts for Summer Solstice

For our creative writing prompts today, we will celebrate summer by looking at some quotes that will lead us into various prompts.

1. Journal Prompt:

"There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart." ~Celia Thaxter

Write about what you are grateful for in the season of summer, and why you feel that way.

2. Fiction Writing Prompt:

"Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability." ~Sam Keen

Write about a character who is lazy in summer. What should the character be taking care of that he or she is not? How old is the character? Why is the character lazy today? Where does the character live?

3. Creative Nonfiction Prompt

"A life without love is like a year without summer." ~Swedish Proverb

Write about a specific time in summer when you felt love, or a specific time when you didn't.

4. Humor Writing Prompt

"Heat, ma'am! it was so dreadful here, that I found there was nothing left for it but to take off my flesh and sit in my bones." ~Sydney Smith, Lady Holland's Memoir

Try your hand at humor and complete the phrase, "It was so hot that. . . "
Try completing that phrase 10 times. Did you come up with anything funny or interesting?
Pick your favorite one and try writing from that for 5 minutes.

Feel free to put your funny one liners (It was so hot that. . . ) in the comments section. And as always, you can share anything in the comments section.

Happy Summer Solstice and Happy Writing!

Writing Prompts Inspired by Phillip F. Deaver

2011-06-20T06:58:00.000-07:00

If you are able, please read the poem "Gray" by Phillip F. Deaver that was featured on The Writer's Almanac last week. Please read it before reading the next paragraph if you don't want to know the ending right now.

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In Phillip's poem, we learn about the life of a family through things about the kitten and things the kitten did. Note that one of the technique's Phillip uses to make this poem effective is that he draws into the kitten's life (stanza 1), then tells us about the family problem (stanza 2), and then ends us with more sad news about the kitten (stanza3). With this technique we are drawn into both the kitten and the family, and we are left grieving for both. This poem may seem simple on the surface, but it is layered with two stories, and down to earth with a theme that many of us can relate to.

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Writing Prompts:

Did you ever have a pet?

1. Write a short memoir or poem about a pet you once had. Focus on things your pet did, whether with you or without you, and let the things your pet did define who each of you are and what the relationship was through the pet's actions.

For the next set of writing prompts, I've taken phrases inspired by the poem and you can just go with them. Set your timer for at least five minutes and write without stopping.

2. Poetry prompt:

Through the walls to our family life. . .

3. Fiction and Memoir Starters:

a. She knew where we were going. . .
b. After our family broke. . .
c. Months after we were gone. . .

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Attention Readers: How is this blog working for you? We are always looking for comments and feedback. You can also post some of your writing from the prompts. Thank you!

Alice in Wonderland Creative Writing Prompts with Dr. Katy J. Vopal

2011-06-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited to bring you this week's guest prompter Dr. Katy J. Vopal! Not only is Dr. Katy J. a talented writer, passionate professor and a totally awesome person, she is also a dear friend of mine. She has put quality time into the writing prompts for this weekend, and I'm confident you will get a lot out of these if you take the time to apply your creativity with an open mind. And if you have fun with these whimsical prompts, well, I'll bet you'll get even more out of them.

Running with the theme of the Mad Hatta, Cheshire Cat and that curious girl named Alice, these writing prompts will keep you busy creating throughout the weekend and beyond.

I expect these to be especially poular with teachers, so teachers, please take note.

And for now, all mad hats off to Dr. Katy J. for being our guest--THANK YOU!

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

We’re All Mad Here

Creative Writing Prompts by Dr. Katy J. Vopal

"Contrariwise," continued Tweedldee, "if it was so, it might be; and if it were so, it would be; but as it isn't, it ain't. That's logic."

While my taste in literature and my own writing have always seemed to dwell in the realm of realism, I always loved, been drawn in, and inspired by the works of Lewis Carroll, “Alice in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass.” For the unsuspecting reader used to the film interpretations, these two novels can seem like an impermeable collection of nonsense that begs the question, “What does this all really mean?” The beauty of the novels is that there are so many things -- dreams, games, puzzles, questions, commentaries, fantasy, and simple fun. The narrative is intertwined with lyrics and poetry, many of which infamously stand alone, “Jabberwocky” and “The Walrus and the Carpenter.” Wonderland is a landscape of unforgettable characters, many of whom the reader will only encounter for a couple of pages – the White Rabbit, Mad Hatter, Cheshire Cat, the Doormouse, Tweedledee and Tweedledum.

Carroll’s Wonderland is popular for a multitude of reasons, and I can only speculate that the main reason is because of the risk he took to simply play with the manuscripts. He did not follow conventions. He took a risk, a risk all writers can learn from -- we should craft our writing not as we think it should be, but as our writing thinks it should be! Taking this risk does not mean that our writing needs to be as surreal as Carroll’s work, rather trusting the path and pattern of our creativity; it does not need to be a mold nor does it need to copy anybody else’s writing.

Here are some prompts to inspire you … let the writing lead. When we do so, our stories, poems, and characters take us in directions we never knew existed. The possibilities are endless. Don’t be afraid to follow your piece “down the rabbit hole” and see where it goes!

Warm up

"When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less."

"The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things."

"The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master— that's all."can make words mean so many different things."

In most writing situations, we are restricted to the meanings of words that are dictated by the rules of our language. In a free-writing warm up exercise, craft a short paragraph or poem where you choose a word and assign it different meaning. Explore it, expand it, play with it. Be descriptive. Make the word and its new meaning central to your piece, the spinal cord, the thread, the yolk. Here’s the catch, don’t explain to your readers exactly what your “new meaning” is, practice showing them through exploration and description. This will build the ever-important skill of “show, don’t tell.”

Memoir

“I could tell you my adventures — beginning from this morning,” said Alice a little timidly: “but it's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.”

“Explain all that,” said the Mock Turtle.

“No, no! The adventures first,” said the Gryphon in an impatient tone: “explanations take such a dreadful time.”

I truly believe that our souls are meant to grow and evolve throughout our physical lifetime. As we journey through life, we become different people. Alice’s statement is truly prophetic, and the Gryphon in his wisdom speaks of good writing. Write a unified, flowing flash memoir piece that artfully juxtaposes who you were “yesterday” and who you are now. Focus on the important moments and the “energy” or psychological feelings of the transformation. Avoid too-long explanations. Challenge yourself to write about such significance in less than 500 words.

Fiction

'Well! I've often seen a cat without a grin,' thought Alice; 'but a grin without a cat! It's the most curious thing I ever saw in my life!'

There are curious things all around us – moments, people, situations, places, objects that are magnificently rich inspirations for our writing, especially fiction. As a fiction writer, I am constantly on the lookout for situations that I can weave into my stories. I challenge you to collect at least five “curiosities” and weave them together into a piece of fiction – an overheard conversation, someone wearing an unusual piece of clothing, someone’s strange quirk or habit, an odd item on the shelf at a flea market. The strange truths of our lives inspire our fiction all the time.

Poetry

“It seems very pretty,” she said when she had finished it, “but it's rather hard to understand!” (You see she didn't like to confess, ever to herself, that she couldn't make it out at all.) "Somehow it seems to fill my head with ideas — only I don't exactly know what they are!"

Alice spoke the words above about the poem Jabberwocky after she read it in the looking-glass book. It is celebrated as one of the most popular “nonsense” poems ever written. Read “Jabberwocky” in its entirety (found in chapter one of Through the Looking Glass or many places on the Internet, including here: http://www.jabberwocky.com/carroll/jabber/jabberwocky.html)

Let Carroll’s poem of nonsense inspire a poem of “sense” and follow the flow of inspiration. Many years ago, I was considering the “vorpal sword” used to slay the Jabberwocky; I also found it curious that this word was one letter off my own last name – take out the “r.” My last name was shortened when my ancestors came to America from Czechoslovakia, and as I thought about this connection, I produced two poems about the haunting of “unknowing” when they traveled across the world.

Reflection

‘It was much pleasanter at home,’ thought poor Alice, 'when one wasn't always growing larger and smaller, and being ordered about by mice and rabbits. I almost wish I hadn't gone down that rabbit-hole — and yet — and yet — it's rather curious, you know, this sort of life! I do wonder what can have happened to me! When I used to read fairy-tales, I fancied that kind of thing never happened, and now here I am in the middle of one! There ought to be a book written about me, that there ought! And when I grow up, I'll write one.'

This is a great quote to end my contribution to Anjie’s wonderful blog. You are always in the middle of a novel, a story, a memoir, a poem and might not even know it. Experiment, play, push your writing boundaries. Don’t be afraid to follow them. So many out-of-the-way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible.

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Katy J. Vopal holds a PhD in English – Creative Writing and is on faculty at Gateway Technical College (www.gtc.edu) where she teaches English and Communication. She also teaches creative writing courses at Ottawa University (www.ottawa.edu) and workshops for Redbird – Redoak Writing Studio (www.redbirdredoak.com) While she primarily writes novels for middle grade and young adults, her short fiction for grown-ups has appeared in a number of publications, including Inscape, Upstreet, and Dan River Anthology. Other publications include numerous articles from her time as a newspaper reporter, essays, and one poem. In case you were wondering, her favorite Wonderland character is the Cheshire Cat.

Random Words Writing Prompt

2011-06-16T04:34:00.000-07:00

Today we will combine the picture with random words (or any version of the random words) for our creative writing prompts. You will find the random words below.

1. Use 4 of the words below to write an opening sentence that connects with the picture. Then write for 5 minutes without stopping use that sentence as your starting point.

2. Poetry Writing: Write a poem about the picture in 10 lines or less. Choose a word from the list to be your title.

3. Use either the picture OR the some of the words to to write about whatever you want. Write for 10 minutes without stopping.

Random Words:
wonderment, struggle, lemon drop, ridge, burnish, vein, sweetness, 24, mouth, choose, twin, primitive, banish, glaze, up, hand print, gaze, recall, auction, chicken, future, city, tree, forget, melody, solo, bead, fly, unwind, stone, change, drum, cymbal

Haiku Writing Prompt #1

2011-06-15T05:02:00.000-07:00

cricket
do not trample to pieces
the pearls of bright dew

- Issa (1763-1827)

Haiku by Issa

In spring rain
A pretty girl
yawning.

A giant firefly:
that way, this way, that way, this -
and it passes by.

Despite the morning frost -
a child
selling flowers

Buddha Law,
shining
in leaf dew

Today it is the birthday of the Japanese Writer Kobayashi Issa (1763-1827). In honor of his birthday, we will enjoy a few of his haiku and write one of our own.

I have more examples of haiku on my pocket poems page, too.

About Writing Haiku

Haiku comes from Japan. The rules for haiku are centered around the Japanese language. If you try to compare Japanese to English, it is like comparing grapes to kiwis. So that rule about 5 syllables for the first line, 7 for the second line and 5 for the last line isn't totally required in English. Less will work just fine, often better.

There has been no consensus as to what the rules are for writing haiku in English, but there are general guidelines which are followed.

One general guideline we apply to English language haiku is that we use three lines. Syllables per line do not have to be 5-7-5, we often use less. However, some people like to practice the discipline of sticking to a syllable count, and I'm not opposed to that. However, if you are using more, it is not such a good idea in my opinion.

There should be a season word (called a kigo) in a haiku. For example, if we read a haiku that has the word "snow," that will indicate it is winter. "Firefly" will indicate summer, and "tulip" will indicate spring.

The middle line goes with both the first line and last line independently. For example, in one poem up above, you can have a pretty girl in the rain, and a pretty girl can yawn.

The first line of the haiku introduces your subject and is pretty ordinary.

The last line of a haiku should make you feel a little "Wow." Sometimes a big "WOW!" The purpose of the haiku is to transport an ordinary moment into a fresh light. The wording need not be extraordinary; it is how that last image falls in relation to the other lines that gives the "wow" affect. For example, in the morning frost haiku above, we are drawn in to the image of a child. We are set up to see something a little sad because frost isn't such a festive image. But, WOW, the last line shows the child selling flowers, so our hearts are heightened to joy for that image, and we are surprised.

The haiku is short and should focus on one moment---one little slice of life.

The Haiku Society of America can give you a lot of information about haiku. The above is just some general guidelines that should be enough to get you started.

Haiku Writing Prompts:

1. Write a haiku with any kind of insect in it.
2. Write a haiku with a flower in it, and make sure to name exactly what flower it is.
3. Write a haiku that mentions rain.

You can also free-write from the picture for 5 minutes.

You may also enjoy visiting the Issa Gallery that features Iassa's haiku blended with beautiful photography.

Patriotic Writing Prompts for Flag Day

2011-06-14T06:37:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrate flag day today in the United States. Please read all the verses to The Star Spangled Banner below and you'll find the writing prompts below the poem.

The Star Spangled Banner

by Francis Scott Key

Oh, say, can you see by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream:
Tis the star-spangled banner: O, long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh, thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand,
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

"The Star-Spangled Banner" by Francis Scott Key. Public domain.

For your writing prompts today, I am going to use phrases from the song that you can complete any way you would like as a free-write. Try free-writing for 5 minutes. After that, you can decide if you would like to take the next step and develop your writing into an essay, a poem or story.

1. Through the mists of the deep. . .

2. The morning's first beam. . .

3. Praise the Power that has made. . .

4. We must conquer. . .

Fun Write Prompt: We have flags for countries and states. Design a flag for your city, community or family. What should it look like? What symbols can you use that represent what is important to this group? Write it out and/or draw a picture.

Writing Prompts with Bubbles

2011-06-13T05:17:00.000-07:00

Today our creative writing prompts will center around bubbles.

Free Write: Make a list of all the things that make bubbles. You can turn this into a list poem with a more specific bubble theme OR you can pick one thing from your list and write about that any way you would like.

Fiction Writing Practice: Invent a character with the name Bubbles. Is it the character's real name or a nickname? If a nickname, how did the character get the name? Reflect on what the character's favorite food is, what hobbies he or she has, etc.

After you develop the traits of the character, you are welcome to start a story, of course!

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem about a place where one can encounter bubbles. Write about the scene and what makes it magical, special or interesting.

Writing Prompts About Uniforms

2011-06-10T00:00:00.000-07:00

Before posting your weekend writing prompts, I'm going to post this week's American Life in Poetry column because I think the poem is excellent.

This week's TED KOOSER'S "American Life in Poetry" Column # 324

Here is a fine poem by my fellow Nebraskan, Barbara Schmitz, who here offers us a picture of people we’ve all observed but haven’t thought to write about.

Uniforms
by Barbara Schmitz

It is very hot—92 today—to be wearing

a stocking cap, but the adolescent swaggering

through the grocery store automatic door

doesn’t seem to mind; does not even appear

to be perspiring. The tugged-down hat

is part of his carefully orchestrated outfit:

bagging pants, screaming t-shirt, high-topped

shoes. The young woman who yells to her friends

from an open pickup window is attired

for summer season in strapless stretch

tube top, slipping down toward bountiful

cleavage valley. She tugs it up in front

as she races toward the two who have

just passed a cigarette between them

like a baton on a relay team. Her white

chest gleams like burnished treasure

as they giggle loudly there in the corner

and I glance down to see what costume

I have selected to present myself to

the world today. I smile; it’s my sky blue

shirt with large deliberately faded Peace sign,

smack dab in the middle, plus grey suede

Birkenstocks—a message that “I lived through

the sixties and am so proud.” None of the

young look my way. I round the corner and

walk into Evening descending.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2009 by Barbara Schmitz, whose most recent book of poems is How Much Our Dancing Has Improved, Backwaters Press, 2005. Poem reprinted from the South Dakota Review, Vol. 47, no. 3, 2009, by permission of Barbara Schmitz and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2009 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

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Creative Nonfiction Prompt: Think about all the real uniforms you have worn in your life. Make a list of them. For me, my first uniform for a job was a polyester navy blue zip-up shirt with ruffled short plaid sleeves. It bore the emblem "Tastee Freeze." They weren't too bad, actually. At another job I had, I wore a white lab coat everyday, but due to the nature of the work getting the lab coat so dirty, I eventually got navy blue lab coats instead. I never had to wear a school uniform or camp uniform and I never was a Brownie or Girl Scout. I did play softball for a short time in high school, and if we had uniforms, I do not remember.

After you make your list, decide if you want to write a themed piece based on the different uniforms you have worn in your life, or if you want to just focus on one. Write about the uniform and connect it to your life at the time you had to wear it. You can also write about a uniform your siblings, spouse or children wore.

Fiction Writing Practice: Create a character who loves his or her job, but HATES the uniform. What is the job? What does the uniform look like? What kind of uniform would your character like to have instead?

Poetry Prompt: Write a poem about a person that tells us about the kind of person he or she is by the way the person is dressed. This can be a random person you see out on your walk, at the bus stop, etc. Or it can be a person you know.

Free Write Prompt: What costume have you "selected to present yourself to the world today?"

Writing Prompts with Percy Bysshe Shelley

2011-06-09T06:27:00.000-07:00

For today's writing prompts, I'm happy to bring you an old, but sparkly poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley. I hope you enjoy, "To Jane: The Keen Stars Were Twinkling." Read the poem and then you can you try the prompts based on the poem below.

To Jane: The Keen Stars Were Twinkling by Percy Bysshe Shelley

     The keen stars were twinkling,
And the fair moon was rising among them,
        Dear Jane!
     The guitar was tinkling,
But the notes were not sweet till you sung them
        Again.

     As the moon's soft splendour
O'er the faint cold starlight of Heaven
        Is thrown,
     So your voice most tender
To the strings without soul had then given
        Its own.

     The stars will awaken,
Though the moon sleep a full hour later,
        Tonight;
     No leaf will be shaken
Whilst the dews of your melody scatter
        Delight.

     Though the sound overpowers,
Sing again, with your dear voice revealing
        A tone
     Of some world far from ours,
Where music and moonlight and feeling
        Are one.

"To Jane: The Keen Stars Were Twinkling" by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Public domain.

1. Poetry Prompt: Start a poem with this line, "Over the faint starlight of heaven comes. . . "

2. Fiction Writing Prompt: Write an opening scene from a story that starts in a scene, "Where the music and moonlight and feeling are one."

3. Creative nonfiction Prompt: Write about a memory you shared with someone looking at the stars or the moon.

Writing Prompts with Robert Schuman

2011-06-08T07:21:00.000-07:00

Today is the birthday of Robert Schuman, a German composer born in 1810. Did you know that Robert Schuman was training to be a concert pianist, but badly injured his right hand when he was 20, so from there he started composing? There is a great article about Robert Schuman featured today at Writer's Almanac if you would like to learn more about him.

In honor of Robert Shcuman's birthday, I am offering this beautiful music video, "Romance Violin," accompanied by images of dancers and roses. For your free-write prompt today, I ask you to play the music and/or view the images and let them be your guide.

Enjoy!

Now, let's look at some of Robert Schuman's quotes and we'll base our writing prompts off of those.

"It is music's lofty mission to shed light on the depths of the human heart.” - Robert Schuman

Poetry prompt: Write about a poem about how music has shed light on your heart. Be specific about the music that has moved you. Name the songs, the instruments, the concert experiences or talk about the joy of playing, singing, etc.

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“People compose for many reasons: to become immortal; because the pianoforte happens to be open; because they want to become a millionaire; because of the praise of friends; because they have looked into a pair of beautiful eyes; for no reason whatsoever.” - Robert Schuman

Essay Prompt: Write about why you write or create.

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Writing Prompts with Random Words and a Rose

2011-06-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

For your free-write assignment today, I ask you to free-write about the person holding the rose.

Our other writing prompt options for today are to use the random words below to compose 3 to 5 sentences using a minimum of 3 words from the list per sentence. You can change the forms of the words if you wish, like making something plural, etc. After you compose some sentences, pick one sentence to start a poem, a story, a memoir, etc.

Happy Writing!

Your random words for today are:

drizzle, more, peaches, moon, skinny, melon, operation, mutter, stand, poppy, anniversary, pebbly, Scottish, spite, meadow, between, anticipation, glance, jaybird blue, cluster, bummer, break, come back, honey, kiss, last, grow, stretch

Writing Prompt with Art by Nancy Canyon

2011-06-06T06:19:00.000-07:00

"In the Center" by Nancy Canyon

This is an art piece that writer and artist Nancy Canyon has allowed us to use for our writing prompts. There is also another creative writing prompt with art by Nancy Canyon on our Prompts for Writers site if you would like to see that, too.

Today you are welcome to free-write from today's image. Just go where your mind takes you.

You can also repsond any way you wish (poetry, creative nonfiction or fiction) to the following starter lines:

In the center. . .

I'm in the center of. . .

She wanted to be in the center of. . .

If only he were the center of. . .

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About Nancy Canyon:

Nancy Canyon, MFA, is published in Water~Stone Review, Fourth Genre, Floating Bridge Review, Poetry South , Main Street Rag, Exhibition, Obliquity, and more. Her paintings have been shown and published in Bellingham, Seattle, Spokane, and Hawaii. Ms. Canyon holds the MFA in Creative Writing from Pacific Lutheran University and an undergraduate degree in Psychology and Art Therapy from Marylhurst University. She is a Fiction Editor for Crab Creek Review, as well as a creative writing instructor for Whatcom Community College and Western Washington University's Academy of Life Long Learning. Currently she is revising her third novel and working on her art in a vintage studio located in historic Fairhaven, a village set along the edge of Bellingham Bay in Washington state.

Creative Writing Prompts with Fiona Robyn: Small Stones

2011-06-03T04:51:00.000-07:00

This weekend we are having a Stone Festival at Prompts for Writers. That means, that I am asking you to please contribute your "small stones" here in the comments this weekend.

Our guest prompter today is Fiona Robyn. I met her by coming across her blog, River of Stones (check it out for the "Blogsplah of Wedding Small Stones."

I love the concept of writing "small stones," because I believe anybody can do them. From now on, no excuses for "Writer's Block" because when we write a small stone, we are writing an observation. There is no "can't" when it comes to observing.

I think you will all love writing small stones. A small stone is writing only a little, so there is no pressure. See how Fiona guides you through the process in her post below, and I'm sure you'll discover something if you try.

Many thanks to Fiona for her contribution to the creative writing prompts today. I also wish her and her fiance Kaspa all the best as they prepare to marry in a couple of weeks!

I look forward to seeing your stones posted here this weekend as part of our Stone Festival. Let's see how many stones we can get!

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Fiona Robyn

Thank you, Anjie, for inviting me to share my writing prompt with your readers.

I would like to invite you to write a ‘small stone’ every day this week.

What is a small stone? It’s very simple. Pay close attention to something that you notice, and then write it down. That’s all!

Here are three different exercises you could try as you write your small stones:

1.       Use a different sense every day. On the first day, think about all the different things you can smell and choose one (or more) of these smells as the focus for your small stone. Then think about what you can hear, touch, taste, see, feel and think, and then on the last day put them all together.
2.       Try and notice the forgotten corners of your world. Pay attention to the over-grown patch at the bottom of the garden, or the cupboard under the sink. Look for your small stones where you don’t expect to find any. See what you can find.
3.       Practice praise. When you look around for your small stones, appreciate as much as you can – enjoy the colour of the sky, notice the wild flower growing in the street, make the most of the coffee aroma as you walk past the coffee shop. See if you can find something to praise in everything.

You can try polishing up your small stones after you’ve found them by thinking carefully about which words you’d like to use, in which order, and whether you’d like to include line breaks or not. Take out any words that aren’t essential. Say your small stone out loud and see how it sounds. Fiddle about until it seems as accurate as it can be. Try to avoid writing about yourself unless it’s an observation of yourself – leave your opinions out. The more concrete the better!

The main object of writing small stones is to help us pay attention to the world around us. As you look for them, you should notice yourself becoming more engaged with the world around you. A happy side-effect of paying attention is that small stones are often very beautiful too. Here are some examples of small stones from our recent book, Pay Attention: A River of Stones.

If you get bitten by the bug, we have a small stone writing challenge during July – find out more at the river of stones blog. And do leave me some of your small stones in the comments section – I’d love to read them!
winter sun
an old bramble blooms
with frost

Polona Oblak

On pale straw stalks brown bulrushes sway, slowly being feathered by the wind.

Sam Pennington

in the half-light
my neighbour
rakes her garden
dusk gathering
silently around her

Liam Wilkinson

Through the front window at 42 rue des Champs Elysées: a dozen yellow tulips lazing over the lip of their vase.

Jeannette Cook

early morning
four hills newly popped
happy moles

Daphne Ashling Purpus

About Fiona Robyn
Fiona is on a mission to help the world connect through writing. She runs a free community at Writing Our Way Home, where she offers e-courses and creativity coaching. She is a published novelist. She started writing ‘small stones’ in 2005, co-curates the ‘river of stones’, and edits the blogzine, ‘a handful
of stones’. She lives in Malvern in the UK with her soon-to-be-husband Kaspa (the 18th of June!) and her two cats, Fatty and Silver.

Fiona’s website: http://www.writingourwayhome.com/
Free community: http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/
A river of stones: http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/

Random Words Writing Prompts

2011-06-02T05:05:00.000-07:00

WATERFALL DGUR-DGU

Description: Waterfall on the forest

On this beautiful Thursday, I have picked out some random words to inspire our creative writing prompts. You are welcome to alter these words in any way you like. Today's words are:

lather, lilac, sway, scarf, diamond, coating, pasta, slick, barrel, loose, relive, music, sunburned, great blue heron, worthwhile, drift, relive, scratch, groovy, egg-yolk yellow, east, poke, ritual, glimmer, search

Fiction Writing Prompt: Pick at least 3 words to write an opening paragraph to a story.

Poetry Writing Prompt: Write a poem where each line contains one of the words from today's random word list. Make your poem a minimum of 5 lines.

Creative nonfiction prompt: Do any of the words provoke a memory for you? If so, write about it.

Picture Prompt: Write a paragraph about today's picture using at least 3 of the words from the list.

Perfect Day Writing Prompts

2011-06-01T07:05:00.000-07:00

For me, the weather is absolutely perfect today. We have a sunny, breezy day in the 70s and my Bride's Bouquet bush is in full bloom. The yard looks nice and it just absolutely beautiful outside.

For your creative writing prompts today, one option is to free-write from the picture above.

For memoir writing, you can write about any memories you have of feeding ducks, geese, etc.

For a poetry prompt or essay prompt, I ask you to read this wonderful poem by Alice N. Persons called "The Perfect Day." You can read it on the Your Daily Poem website by clicking here.

After you read the poem, you can write your own poem or essay about what a perfect day would be for you.

May you all a have a WONDERFUL day (it doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful) and Happy Writing!

Walt Whitman Creative Writing Prompts

2011-05-31T05:22:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to Walt Whitman! You can read a wonderful article about Walt Whitman at today's Writer's Almanac.

In honor of Walt Whitman's birthday, our creative writing prompts will be inspired by a couple of his many thought-provoking quotes.

Creative Nonfiction Prompt:

"Have you learned the lessons only of those who admired you, and were tender with you, and stood aside for you? Have you not learned great lessons from those who braced themselves against you, and disputed passage with you?"

Write an essay about someone who "braced themselves against you" or "disputed passage with you" and what you learned from that.

Poetry Prompt:

"A morning glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books."

Write a poem about things in nature that give you pleasure. You can make a list poem of many things, or you can focus on one or two things. If you choose to write about two things, try to tie them together in some way.

You can read more Walt Whitman quotes here:

Creative Writing Prompts for Writers

Writing Prompts with Stones

Writing Prompts based on Dennis O'Driscoll's "Spare Us"

Silent Love Writing Prompts

Writing Prompts: What Are You Afraid to Say?

Writing Prompts with Snow and Trees

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Valzhyna Mort

Breeze of the Future Writing Prompt

Writing Prompts About Hands

Happy New Year Writing Prompts

Point of View Writing Prompt with Jessie Carty

Writing Prompts with Poet Jessie Carty

Anne of Green Gables Writing Prompts

Writing Prompts With Laughter

Peace Dove Writing Prompts

Writing Prompts with Polka Dots

Writing Prompts with Autumn Leaves

Halloween Writing Prompts 1

Writing Prompts: Your Whole Heart

Creative Writing Prompts at Shoal Creek

Writing Prompts with SURPRISE!

Creative Writing Prompts: The Sounds of Autumn

Creative Writing Prompts with Free Association

Writing Prompts: Let There Be Peace on Earth

Writing Prompts with Willow Tree

Creative Writing Prompts: Keys

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Ray Bradbury

Creative Writing Prompts: Fun with Words

Lemons and Lemonade Creative Writing Prompts

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Willy Russell

Creative Writing Prompts with Jade Bennington

Creative Writing Prompts: Let's Make a Sandwich!

Abstract Art Writing Prompt

Writing Prompts Inspired by Charles Bukowski

Writing Prompts Inspired by the Poem, "Something You Hope You Won't Have to Tell Your Daughter" by Shoshauna Shy

Word Stew Writing Prompt with Shaindel Beers

Old Houses by Robert Cording : American Life in Poetry

Old house, Dendron, VA

Wordle Writing Prompt from Mark Stratton

Creative Writing Prompts: Ice cream! Mine!

Writing Prompts About Collections

Using Unfamiliarity to Create Dramatic Tension in Writing

Blueberry Writing Prompts

Abstract Writing Prompts

Nature-Inspired Writing Prompts

Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Joy Harjo

Creative Writing Prompts with Random Words

Enjoying Where You Are Writing Prompt

Summertime Writing Prompts 1

The Writing Scavenger Hunt with Miss Good on Paper

Dairy Queen Writing Prompts: Practice in Imagination

Lao-Tzu Writing Prompts 1

Writing and Imagery

Writing Prompts With Colors by Maribeth Fischer

Writing Prompts: Have a Day of Swans, Hollyhocks and Splashing. . .

my favorite things - julie andrews

Bikini Writing Prompts

4th of July Writing Prompts 2011

Junk vs. Treasure Writing Prompts with Donna Vorreyer

Writing Prompts with Sisters and a Cafe

Red Truck Writing Prompts

Creative Writing Prompts with Swings

Jackson Pollock Writing Prompts #1

Writing Prompts and Insight about Creating Realistic Characters with Mark Konkel

Creative Writing Prompts About Feelings

A Room From Your Past

Sumer Solstice Writing Prompts

Writing Prompts Inspired by Phillip F. Deaver

Alice in Wonderland Creative Writing Prompts with Dr. Katy J. Vopal

Random Words Writing Prompt

Haiku Writing Prompt #1

Patriotic Writing Prompts for Flag Day

Today we celebrate flag day today in the United States. Please read all the verses to The Star Spangled Banner below and you'll find the writing prompts below the poem.

The Star Spangled Banner

Writing Prompts with Bubbles

Writing Prompts About Uniforms

Writing Prompts with Percy Bysshe Shelley

STARS© Sergey Kravtsov | Dreamstime.com

Writing Prompts with Robert Schuman

Writing Prompts with Random Words and a Rose

STARS
© Sergey Kravtsov | Dreamstime.com