Your Prompts and Tips
Some free resources to help you write better and achieve the success you deserve
This is a selection we've harvested from our archives, RELOAD THE PAGE for more!
Prompts:
1. Write a few pages about a character who decides to start a garden in their backyard and uncovers an ancient artifact in the dirt that certainly doesn’t belong there. How did it get there? What will they do with it?
2. Write a few pages set at a Halloween bash where everyone has come in costume—everyone, that is, except for one person. Maybe they are a real-life vampire or a celebrity. It could be dark or funny, or darkly funny—it’s up to you!
3. Plants may respond to music, but imagine they could actually talk. What would your house plants have to say? What about the grass on your lawn? Write a few pages about a character who is the first to communicate with plants.
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Tips:
1. There are seven primary types of conflict in a story: person vs. person, person vs. self, person vs. fate, person vs. nature, person vs. society, person vs. technology and person vs. the unknown. Each one brings with it its own unique challenges. When you read, think about which types of conflict characters are facing and how they drive the narrative forward.
2. Don’t just say you like or dislike an aspect of a story. Dig deeper to support your view and get at the heart of your reaction. Did you find a particular metaphor effective? Or did a passage confuse you? In a workshop setting, it benefits the writer if you’re as specific as possible.
3. Reading a story requires patience and paying attention to detail. With so many available distractions, we can sometimes miss important aspects of a story we’re reading, especially if we’re multitasking or face interruptions. A quiet, distraction-free environment is ideal, but no matter where you’re reading, try to focus on the story alone. There is no shame in re-reading either!
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TO DO LIST:
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SCRATCHPAD:
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PRIVATE JOURNAL:
Reflect on your process — good, bad and ugly — in your dated diary.
TRACKING:
Measure your progress with key writing metrics, automatically,
TO DO LIST:
Add tasks to your sortable list, then revel in checking them off.
SCRATCHPAD:
Cache your gems as they fall in this always accessible place.
PRIVATE JOURNAL:
Reflect on your process — good, bad and ugly — in your dated diary.
TRACKING:
Measure your progress with key writing metrics, automatically,
ADD DO
Show Dones
Metric:
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Minutes
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