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Writing Prompts for May, 2016

Writing Prompts for May 2016

“Tra la, it’s May” goes the Lerner and Loewe song, and it really is starting to look like spring here. The squirrels are busy eating the buds on my cherry tree–clearly they don’t plan for the future–two robin families have set up housekeeping under my deck, and my dandelions are in full bloom. I’m doing my part for the bee population by not mowing them down yet. (Yes, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.)

On the writing side, I hope you have a creative month ahead. If you’re a fan of adult coloring–or your students are–don’t forget to check out this link for some writer’s coloring pages. Also, here are links to the coloring pages for King Lear, Hamlet, Twelfth Night, Romeo and Juliet, and Macbeth that go with my Shakespeare journal writing prompts.

Here are your writing prompts for May. Enjoy!

**Random words to combine for a story or poem

spring, path, lurk, green, shadow, shiver, cloud
disc, danger, surprise, red, angle, willow
friend, gate, run, sunlight, stream, blue

**Opening sentences for your story or novel

“I wonder where that came from?”
Helen couldn’t stop looking out the window.
“When was the last time you were really happy?”
Gravel crunched beneath their boots.
Henry hated his dentist, but he was still sorry when he found the body.
So here’s the story. I got dumped at Disneyland.
Class trips were never fun with Ms. Wigglebergen.

**Maybe one of these titles will spark a story idea.

Winter Rose, The Lonely Spider, Gateway to Wonder, The Book and the Burglar, Danger is Not My Middle Name, The Page, Miss Fortune, Everyone Loves a Lover, When Henry Came Home, The Wethering, The Red Land

**Here are some snippets of dialogue. What scene can you imagine taking place around them?

What did you buy that for?
I thought you’d like it.

Did you see that?
What?
That black thing over there.
Where? Oh!

I thought Helen would win.
So did I.
What are we going to do now?

I wish I knew where he got all that money.
I think I know.
So where?
I don’t think it’s safe to tell you.

**How does your character react to bad news? Does your character withdraw into himself or run around being busy? Are her emotions well controlled or do you know exactly how she feels about what she’s heard?

**This is a good time of year to literally stop and smell the flowers. How does a love of nature fit into your character’s personality?

Hope you all have a writerly month!

 

 

 

 

Writing Prompts for April, 2016

daffodils-716370_1920Sorry to be a day late, but yesterday was one of THOSE days. My mom, who has an apartment in our basement, woke up to a soaked bedroom carpet, our sump pump broke, and what I thought was going to be physio for a sore trapezius muscle turned into a diagnosis of rotator cuff injury and tendinitis. Today we still need a part for the new pump hook-up and the carpet (now dry) needs to be re-laid with new underpadding, and it snowed over night. On the positive side, it wasn’t rain and I woke up early enough to get these prompts to you for a creative, writerly April ahead.

My online course, The Teen Writer’s Toolbox, is behind my personal deadline. I’m at the recording stage and it’s going slowly, but I’m pleased with any progress right now. I have hopes that it will be available by the end of next week. Look for a notice soon with the announcement and a discount price for those willing to be part of the beta launch.

I’ve used a photo of daffodils today. Mine have been through rain, snow, sleet, hail, high winds, frost, freezing rain, ice, you name it. If they bloom this year, they will qualify, in my books, for the most tenacious plant ever! I have a lot to learn from them.

The winners of a free PDF copy of 201 Writing Prompts are Kari, Lisa, and Christine. I’ll send those along to you tomorrow. Congratulations and thanks to everyone who commented on my post and who offered great suggestions for my new course!

Here are the prompts I promised.

Use one, some, or all of these words in a story or poem:

fire, light, field, lost, run, black
case, grip, red, box, secret, cord
bowl, gold, web, border, track, glimpse

Here are some opening lines for you to try:

Who’s that woman in the photo?
Two years ago, I swore I’d never come back here again.
It’s no unusual to find odd bits of paper tucked into library books for a bookmark, but this time it was a letter.
Some jokes just aren’t funny.
“Next time,” said Henry, “we’ll plan our escape in better weather.”
“Moon Base Omega failed to report, sir.”
We heard the approaching horses (car) and hurried further into the woods.
I was not ready to admit defeat.

Perhaps these titles will inspire a story: The Reluctant Prince, Fire in the Hills, Murder at the Laundromat, Love and Old Movies, Yesterday Rain, The Haunting, If Looks Could Kill, Box Lunch, Danger’s Throne, Push Button to Reset, Three Robots, Holiday for Horror.

Here are some snippets of dialogue. Can you picture a scene or a story to go with them?

Am I late? Did I miss the bus?
Yes, and yes.
Why did you wait for me?

I can’t come. I’ve got work to do.
Look, it’s just this once, and we won’t be late.

Why did Henry choose to meet us here?
He said it would be safe.
You’re joking, right?

Lord Henry doesn’t trust us.
How can you tell.
His men are following us.

Oh no! My laptop’s got some weird virus!
What’s it doing?
My screen is blank except for three sets of numbers and the word help.
Let me see.

Draw for 3 Free Copies of 201 Writing Prompts

201 Writing PromptsI’m a little early for the vernal equinox, but I thought I’d celebrate spring by offering a draw for 3 PDF copies of one of my books, 201 Writing Prompts. (Click on the cover to learn more about the book.) The three winning names will be chosen from those who leave a comment on this blog post between now (March 17, 2016) and 5 PM Eastern Time on Thursday, March 31, 2016. I’ll be entering everyone’s name into random.org and the top three names will be the winners.

If you can’t think of anything to write as a comment, I’d really appreciate your input on my current project. I’m creating an online fiction writing course for teens. The course can be used by teen writers as a resource and guide for their writing projects, and I’m also preparing support material for homeschoolers who might want to use it with their students.

  • Any particular topics that you think I must definitely cover in this course?
  • Any topics you need resources for?
  • Any writing examples or models that you’d love to have?
  • What’s the most important topic that should be covered in a fiction writing course for teens?

Any suggestions you offer will be greatly appreciated!

Don’t forget to leave your comment for a chance to win a PDF copy of 201 Writing Prompts. Good luck!

Writing Prompts for February 2016

Wow! How did it get to February 5th without my noticing that I hadn’t created any writing prompts for February 1st? I’ve had my head in every other place but this blog, and here’s where it’s been.

A coloring book for writers with inspiring quotes to add some fun to your writing day.Launching a new book. Yes, I finished a coloring book for writers, and it’s now available at Amazon. It was a fun project, and I hope my fellow writers enjoy it. I love coloring books myself, and having learned how to play with some new software called Kaleidoscope Kreator, I couldn’t wait to create a whole coloring book just for writers. No how-to-write tips or places to write, just pictures accompanied by quotes from other writers who have “been there, done that.” The pictures vary in complexity, because for me, there are times when the ones with tiny spaces to color are just too much work. And since coloring books are supposed to help relieve stress, all those fiddly spaces seemed a bit counter-productive on the relaxation side.

Working on a new book. Last year I put together a journal to help people get into the daily writing habit in 66 days, Write Every Day: a journal for building your Daily Writing Habit. I’ve just completed working on a similar book, Journal Every Day: Inspiration and Prompts to Build your Daily Journaling Habit, Journal cover png (2)to help people get into daily journaling in 66 days. I journal almost every day and have found it to be very beneficial to my creativity and also a great place to leave my troubles behind, or to make my to-do lists, or just to say ‘thank-you’ for the good things in my life. I’ll be uploading the journal today or tomorrow, and hope that it will be available at Amazon early next week. And, yes, it has some coloring pages, too.

Learning how to create an online course. I’m currently enrolled in Joseph Michael’s Easy Course Creation program. It started in earnest on Wednesday, but there were a few pre-course assignments, plus my brain has been focused on what kinds of courses to offer and who my audience might be. The course will be writing related, and if you think that there’s a gap out there where a writing course should be, please let me know.

Anyhow, that’s what I’ve been up to and that’s what distracted me from writing my first-day-of-the-month writing prompts, until this morning. Here you go:

WRITING PROMPTS

Choose one, some, or all of these words to write a story or poem:

a) wonder, snow, crystal, sky, glow, footprints, run
b) number, frame, sharp, cold, red, wire, slump
c) rise, platform, cries, thunder, stone, path, danger

Use one of these opening sentences to create a story:

a) “This is the last straw!”
b) Henry looked guilty.
c) Helen looked up from her reading and her book fell from her lap.
d) I’d always wondered what real fear felt like. I was sorry I found out.
e) Monday was supposed to be the worst day of the week. Today had it beat by a mile.
f) We all felt the cold before he entered the hall.
g) Breathing at this altitude was harder than I thought it would be.
h) “Are you sure he’s here?”

Try one of these titles to inspire a story or poem: Winter Chill, Runaway, Danger at Dawn, City Nights, Gone Wrong, Box of Dreams, Winner Take All, It Only Takes One, The Call, The Text Message Murders, When Winter Comes, Helen Goes West, Love and Apples

See if these lines of dialogue help you see a scene or story.

You guys are fighting over a book?
You don’t know what’s in it.

When do you think she’ll be done?
She finished an hour ago.
Then why isn’t she here yet?

I’m not ready to go.
Well, when will you be ready?
How about never.

But Chris is Henry’s best friend!
He didn’t behave like it this morning.

Don’t bother explaining it again. I’ll never get it.
But it could save your life.
That’s what you’re here for.
And what if I’m not here?

What would your character write in his/her journal in reply to these prompts?

a)   What annoyed me today.
b)   What made me laugh today.
c)    The news story/Facebook post that made me smile.
d)    How I feel about thunderstorms.
e)    Music that brings back memories.
f)     If I could live at any time in human history, it would be ________ because ….

Have fun with the better-late-than-never writing prompts, and I wish you lots of fun and every success with your writing projects!

 

Writing Prompts for November 2015

If you’re starting NaNoWriMo today, I wish you every success. I’ve drafted a bit of a plan using tips from this extremely helpful blog: 6 Tasks You’ll Love Yourself for Checking Off Your NaNo Pre-Writing List. I know I’ll be going back to it as I work through my story. I’m fully prepared for my final NaNo word count to be nowhere near the 50,000 words of a winning NaNo novel. My life (and a recently acquired freelance contract) are going to make that impossible, so, if I can cobble together a detailed novel draft this month, I’ll be extremely happy.

What are your plans for the month? Are you writing? Are you preparing for Thanksgiving? Are you glued to the World Series or football or curling or …? Whatever you are up to this month, I hope you have a creative 30 days and lots of good times with family and friends.

To keep your creative side ticking, here are the writing prompts for the month.

  1. Use these random words to create a story or poem:
  • Cold, grey, mark, trail, storm, silver
  • Frame, glass, pen, square, white, words
  • Card, circle, phone call, strong, blue, why
  • Fire, wind, photo, black, strange, wall
  1. See where these opening lines might take you:
  • Don’t ask about my day.
  • Henry pulled goggles over his eyes and waited for the signal.
  • They say never start a story with the setting, but I think that, if you think you’re going to drown in it, it’s as good a place as any to start.
  • Helen/Henry woke to the sound of yells and crashing swords.
  • I think that magic should only happen on stage, or on a screen, and a safe distance from me, but apparently, not today.
  • Helen handed the flowers back to the delivery man. “Give them to someone else,” she said and closed the door.
  • The woman in the photo on the gallery wall looked just like my mom, except the photo was taken in Paris twenty-five years before my mother was born.
  1. Try one of these titles and see what story or poem appears:

Agent Fear, The Crystal Mountain, Summer Storm, The Prisoner, What Next?, Babies and Blue Jeans, Jake Plays the Blues, No Limit, Robot’s Curse, The Island

  1. What scenes do these groups of dialogue lines suggest?

I’m sending you to New York.
Why?
I thought it was about time you met your mother.

That will be $200.
For this?
For that. Plus my guarantee that it will always do your bidding.

I don’t know why you put up with Henry. You hardly know him.
He’s not so bad.
Why don’t you just dump him?
I can’t until I can explain that he’s my brother.

Put the box on the table over there.
Okay.
Now open in.
What are you afraid of—a bomb or something?

It’s too dark. I can’t see.
Let me help.
How did you do that?

  1. What’s your character’s secret? What is the one thing that he or she never wants anyone to find out?
  2. If your character is just ticking along in your story, play “what if” for 10 minutes and come up with as many things as possible that could make your character’s life a lot harder right now. A broken leg? Abduction by an alien? A meeting with an old flame or an old enemy? Play “what if” until you find something that ups the ante for your character and adds some more suspense to your story.

September 2015 Writing Prompts and Vacation Reflections

2015-08-16 20.55.29Well, I’m back from a lovely vacation and immersed in deadlines, contracts and school prep. That lovely vacation vibe is sliding away far too quickly, but this year, I’ve decided to do something about it. I’ve thought about the things I enjoy about vacations and how I can fit them into the days and weeks ahead to give myself a necessary break from the stresses that start September 1st and last for the rest of the semester. It’s not that I don’t like what I do, but I tend to charge at things head down without taking time to feed the other things that are important to me. My language becomes all about the “have-tos”, and this time, I’m determined that include in my life moments that recharge my batteries and my creativity.

This year has been incredibly productive with 11 new books published (more about that later), so I know that I can get a lot done when I have to. (There are those words again!) But I also took time this summer for other things, like watching part of an old movie in the middle of the day, or reading, or meeting friends for coffee, or sometimes, just having a nap. And the work got done. I’m learning to be more productive during ‘work time’ and learned that walking away from it all for a while is okay.

What changed was me deciding that I didn’t have to wait to take a break until I’d earned it. That meant that a break could only happen at the end of the day when everything was checked off the to-do list. That’s not when I needed the break, which was clear from the number of Facebook checks, games of solitaire I played, and cups of tea that I made—all of which were telling me to walk away from the screen for a decent period of time and regroup. If I walked away for an hour, that hour was probably less time away from the work than I spent frittering with other distractions. On the days that I took a real break, my productivity was better and my spirits were better, too.

So, that’s my lesson learned this year. I’ll keep you posted on my success in continuing this strategy through the next semester. What have you learned about staying energized while working? Do you take long breaks or a series of short ones? Do you give yourself rewards for your accomplishments? How do you fit in exercise? (That’s my next challenge!)

Slide1The two writing prompts journals that I mentioned in my last post are now available at Amazon, and will eventually be out and about at Barnes & Noble and Chapter/Indigo. Each journal contains the complete text of the book it was derived from plus over 100 lined pages so you can play with the writing prompts and suggestions in the books. The last book of my Better Business Communication series also saw the light of day last week, too. It’s available as an ebook only.

Now, to keep you writing for the next month, here are your writing prompts:

  1. Use one, some or all of the words in these groups to write a story or poem.

Sign, grey, fog, horizon, posts, sky

Clear, field, inside, tall, burn, patch

  1. Here are some opening lines to try.
  • The swish of the wind turbine’s blades filled the night.
  • A line of scraggy pines marked the path.
  • I didn’t recognize the footsteps in the hall.
  • If anyone needed a guardian angel right now, it was me.
  • Henry threw the newspaper on the floor and reached for the phone.
  • Henry swore this would be the last time.
  • Helen was late again.
  1. Maybe one of these titles will inspire a story or poem:

The Mist, Dear Diary, A Light in the Window, The house on Planet X, Bad Blood, Captains Outrageous, Fire in the Heart, Death on Page One.

  1. What scenes can you imagine taking place before and during these lines of dialogue?

I told you I didn’t do it.

But can you prove it?

 

Look  behind you.

Seriously? You expect me to fall for that old trick?

Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.

 

The wind is changing.

Yes. I can smell it now.

Let’s go.

 

But I thought you left Henry in charge.

He thinks I did.

 

Something’s the matter.

How can you tell?

Helen’s quiet.

 

Happy Writing!

Writing Prompts for August, 2015

Like a good Canadian, I’ll begin with the weather. Wow, has it been  hot!

And now for the writing.

I’ve been working on a couple of things: one, a journal with writing prompts to guide writers toward a daily writing habit (draft cover below); and two, the last of my business communications books focusing on improving grammar and writing skills. They are both at the ‘nearly there’ stage, so fingers crossed they’re both on Amazon by the end of next week.

I’ve had a good think about my writing. I realized that in my head I’ve been splitting my writing into two categories—non-fiction and joywriting (fiction.) I believed that I had to get the non-fiction finished in order to reward myself with the fiction, as if one was work and the other was pleasure. Well, that thinking was just plain wrong.

I get a lot of joy out of writing and publishing non-fiction. I love that what I do helps people learn to write, or get inspired to write, or helps them become better communicators, or saves teachers from reinventing the wheel when  they have to teach Shakespeare for the first time. So, since this all makes me happy, it is now officially joywriting, too. (Okay, well, sometimes it takes me longer than most to see the light, but at least, I finally made it.)

I hope that August’s writing prompts help you find some joywriting, too.

draft cover for journal

1. Pick one of these groups of random words and use one, some or all of the words in a story or poem.

  • Crown, red, stone, door, blade
  • Flower, wall, blue, eyes, shell
  • Wind, rustle, footsteps, black, shelter

2. Here are some opening sentences to try.

  • The town was shrouded in silence
  • Mary lied.
  • Medicine bottles cluttered the bedside table.
  • Hank loved football—and murder.
  • For a secret code it was pretty lame, but I got the message.
  • The pool was inviting.

3. Maybe one of these titles will inspire a story: Mystery on the Menu, Harry and the Bear, The Mage’s Promise, Half Love, Day’s End, An Ocean View, Yesterday Again, The Convertible

4. Can you imagine a scene to go with one of these short dialogue excerpts?

  • That’s the last one.
  • Are you sure?
  • No, but I sure am hoping.

 

  • Are you sure that belongs to Harry?
  • Yes, I’d know that blood anywhere.

 

  • I don’t like flying.
  • It’s a bit too late to decide that.
  • I don’t like jumping either.
  • Also, too late.

 

  • I didn’t know that she liked cats.
  • Is that a problem?
  • Yes. No. Well, maybe.

 

  • Is Harry home?
  • No,
  • Can you tell me where I can reach him?
  • I can, but I won’t.

5. Where would be your favourite place to sleep—your own bed, a four-poster in a Scottish castle, under the starts, on a ship sailing to a special destination, you choose? Why did you choose this location? Answer this question for your character.

6. NaNoWriMo starts in three months. Are you planning to sign up? It’s never too soon to start thinking, planning, and researching for your writing marathon. Set up a file, buy a new journal, grab some paper and think about the kind of story you want to live with for those crazy 30 days in November. I’m signing up this year, so I’d better start following my own advice. Onward!

Happy Writing!

 

 

A Plethora of Publications

I have been a crazy publishing machine lately, and I’m finally down to two books that are still works-in-progress. Below are the books I’ve published this year. Click on the photos to find out more about them. For the next few days, the Kindle edition of Busy Teacher’s Guide to Macbeth is on sale for $0.99 at Amazon.com and $1.25 at Amazon.ca. More about the Busy Teacher’s Guides and support material for the books is here.

One work-in-progress is a grammar and writing book for the Better Business Communication series and the other is a writing journal just for teen writers–I’m very excited about that one! When I was a teen, I would have loved to have a journal to write in that was designed just for me. I’m busily looking for inspiring quotes from published teen authors to sprinkle among the pages. I’m also going to create two editions–one with images that you can colour and one without. Adult colouring books are all the rage for de-stressing, but frankly, teenagers need all the de-stressing they can get–been one, parented one, taught thousands–so in one edition I’m going to include images for colouring. I wrote about my own use of colouring to clear the mind for creativity in Writing Prompts and More–. Here’s an excerpt from that chapter.

Before they became popular, I was already coloring pictures in books as a way to clear my mind before getting creative. It happened by accident. I used to love to draw when I was a kid. I thought it might be fun to try again, so I bought The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Drawing, which should give you a clear idea of my talent level. The book is full of drawing exercises for freeing your creativity and silencing the ‘critical voice’ that lurks inside your head, waiting to talk you out of even trying.

Coincidentally, I was playing with one of these exercises before some precious writing time and, when I began to write, my fingers flew across the keyboard. I’ve tried this again and again with the same result. I realized that I had found a way to create the inner quiet that I needed to write. When I draw, I’m incapable of thinking about anything except where my pencil is going next. Everything else disappears and the critic is silent.

If you’re worried that your attempts to draw a picture would make your critical voices unite in a volume rivaling a room full of pre-schoolers with free ice-cream, grab a coloring book and color a picture. Just choosing colors and concentrating on staying in the lines can be a very quieting experience. As in drawing, the world slips away for enough time to quiet the voices and let your creativity emerge.

Bye for now. Hope your July is a writerly one!

PicMonkey Collage

PicMonkey Collage newwriting prompts and more

Writing Prompts for July 2015

A Cool and Foggy June 21st
A Cool and Foggy June 21st

The summer solstice passed through here with cool winds and clouds and the furnace on. Hope your longest day offered more hints of summer than mine. And now that 2015 is half over, it’s a good time for me (and you) to stake stock of what’s been done and what is next on the writing agenda.

I’ve had a very good first half of the year, and currently have four draft books to edit and another book draft that is almost complete. I also published three other books two weeks ago. I’ve continued to learn about the self-publishing business, though I am currently resigned to the fact that I am a complete marketing failure. I live in hope that I will be able to change that when I am at the end of my current non-fiction, book-writing marathon and take the time (finally) to concentrate on book sales rather than book writing.

I want to tackle NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) in November and write fiction for a while, too. I’m hosting a series of NaNo workshops for local teen writers and am planning to join the fun and write along with them. Have you or your students attempted NaNoWriMo? Adult participants write 50,000 words in 30 days; younger writers can choose their own word count. The young writers’ program has amazing resources for writers of all ages.

One of the keys to success is to have a story thought out before going into the month of intense writing, though, I’m sure, lots of people just dive in. If you’re looking for a story idea to get you planning for NaNo, maybe one of July’s writing prompts will help. Have fun!

1. Here are some opening sentences for you to try:

  • Bill looked up at the flag to check the wind.
  • Helena reined her horse back to a walk. She needed time to think.
  • “When was the last time you saw him?”
  • He reached for the knife.
  • If school sucked, then Mr. Wentwhistle’s English class was the largest Dyson in the building.
  • I always liked the number 24.
  • The old man leaned forward over the table.

2. Use one, some, or all of these words to spark a story or poem.

  • Wheel, border, dark, wire, box, narrow
  • Cover, arm, strand, leaf, tall, blue

3. See if you can come up with a story for one of these titles: Lone Pine, Rooftop Romance, Thieves Game, A Quiet Place, The Dragon’s Tower, The Stars Await, Big City Blahs, Red Sky at Night.

4. Here are some dialogue excerpts. Can you imagine the scenes that each is part of?

  • I wish you didn’t have to leave.
  • I must obey the master.
  • Who are you waiting for?
  • Who says I’m waiting …. Okay, I’m waiting.
  • Did you see that car?
  • The grey one?
  • Yes. Did you see who was driving?
  • No, it was going too fast.
  • I’m not surprised. It just tried to run me down.
  • Pass me that will you?
  • What are you doing?
  • I’ll let you know when I’m done.

5. How does your character react to frustration? (I’m writing this during my second consecutive hour of online assistance in an effort to get Photoshop to download and work on my computer. I admire the perseverance of the client services person, but I sooooo have other things I’d rather be doing right now! I finally got out my NEO and finished writing this blog post.) What does your character do when he or she has to wait for much longer than he or she thinks is appropriate, or when something small becomes a road block to a larger project that your character considers urgent? (p.s. I can now use Photoshop–Yay!)

6. What do sunsets make your character think about?

7. What makes your character laugh out loud?

Dude! Short Stories for Boys–Free Today on Amazon

Dude! An Anthology of Stories for Boys
Dude! An Anthology of Stories for Boys

Hi,

Just a quick promo note. If you have a Kindle and a boy who needs some new reading material, Dude! is free today and Saturday on Amazon.

Dude! is a short story anthology written especially for pre-teen and early teen boys. It includes a range of genres, including science fiction, fantasy, adventure, mystery, sports and historical fiction–a young Sherlock Holmes even makes an appearance! The second volume is “under construction” and promises more sports, fantasy, time travel, and adventure.

Amazon.com link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OUVDL7O/ref=tsm_1_fb_lk

Amazon.co.uk link: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dude-Anthology-Short-Stories-Boys-ebook/dp/B00OUVDL7O/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=1-24&qid=1431692072

Amazon.ca link: http://www.amazon.ca/Dude-Anthology-Short-Stories-Boys-ebook/dp/B00OUVDL7O/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_1

 

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