Writing Prompts for August 2017

WRITING PROMPTS FOR AUGUST 2017

I don’t know about your summer, but mine is flying by. Lots of heat and thunderstorms lately, but it saves me watering my mom’s garden, so I’m not complaining.

I hope you have been enjoying your summer and finding some creative time, too. If you’re looking for something to fill your journal pages, I hope some of the prompts below will provide the necessary jump-start to a story or poem.

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

  • Sun, blue, smoke, distance, danger, escape
  • Race, down, fear, road, gravel, slip, red
  • Bridge, under, flow, rain, caught, grey, free
  • Ledge, climb, safe, rope, loose, night, silver

Here are some opening lines to get you started.

  • Once upon a midnight ….
  • Henry slammed his fist down on the table, “Enough!”
  • That was my second lie today.
  • If you wanted someone who was going to be on time, you shouldn’t have picked Henry.
  • Horizontal snow and another two miles to ride.
  • That road led straight to the castle.
  • Another nightmare.
  • We had no choice. We left Henry and moved on.
  • I was tired of feeling that everyone had a say in the matter but me.
  • I wish I were programmed to forget.
  • Roscoe came and sat silently at my feet. He could feel something was wrong, too.

Perhaps one of these titles will be inspiring.

Moonrise, Copper Storm, The Girl Who Didn’t Care, A Rose for Helen, Team Player, Lonely Heart, Run, The Attic, Wonder Full, Storm Chaser, Pirate Moon, The World Beneath the Stairs, Samantha and Sam.

Here are some dialogue excerpts. See if you can build a scene or a story around one of them.

  • Am I the last one?
  • There should be two more.
  • How long are we going to wait for them?

 

  • Did you hear that?
  • Yes.
  • Then why didn’t you hide?

 

  • Six o’clock.
  • So?
  • So, Henry said we should leave at six.
  • Henry’s going to be disappointed then, isn’t he?

 

  • Come over here.
  • No.
  • But you’re all alone.
  • Exactly.

 

  • Have you seen Henry lately?
  • Why? Worried?
  • It’s not like him to stay away so long.
  • Enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasts.

Hope you have a writerly August!

 

Writing Prompts for July 2017

WRITING PROMPTS FOR JULY 2017

Canada celebrates its 150th birthday today, and my American readers celebrate their country’s national holiday on July 4th.  I hope that you all have wonderful holidays with family and friends.

If creativity is on your summer agenda, here are some writing prompts to help you find a story or two.

Choose one of these word groups and use one, some, or all of the words to create a story or poem.

  • Feather, dawn, call, open, blue, keep, end
  • River, cliff, safe, grass, cold, grey, running
  • Boat, pier, home, green, wonder, few, child

Try one of these opening sentences and see where it takes your imagination.

  • Henry was early. Henry was never early.
  • Helen carefully put the box on the table.
  • I was sure I felt a breeze, but the wind chimes were silent.
  • The child lay in the tall grass.
  • The shack didn’t look as welcoming in daylight.
  • The best present ever was my bike.
  • There were days when Helen frightened me.
  • No, Henry, that wasn’t funny.
  • The tree branch scrabbled against the window.
  • Last night the rains came.

Can you think of a story or poem to go with one of these titles?

East Texas Blues, Century, The Apple Tree, Forgive and Forget, Hope’s Island, The Garden, Mystery at MacDonald’s, Last Child Standing, The Waiter, Nemesis, Heist, One Bad Day, Life with the Smiths, The Final Strategy, Wind Across the Prairie, Storm.

Here are some dialogue excerpts. See if you can create a scene around one of them.

  • Something’s wrong. Did you hear that?
  • I can’t hear anything.
  • The engine’s failing.
  • But we’re miles from our destination.

 

  • Have you heard the latest about Helen?
  • I don’t like gossip.
  • Not even if it’s what she said about you?

 

  • I’m tired.
  • Me, too, but we can’t stop now.

 

  • I thought you said this place was safe.
  • It is.
  • Not anymore.

 

  • I’m sure I saw those curtains move.
  • That house has been empty for weeks.
  • That’s what I thought, too. Look.

Hope you all have a writerly month ahead!

Writing Prompts for May 2017

Sorry I’m a little late posting this month, but my mom fell last week, and I’ve been busy visiting the hospital and doing daughter things, so time for creativity is gone for a while. Thankfully, my mom is on the road to recovery, but it will be slow—88-years-old with a fractured pelvis. Fortunately, the break is weight-bearing which may speed up recovery a little bit. Life happens, and we’re very grateful for a positive prognosis. Deep breath! Onward!

Here are the writing prompts for May.

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

  • Race, blur, red, strain, edge, finish
  • Blue, horizon, run, castle, horses, escape
  • Sun, sultry, black, clouds, thunderstorm, heat
  • Angry, words, disappointed, leave, never, new

Here are some opening sentences to get you started:

  • You checked first? Right?
  • Sometimes only a very few words can hurt.
  • I stared at the doctor. I must have misheard what he said.
  • Even the weather was against us.
  • I wished I could have yesterday as a do-over.
  • Rain soaked through our clothes.
  • No one needed that much money.
  • I thought Henry was on this watch.
  • Some words should never be carved in stone.

Here are some titles that might inspire a story or poem:

Remembering Times Past, New Shoes, The Win, Helen’s Dream, The House on Henry Street, Windflowers, Passing Storms, Nursery Rhymes, The Wonder Kid, Murder Times Two, Serenity.

See if you can create a scene or a story around these lines of dialogue.

  • Keep out of there.
  • Sure. Okay.
  • I don’t like anyone messing with my stuff.

 

  • How long before we leave?
  • When it’s dark—and those men are out of sight.

 

  • Will I see you again?
  • Not for a while.
  • Why?
  • Unfinished business.

 

  • Shouldn’t those birds be flying south?
  • Not today.

 

  • Are we finished here?
  • Not until Henry says so.
  • Why is it up to him?

Hope you have a writerly month ahead!

Writing Prompts for April, 2017

Writing Prompts for April 2017

Yay, it’s April! April always seems so hopeful. You believe that soon it will be the last frosty night, the last snowy day, the last time that you have to wear boots, the last time the heat goes on in the car, … you get the idea. I’m experiencing spring in Florida this year–ten days escape to Orlando/Gainesville, and what a shock to the system. It’s 90 here! Yikes! And around 45 at home. Returning will be quite a shock. I will miss the green and the sun on bare shoulders, but I will also enjoy the slow return to green, my daffodils blooming, wide open windows, and driving my mom to various nurseries to stock her garden.

I hope that you have a writerly April ahead and that you find some inspiration in the writing prompts below. Have fun!

Choose one group and use one, some or all of the words in a story or poem.

  • Traffic, hurry, roar, wind, blue, anxious
  • Branch, hollow, creek, hide, breath, thunder
  • Change, cold, sudden, sky, grey, sparrow

Use one of the following sentences to begin your story.

  • “Where have you been?”
  • Dead leaves crackled in the wind.
  • “If you don’t decide, I will.
  • Lights were one. The cottage was supposed to be empty.
  • The sound waves from the rocket pounded my chest.
  • Helen was sure she’d locked the door when she left.
  • The dark came too slowly.

Try one of these titles for a story or poem.

Open Until Doomsday, The Scarlet Knight, The River Adventure, Ten Times Ten, The Forever Wish, Race, My Aunt was a Pirate, Flight, Keeper’s Gate, Last Promise, The Door.

Use one of the following short dialogues to create a unique scene.

  • I thought we were resting here.
  • We can’t. We have to keep going.
  • Why?
  • Look.

 

  • Spiders!
  • Ignore them.

 

  • Why hasn’t anyone rescued us?
  • Just give them time.
  • You don’t have time.
  • Then it doesn’t matter, does it?

 

WRITING PROMPTS FOR FEBRUARY 2017

Writing Prompts for February 2017 - opening sentences, random words, dialogue snippets, titles

Welcome February! One more month closer to spring! This last month has been unrelentingly cloudy, and I’m more than ready for some sunny days. A little sunshine can go a long way to cheer up a cold, snowy day. So can escaping into a new story—either one you are reading or one you are writing.

I love finding a new author who has already published a number of books because then I don’t have to wait any time at all to enjoy the entire series. I read all of Alan Bradley’s Flavia de Luce mysteries around this time last year. Now I’m impatiently waiting for the next one. Right now, I’m reading the Ruth Galloway mysteries by Elly Griffiths and am enjoying them very much—three down, six to go, and a new one due soon!

If writing a new story is your way to escape, here are some writing prompts to keep you busy in February.

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

  • Candle, frame, snow, path, wave, match
  • Lake, pine cone, laugh, car, memory, rain
  • Door, lock, late, night, empty, cold, silver
  • Light, distant, melody, gem, box, ice, glint.

Here are some opening sentences for you to try.

  • Who ate all the chocolate?
  • I couldn’t understand what anyone was saying.
  • The light hurt my eyes.
  • Power’s out!
  • I hoped it wasn’t too late.
  • We heard the door creak, then silence.
  • When there’s a bat in the house, I don’t do brave.
  • Though my family would like to think so, a nice cup of tea wasn’t going to be any help in this situation.
  • I hadn’t been this afraid of being caught since I stole a pack of matches when I was six.

Here are some titles that might suggest a story or two.

Jenny’s Secret, The Circle, Moon Dragon, Closing Day, The Magic Crow, She’s Back, The Last Letter, The Blue Vase, Damian’s Promise, The New House

Here are some snippets of dialogue that might suggest a scene or a story.

  • I thought you said we’d be safe here.
  • That’s what I said.
  • So you were wrong.
  • Apparently.
  • I saw you take that when Helen wasn’t looking.
  • She’ll never miss it.
  • She will eventually and then what?
  • Henry told me to be here at 8 ‘clock.
  • So?
  • So where are the others?
  • I don’t think there are any others.
  • I can’t believe that Helen could lie like that.
  • She’s had lots of practice.
  • But it’s wrong.
  • You live her life for a day and then say that.

Hope you all have a writerly February!

Writing Prompts for December 2016

Writing Prompts for December 2016

I always enjoy the approach to the holidays. Decorating the house, planning meals, and even all the long-overdue cleaning and organizing are done with a lighter heart. It’s a musical time for us, too. My choir has a concert, my son’s university ensemble has a concert, and we all attend the local symphony’s holiday concert, joining my brother-in-law’s family for dinner afterwards. I hope that you and yours enjoy times filled with peace, love, and happiness in the coming weeks and that these feelings follow you through 2017.

Though your writing time may be limited in December, I encourage you to take even 10 minutes out of your day to put a few words on the page. Typing at 25 words per minute would fill a double-spaced page. Think of how those pages could add up over the month, and how much further ahead you will be starting 2017.

If you need some writing inspiration or fresh ideas, here are your writing prompts for December. Remember that you can change names and gender to suit the story you want to write.

Opening Sentences – Start a story with one of the following sentences. You could use the sentence to end the story, too.

Wait! Don’t open that!
The fire was too small to warm the room.
Henry and I had an agreement—until yesterday.
The branches of the bare trees clattered overhead.
Making a wish as you blow out your birthday candles isn’t just for kids.
Helen should have known better.
Secrets should be kept secret.
I don’t have a cat anymore, so what was coughing and hacking in my kitchen?

Random Words – Choose a group of words from the following list, and using one, some, or all of the words in the group, write a story or poem.

Gate, pillar, robe, wonder, blue, cry, gold
green, hills, wander, home, far, cold, rain
run, danger, lost, captain, white, strange
window, tense, sneer, answer, leave, yellow

Possible Story Titles

Yesterday’s Man, The Gold Tower, Tree People, The Leaving, Ghosts at Summer Camp, Strangers at First, Ethan’s Mountain, The Blue Sword, The Kameron Curse, The Second Gift.

Dialogue – Use one of these dialogue excerpts and imagine the story around it.

Why do we have to travel at night?
It’s safer.
It’s also cold.

I haven’t seen you with Henry lately.
Oh, we’re old news.
But I thought you were getting married.
Tell that to Henry’s father.

Are you sure we can trust Helen?
I don’t see that we have a lot of options.
But, I told you—she’s lied before.
So have you.

I don’t like the sound of that.
Me neither, but it’s too soon to worry the others.

You found something.
No.
Show it to me.
No.

Hope you have a wonderful, writerly December!

Writing Prompts for June, 2016

Writing Prompts for June 2016

I had hoped to post more often in May, but I ran up against a challenge that needed my attention and will continue to need it for, at least, the rest of the summer. Everyone knows someone, and now, I’m that someone–with cancer. I’ll be meeting next week with oncologists to talk about the biopsies that were taken during my surgery two weeks ago, and I’ve been prepared to expect a fairly long slog of treatments. I’m glad that so many options are available for me, and am lucky that so much is known about breast cancer and its treatment. I have learned a lot about patience in the last couple of weeks. I haven’t liked it, but I’ve learned. I’ve learned that you should quit trying to do what you used to be able to do or what you think you should do, and just stop, relax and let your body heal. That’s going to be my motto for what’s ahead. Trust the therapies and give my body every chance to do what it needs to do.

I am very hopeful, and I plan to keep creating writing prompts and adding new things to the site. If you’re on Pinterest you can also find me here with lots of writing ideas, tips, inspiration, etc.

Here are the writing prompts for June. I hope you find a story or two and have a writerly month ahead!

See if you can make a story or poem from one of these groups of random words.

  • sky, iron, leaf, pillar, red, hunger
  • pain, fear, ransom, gold, pool, today
  • connect, random, beside, hesitate,joy, meaning
  • crystal, white, cold, persistent, steps, struggle

Maybe one of these titles will inspire you.

Backpack Blues, Rising Sea, Summer Camp Mystery, Mr. Quinn, For the Asking, Dragon Throne, Julia, The Wind and the Rain, The Fortune, Treasure Quest, Helen’s Song, Quantum, Ryder, Piecing It Together, Time Travel Isn’t for Sissies, Fire in the West.

Here are some opening lines. What story do they suggest to you?

  • Once again I was awake at the crack of stupid.
  • Grey clouds scudded across the sky. It smelled like like rain.
  • “Benny is lost.”
  • That rumble in the distance wasn’t thunder.
  • Helen looked up from her laptop. Henry was the last person she wanted to see right now.
  • That last arrow was too close.
  • “We have to move.”
  • Buster whined and pushed my leg with his paw. Then I smelled the smoke, too.
  • Henry blew out the candle and we waited in the dark.
  • Helen was a collector.

Some random dialogue excerpts. Who’s talking? Where are they? What are they doing and thinking?

You said you were going to help.
I changed my mind.

Where were you yesterday?
None of your business.
I/We missed you.

What do you really know about Henry?
I know enough.
Are you sure?

I saw you yesterday at the park. I waved but you didn’t see me.
You couldn’t have seen me. I never left the house.

Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?
I’m sure.

If you’re trying to figure out the conflict in your story, check out this great post from Janet Hardy: What’s the Problem: The Four Classic Conflict Types.

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.

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!

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