Don’t Envy – Improve

A few years ago, when I finished Margaret Atwood’s The Blind Assassin while doing the eleventythousandth revision of my own novel manuscript, I closed her book and looked at mine and thought, “Why bother?” The bother is that I’ve got my own story to tell. It’s not Atwood’s story, or Melville’s or Twain’s, or even yours. You’ve got your own story, too. Because it’s your story, the issue isn’t whether you write as...

Literary – February 10

“Surprise is the greatest gift which life can grant us.” -Boris Pasternak, born this date in 1890. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist is forced to celebrate a surprise s/he secretly loathes.

Journaling + Fiction – February 10

“Rashness belongs to youth; prudence to old age.”Marcus Tullius Cicero Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about a circumstance in which you responded with greater wisdom because of prior experience responding differently to a similar circumstance. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist places a loved one in peril because s/he didn’t earn wisdom from similar...

Big Questions – February 10

How will the world most change in the next 10 years? Journaling prompt: Spend 15-20 minutes writing your answer in the spirit of exploring yourself and the world around you. If you can answer with a simple “yes” or “no,” explain the sources or implications of your response. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene that forces a character in your story to answer the question, or spend 15-20 minutes answering the...

Romance – February 10

“Often … the worst parenting is done in the name of love.” -Mary McGarry Morris, born this date in 1943, about her book The Lost Mother. Writing prompt: Write a scene demonstrating the bad parenting your protagonist received in the name of love.

Mystery – February 10

“I am a Widow’s Son, outlawed and my orders must be obeyed.”- Ned Kelly in the Jerilderie Letter, deposited this date in 1879. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist publicly confronts a bad guy everyone considers a good guy.

SciFi/Fantasy – February 10

“All the best of the monsters played for sympathy.” – Lon Chaney, Jr., born this date in 1906. Writing prompt: Write the scene in which your protagonist first encountered the monster that most terrifies the children of the world you’ve created.

Secondary – February 10

What question would you most like to ask the President of the United States? How do you think he would answer?