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Literary – February 19
“All men are lonely. But sometimes it seems to me that we Americans are the loneliest of all. Our hunger for foreign places and new ways has been with us almost like a national disease.” -Carson McCullers, born this date in 1917. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist learns that s/he must cancel a long-anticipated trip to an exotic destination.
read moreJournaling + Fiction – February 19
“Where there is an open mind, there will always be a frontier.”Charles F. Kettering Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about the perspective of a relative or friend who has a completely different opinion than yours on an important subject. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which an experience causes your protagonist to change her/his mind about a subject your protagonist considered settled.
read moreBig Questions – February 19
What’s the best job you’ve ever had? 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 question in the voice of a character you want to know more about. Photo from Unsplash, the internet’s source of freely usable...
read moreRomance – February 19
“The forbidden things were a great influence on my life.” -Amy Tan, born this date in 1952. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist experiences crushing disappointment after obtaining a forbidden thing s/he spent years chasing.
read moreMystery – February 19
“I have gotten to a point in my life where I don’t want to have dinner with someone I don’t like.”- John Frankenheimer. born this date in 1930. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist must share a meal with someone s/he dislikes.
read moreSciFi/Fantasy – February 19
“People are supposed to fear the unknown, but ignorance is bliss when knowledge is so damn frightening.” -Laurell K. Hamilton, born this date in 1963. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist learns something s/he wishes s/he hadn’t.
read moreSecondary – February 19
On this date in 1942, the US government began moving Japanese-Americans living on or near the Pacific coast to internment camps. They remained interned until the war ended and they were allowed to return to their homes in January 1945. Write one paragraph arguing this was a logical national defense position during World War II, and one paragraph disputing that position.
read morePrimary – February 19
“To know that we know what we know, and to know that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge.” -Nicolaus Copernicus, the first person to suggest using scientific observation that the Earth was not the center of the solar system and the universe, and who was born on this date in 1473. Explain why it’s important to know what you don’t know.
read moreLiterary – February 18
Chloe Anthony Wofford — better known as Toni Morrison — was born on this date in 1931. Her 2008 novel A Mercy begins, “Don’t be afraid. My telling can’t hurt you in spite of what I have done….” Writing prompt: Finish a scene that begins with your protagonist saying these words.
read moreJournaling + Fiction – February 18
“But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars.”Martin Luther King, Jr. Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about a time in your life when dawn broke after it was darkest. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist refuses to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
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David B. Schlosser is an author of award-winning fiction and non-fiction, and an editor of award-winning fiction and non-fiction.
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