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Romance – January 12
“Whatever it is you’re seeking won’t come in the form you’re expecting.” -Haruki Murakami, born this date in 1949. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist realizes s/he failed to find what s/he was seeking because it came unexpectedly.
read moreMystery – January 12
“It was a great game, and exciting and dramatic and even at times tragic — but funny it emphatically was not.” -John Cecil Masterman, author of An Oxford Tragedy and several other acclaimed mystery novels and head of the Twenty Committee, the group that ran all of Britain’s double agents in WWII, born on this date in 1891. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist fails to find any humor in another person’s wit.
read moreSciFi/Fantasy – January 12
“This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardize it.” – HAL 9000, which went online on this date in Arthur C. Clarke’s 1992. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a technology your protagonist relies on for protection becomes her/his greatest mortal threat.
read moreSecondary – January 12
“Taking crazy things seriously is a serious waste of time.” -Haruki Murakami, born on this date in 1949. Use examples from your own experience to prove this statement is false.
read morePrimary – January 12
Describe the three most important qualities you want your best friends to have.
read moreLiterary – January 11
Alan Paton was born on this date in 1903. In his most famous work, he bemoaned the fate of South Africa’s unborn child: “For fear will rob him of all if he gives too much.” Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist withholds from his/her partner that which the partner most needs because your protag fears the power such a gift would grant.
read moreJournaling + Fiction – January 11
“To build may have to be the slow and laborious task of years. To destroy can be the thoughtless act of a single day.”Winston Churchill Journal prompt: Reflect on your previous journal entries and spend at least 20 minutes writing about a time you caused or observed the destruction of another’s efforts. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist’s hard work is thoughtlessly destroyed by someone your protagonist considers an ally.
read moreBig Questions – January 11
What’s the one material object you’d save from your burning home? 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...
read moreRomance – January 11
Rupert Holmes’ Escape — better known as “the piña colada song” — topped the charts on this date in 1980. Writing prompt: Write a personals ad for your protagonist that does not exceed 60...
read moreMystery – January 11
Raymond Chandler met Dashiell Hammett on this date in 1936 at a dinner for contributors to Black Mask. Writing prompt: Write a scene that foreshadows a rivalry between two great talents.
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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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