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Mystery – May 8
Andrew Svenson, the unnamed Stratemeyer Syndicate author behind many Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew mysteries and other young-adult adventures of earlier generations, was born on this date in 1910. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist learns that someone else is going to get the credit for something your protag achieved.
read moreSciFi/Fantasy – May 8
“It must be, I thought, one of the race’s most persistent and comforting hallucinations to trust that ‘”‘it can’t happen here'”‘ — that one’s own time and place is beyond cataclysm.”- John Wyndham describing the 8th of May, a day the he made better known as the Day of the Triffids. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist must lead a group of blind beings to safety.
read moreSecondary – May 8
Born on this day in 1937, Thomas Pynchon said, “If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don’t have to worry about the answers.” Explain your understanding of this idea.
read morePrimary – May 8
“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” -Harry Truman, 33rd president of the United States, born on this date in 1884. Why do you think a US President would say that?
read moreNews flash: Economics applies to publishing, too!
Virginia Postrel has a great article on publishing and Amazon’s new lending library (which works sort of like Netflix for e-books) that’s worth reading in its entirety: click here to read it. Here’s the most important takeaway: A former publishing executive recently told me he simply didn’t believe that “if I really want a book for $9.95 I don’t also want it for $10.95 or $12.95.” People in publishing say things like that all the time. While they admit that charging $100 for the typical hardback would be foolish, they don’t...
read moreLiterary – May 7
“A battler is someone who struggles forever and will never, ever, really get anywhere.” -Two-time Booker Prize recipient Peter Carey, born this date in 1943. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist must confront her/his fear that s/he will never amount to anything more than a battler.
read moreBig Questions – May 7
Should you stay or should you go? 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 moreJournaling + Fiction – May 7
“Learning never exhausts the mind.”Leonardo da Vinci Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about why you’d be excited to learn about a new subject you’ve been interested in for a while. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist exhausts an ally by trying to teach the ally a new skill.
read moreRomance – May 7
Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp,Or what’s a heaven for? -Robert Browning, born this date in 1812. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a person professes undying love to your protagonist despite knowing that your protagonist will outshine her/his suitor in the suitor’s chosen profession.
read moreMystery – May 7
Devise and write a rule your protagonist has applied to his/her life and considers inviolate. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protag breaks the rule.
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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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