Literary – December 4

Writing prompt: Write the scene of your protagonist’s most paralyzingly terrifying mistake during high school.

Journaling + Fiction – December 4

“Do,” said Louisa finally, “whatever you can’t not do.”David Mitchell Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about the impact on others of what you can’t not do. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist tries but fails to suppress the imperative of what s/he can’t not do.

Big Questions – December 4

What does your given / first name mean to you? 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...

Romance – December 4

“There are quantities of human faces, but there are many more faces, for each person has several.” -Rainer Maria Rilke, born this date in 1875. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist discovers a close friend has at least two more faces than your protag expected.

Mystery – December 4

Cornell Woolrich, the man who wrote more noir mysteries converted to film than anyone else, was born on this date in 1903. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist and another character analyze the answer to the question Rear Window’s Jeff must answer: Why would a man leave his apartment three times on a rainy night with a suitcase and come back three times?

SciFi/Fantasy – December 4

“A misfortune has occurred so unexpected and so horrible that my little escape of the morning dwindles into insignificance.”- J. Habakuk Jephson’s statement to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle about his experiences aboard the brigantine Mary Celeste, which on this date in 1872 was found adrift off the coast of the Azores. Deserted — the captain’s table was set with an uneaten meal, and the...

Secondary – December 4

“The purpose of life is to be defeated by greater and greater things.” -Rainer Maria Rilke, born this date in 1875. Explain why you agree or disagree with Rilke.

Primary – December 4

Describe what your favorite sound would sound like to someone who’s never heard it before.