Journaling + Fiction – July 6

“The universe had an odd sense of fairness; it took away things one did not want to give up, and then gave things one did not ask for.”Laila Lalami Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about what you plan to do with something you received but did not ask for. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist is compelled to trade something s/he loves for something s/he...

Journaling + Fiction – July 5

“Every joke is a tiny revolution.”George Orwell Journal prompt: Reflect on your previous journal entries and spend at least 20 minutes writing about an amusing observation that effectively summarizes your perspective on life. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist gets in trouble for making a joke.

Journaling + Fiction – July 4

“Kindness is the only service that will stand the storm of life and not wash out.”Abraham Lincoln Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about the greatest kindness you could extend someone in your life right now. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which a service your protagonist is counting on washes out.

Journaling + Fiction – July 3

“Freedom and life are earned by those alone who conquer them each day anew.”Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about what you’ll conquer tomorrow. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist decides not to get out of bed.

Journaling + Fiction – July 2

“What we see depends mainly on what we look for.”Sir John Lubbock Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about what you learned from failing to see something important because you were looking for something else. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist is looking for something that everyone else clearly sees.

Journaling + Fiction – July 1

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched—they must be felt with the heart.”Helen Keller Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about a person, experience, or object you love more with your heart than with your physical senses. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist feels emotionally a contradiction with what s/he feels...

Journaling + Fiction – June 30

“We improve ourselves by victories over ourselves. There must be contest, and we must win.”Edward Gibbon Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about why a particular victory you’ve tried to win over yourself has to this point eluded you. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist loses a battle for self-control because her/his antagonist possesses greater...

Journaling + Fiction – June 29

“We cannot escape history.”Abraham Lincoln Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about a location or issue in your community that troubles many people but continues to exist because of historical inertia. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which a person or event your protagonist left behind long ago re-emerges at exactly the wrong time.