Mystery – March 18

“The pleasure of sport was so often the chance to indulge the cessation of time itself.”- George Plimpton, born this date in 1927. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist tries to compete in a sport or event alongside its most accomplished practitioners, even though your protagonist has never practiced the sport before.

Mystery – St. Patrick’s Day

Kurt Russell, born this date in 1951, starred in Escape from New York as Snake Plissken, to whom the movie’s universal greeting was, “I heard you were dead!” Writing prompt: Write a series of dialogues in which your protagonist must dismiss a similarly, obviously untrue rumor.

Mystery – March 16

“An hour of my time is a tiny price to pay for all the support I’ve gotten from my fans.”- Erik Estrada, born this date in 1949. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist must accomplish a complicated task with someone who’s always gotten ahead on looks rather than ability.

Mystery – March 15

“The thorns of the rose are hidden by the bloom.”- Lynda La Plante, born this date in 1943. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist learns something or someone beautiful is concealing a source of great pain.

Mystery – March 14

“The ‘Ten Most Wanted Fugitives’ program is a publicity program founded by the FBI in March of 1950 in conjunction with the nation’s news media. It is designed to publicize particularly dangerous fugitives who might not otherwise merit nationwide attention. The FBI recognizes the need for public assistance in tracking fugitives. One hundred and sixty-three of the ‘Ten Most Wanted...

Mystery – March 13

“For more than half an hour 38 respectable, law-abiding citizens in Queens watched a killer stalk and stab a woman in three separate attacks in Kew Gardens. Twice their chatter and the sudden glow of their bedroom lights interrupted him and frightened him off. Each time he returned, sought her out, and stabbed her again. Not one person telephoned the police during the assault; one witness called after the woman was...

Mystery – March 12

“Jimmy Lee Baylis was a wise man, and knew better than to talk back to the man who signed his paycheck.”- Carl Hiaasen, born this date in 1953. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist demonstrates her/his lack of wisdom.

Mystery – March 11

“The impossible often has a kind of integrity which the merely improbable lacks.”- Douglas Adams, born this date in 1952. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist is forced to accept a solution s/he believes is impossible.