Literary – October 2

“Success is more dangerous than failure, the ripples break over a wider coastline.” -Graham Greene, born this date in 1904. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist’s success attracts the wrong kind of attention.

Journaling + Fiction – October 2

“Forget inspiration. Habit is more dependable. Habit will sustain you whether you’re inspired or not.”Octavia Butler Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about an experience when you missed the chance to accomplish something good because you waited for inspiration that never came. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist’s muse fails.

Big Questions – October 2

Is money or time more important? 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...

Romance – October 2

“The truth has never been of any real value to any human being — it is a symbol for mathematicians and philosophers to pursue. In human relations kindness and lies are worth a thousand truths.” -Graham Greene, born this date in 1904. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist mistakes kindness for truth.

Mystery – October 2

“A murderer is regarded by the conventional world as something almost monstrous, but a murderer to himself is only an ordinary man. It is only if the murderer is a good man that he can be regarded as monstrous.” -Graham Greene, born on this date in 1904. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist discovers a good person committed a bad crime for the right reason.

SciFi/Fantasy – October 2

“It may be said with a degree of assurance that not everything that meets the eye is as it appears.”- Rod Serling, creator of The Twilight Zone, which premiered on this date in 1959. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which what your protagonist sees leads him/her to make a mistake that proves fatal for a companion.

Secondary – October 2

“When we are not sure, we are alive.” -Graham Greene, born on this date in 1904. Explain something you believe but cannot be sure about.

Primary – October 2

“There is nothing in the dark that isn’t there when the lights are on.” -Rod Serling, creator of The Twilight Zone, which premiered on this date in 1959. Write a story about something that is in the dark after you turn out the lights.