Romance – December 3

“Being a woman is a terribly difficult task, since it consists principally in dealing with men.” -Joseph Conrad, born this date in 1857. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a simple task is made difficult for your protagonist by the participation of a member of another gender.

Romance – December 2

“Hope is a horrible thing, you know. I don’t know who decided to package hope as a virtue because it’s not. It’s a plague.” -Ann Patchett, born this date in 1963. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a character realizes what s/he thought was a strategy was really nothing more than hope.

Romance – December 1

“I do not pick the wrong guys. They pick me.” -Candace Bushnell, born this date in 1958. Writing prompt: Write the scene in which your protagonist realizes why inappropriate suitors constantly pick her/him.

Romance – November 30

Nobel laureate Sir Winston Spencer Churchill was born on this date in 1874. About World War II, he said, “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” Writing prompt: Write a scene that that makes your protagonist realize s/he’s at the end of the beginning of the relationship with her/his partner.

Romance – November 29

“Girls are so queer you never know what they mean. They say No when they mean Yes, and drive a man out of his wits for the fun of it.” -Louisa May Alcott, born this date in 1832. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a man who believes this to be true tries to make time with your protagonist.

Romance – November 28

William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway bonded their marriage on this date in 1582. In Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare wrote, “I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me.” Writing prompt: Write a dialogue in which your protagonist expresses the same sentiment to her or his best friend.

Romance – November 27

Writing prompt: Write the scene of your protagonist’s most self-deceptive presumption of victory.

Romance – November 26

Annina: Monsieur Rick, what kind of a man is Captain Renault? Rick: Oh, he’s just like any other man, only more so. -From Casablanca, which premiered on this date in 1942. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist does something s/he shouldn’t do for all the right reasons.