SciFi/Fantasy – January 16

“What scares me is what scares you. We’re all afraid of the same things. That’s why horror is such a powerful genre.” -John Carpenter, born this date in 1948. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist encounters something s/he doesn’t know to be scared of.

SciFi/Fantasy – January 15

“A man who won’t die for something is not fit to live.” -Martin Luther King, Jr., born on this date in 1929. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist’s best friend must choose to die for something important.

SciFi/Fantasy – January 14

Writing prompt: Outline the story that follows this famous opening line: “Of all the things that drive men to sea, the most common disaster, I’ve come to learn, is women.”

SciFi/Fantasy – January 13

“The hideous knowledge, the horror-blackened memories which I have carried so long, were never meant to be borne by the human intellect.” -Clark Ashton Smith, born this date in 1893. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist experiences something that creates a memory no intellect should bear.

SciFi/Fantasy – January 12

On this date in Arthur C. Clarke’s 1992, the HAL 9000 went online. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a technology your protagonist relies on for protection becomes her/his greatest mortal threat.

SciFi/Fantasy – January 11

The Night Stalker, starring Darren McGavin as investigative reporter Carl Kolchak, premiered on this date in 1972. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist’s refusal to believe the truth is out there leaves her/him vulnerable when that truth takes a sudden interest in your protag.