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Featuring everything new and experienced authors need to develop creative and technical skills. Check out writing development articles, our Word of the Day, writing prompts, anthology opportunities and more!

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Prompts

Potpourri - Sometimes we need to mix it up!

When writing a story, we need lots of different tools and techniques.  Sometimes these may include using different styles of writing or even bringing to life challenging or even repugnant characters.  To practice these different techniques, I've given a couple of exercises.     #75 - Use the Passive Voice in a vignette.  For example, "Jenny was a great writer who once won an award.  She had written a story that garnered lots of attention and cause quite an uproar.  That excitement pass
Cole Matthews

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Points of View - The Ultimate Personification of an Object

Points of view are so important in stories.  As writers, we have to pretend to be someone else, feel what they feel, and ache with their longings.  As an exercise, let's pretend to be something not alive.  You can fill the object with whatever you feel or think.  The object will become a character, a witness, and your sounding board.     #215 - You are a porch swing.  You must describe the events that unfold around you, but only during times of great emotion.  That's when you awaken.  
Prompts

Plain Prompts

Here is your weekly nudge or inspirational kick.    PT #195 Write a short story or vignette where a paper napkin takes on large emotional importance. PT #196 Invent a character who has a ‘Murphy’s Law' week. Please include the prompt number either in your story/chapter description or title to help readers who would like to search for specific prompts. Also, please remember that stories less than one thousand words must be posted as part of a collection. I
Aditus

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Origin Stories - The Possibilities are Endless

Character development is not an easy, or formulaic, task.  Many of us read and write stories that are character-driven.  We fall in love with a character we create, or read, and follow their life and events as they unfold.  This means a writer can create the character's habits, quirks, strengths, weaknesses, and reactions through the use of narrative.  However, there are times when a writer needs a back story for a character, a motivation, a sort of history that helped form the character's perso
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Prompts

Oops! Prompts

I may or may not have remembered that the prompt blog is resuming this week...   So let's embrace the oops in our lives and see what writing treasures come from them.  A special thanks to my BFF's daughter for supplying #179, although thankfully this did not happen on our trip last weekend.    And another thank you to our own LBO for inspiring #180.   PT Prompt #179 You're on a trip with two of your friends and arrive at the hotel late at night.  You're exhausted and the only thing you
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Prompts

One Line Wonders

Here's part two of my language learning app prompts.  I wasn't going to do more of these, but after reading @wildone's take on PT Prompt #134, I had to after seeing another lesson mention underwear.   PT Prompt #141 - First line "No, you aren't allowed to put on my underwear." PT Prompt #142 - First line  "Your dad always steals my sausages."    Check out Wildone's response to PT Prompt #134 here.  Maybe we can encourage him to write a sequel!       
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Prompts

Once in a Blue Moon

This month a rare astronomical occurrence is taking place... a blue moon!  Not only is it a blue moon, but also a supermoon.  So what is a blue moon?  While it is possible for the moon to appear blue under certain conditions, a blue moon is actually an extra full moon that occurs within a season.  Generally two full moons in one month.  A supermoon happens when the moon is close to earth and appears larger than normal.  Now that we're all educated on lunar occurrences, let's go howl at the moon
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Prompts

October is Coming Out!!!

In October in the United States, we celebrate National Coming Out Day.  But that really doesn't do it justice.  Coming out isn't a day or a week or a month.  Coming out is a process for most of us.  It's intensely personal, incredibly liberating, and extremely terrifying for most people.  Let's practice our writing skills with some characters who are coming out of the closet, are remembering their emergence, or even contemplating doing it.   #81 - First Line - "How could you have outed me l
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Prompts

November, Remember

November is a month for remembering things.  Whether it's the Remember, Remember, the Fifth of November, with Guy Fawkes day, or November 11th, the Armistice Day commemorating The Great War, World War I, this is a month for looking back over past events.  Therefore, I'm suggesting prompts that have to do with remembering events of the past. #87 List of items: rosemary, a diary, a chest, RAM, elephant, and a red poppy #88  Your main character lost his memory.  What brings it back?  
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National Poetry Month Wrap-Up 4/27/22

There are only three more days left in April, although around here it feels more like December.  The buds on the trees were sporting a nice winter coat of snow today instead of leaves and pretty spring flowers.  I'm wondering if this will be one of the rare times we get a May show shower   The end of April also means the end of National Poetry Month.  There has been a nice selection of poetry posted this month, and @Aditus and @Parker Owens took on the challenge of writing 30 poems in the month.
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More Holiday Prompts

It's the holiday season and it's a merry time for some and not so great time for others.  Here are two prompts to reflect both moods.     PT Prompt #97 You are gifted a magic snow globe.  What happens when you shake it? PT Prompt #98 You are spending the holidays alone.  Describe your day and any celebration or lack thereof.    
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Mid-December Prompts 12/17/21

It’s hard to believe December is half over!  How about celebrating the end of the year by writing a prompt? There has to be a punchline somewhere for #7!    PT Prompt #7 An angel, a werewolf, a vampire, and a human go to a bar. What happens? Write a short story or vignette.   PT Prompt #8 Winter challenge.  You're snowed in at a motel in the middle of nowhere with just strangers in rooms nearby.  Tell us what happens.
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Prompts

March 4th Round Robin

A Round Robin isn’t a fat bird.   It’s actually a lot of things, but the only interesting definition concerning prompts is that it is a form of storytelling. There are several variations. Let’s try two. PT# 27 Tell a story that begins at the same place as it ends.   PT# 28 Find at least one fellow author and tell a story together. Write its paragraphs or sentences alternatively.
Aditus

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March 25th Call to GA’s poets

April is National Poetry writing month (NaPoWriMo). The challenge is to write a poem a day until May. Over the last years, we had several poets who took up the gauntlet. I understand that many of you can't or don't want to write a poem a day, but we are looking forward to every poem or poetry collection that will be posted during the next month. We are happy we could win AC Benus as a special guest to get us started with two brand new poetry prompts: Skyscraper Let's Write some Sk
Aditus

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Prompts

Magical Prompts

Magic is in the air! PT#95 Sam got a magical advent calendar from gran Lulu. So far, the chocolate and marzipan were delicious but magical? What does the calendar’s magic do to Sam? PT#96 Looking for the box with Christmas decorations in the attic, your protagonist pushes cardboard boxes around. Suddenly something strange drops on the floor. After a closer examination, it turns out to be a mechanical arm. After playing around with it for a while it suddenly attaches itself to them,
Aditus

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Let's Write Some Poetry!

Since National Poetry Writing Month is fast approaching, along with the Poetry Anthology, I thought it would be the perfect time to feature some poetry prompts!    PT Prompt #213 - Poetry Write a poem about a feeling without explicitly naming what that feeling is.    PT Prompt #214 - Poetry  Use spring as your springboard to start a poem.  Embrace the fickleness of the season!    Please include the prompt number either in your story/chapter description or
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Let's Talk About the Weather!

What does conversation inevitably drift towards when all other topics are exhausted?  Whether you like it or not, it's usually the weather     PT Prompt #199: You're a weatherman who got the forecast completely wrong before a catastrophic storm hit.  What were the consequences?   PT Prompt #200: Because the weatherman was so colossally wrong, you were taken completely by surprise by this storm.  What kind of storm was it?   Where did you weather it?  What happened
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Let's Go Exploring

Let's do a bit of a flip-flop with today's prompts and push ourselves out of our comfort zones.  In honor of our upcoming Poetry Anthology, I thought it would be fun to feature a couple of prompts that can be used for either poetry or stories.  If you are a poet, then try writing a paragraph, short story, or vignette.  If you are a non-poet, then give writing a short poem or two a try.  The anthology theme is Exploration, so let's explore writing styles that may not be in our wheelhouse.  You ne
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Prompts

Let's Get to Work!

I think most working people are well-acquainted with the "meeting that should have been an email".  I had to attend a two-hour training today that was more interesting than others I've attended, but was still time I could have used to catch up on my endless backlog of paperwork.  So this week's prompts have a "working" theme.  Now get to work and start writing!    PT Prompt #151 You are in the "meeting to end all meetings".  It's lasting for hours, and it's information that
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Prompts

Let's Get Technical

I love the challenge of technical writing prompts.  So here are two that hopefully you will like as well.  PT Prompt #103 Choose a setting and an emotion.  Write about the setting in a way that evokes the emotion without explicitly naming it.    PT Prompt #104 Two characters are having a conflict with each other but refuse to acknowledge or talk about it.  They are playing a game (can be any kind of game), and their true feelings keep sneaking out.  Write the scene.  
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Let there be Spring!!!

Aaaaahhhh...The Vernal Equinox approaches.  "The March equinox – also called the vernal equinox – marks the beginning of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere and the autumn season in the Southern Hemisphere. The March 2022 equinox will arrive on March 20 at 15:33 UTC. That’s 10:33 a.m. Central Daylight Time." - EarthSky website [https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/everything-you-need-to-know-vernal-or-spring-equinox/]   Oh, and it's Randy's birthday too!  But enough about
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Last Minute Prompts

I am the Queen of Procrastination.  I tend to work best under pressure; sometimes I need a deadline in order to get anything accomplished.  Sometimes I leave things to the last minute because I have no choice.  I have so much on my plate, I need to prioritize what needs to be done first.  Kind of like a triage of my schedule.  I do this at work all the time, since I am the only person currently in my department (not from lack of trying to get more help, but that's a completely different topic).
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June and the Advent of Summer

The warm, long days of summer are just beginning.  In fact, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere occurs in just two weeks.  We celebrate Father's Day, Flag Day, and the beginning of the summer break for students.  And, it's Gay Pride Month!!  There is so much to write about. First, let's do a random word one. Prompt #55 - Use all the following words in a story.  It can be about anything, of any length, but it must include these words:  Bug, frigid, oozes, sidecar, ban
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January; The Beginning and the End

January is named for the Roman god Janus, who was the patron of beginnings, endings, and the nature of a doorway or threshold.   The Janus Society was an early homophile organization out of Philadelphia in the 1960s and was one of the earliest organizations of gays, lesbians, and gender non-conforming people of the era.   Prompt #13 The Janus Society's president had a magazine called, "Drum" and in 1965, it was the first U.S. magazine to show a nude male from the front.  What is his story?
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January 28th First Month Done

Are you already looking for the ‘reset button’ like me? What better method to get over a substandard start of the year is there than writing? PT#17 A young man, wearing a long striped purple scarf, is ice skating in a circle alone. What is his story?   PT#18 First line: "It's pouring out here. May I come in?"
Aditus

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