Write about a character facing death. Their own? Someone else's? Are they the killer?
Write about a character communicating with the Divine - how ever you define it
Write about a character realizing a promise they believed in isn't going to be kept
Write about a character suffering a serious loss
Write about a character gaining a significant victory
Kaida King and Aiden Charles want to win a challenge. They are rivals, but they fall in love. One of them has to quit the challenge and leave. The one who stays manages to rescue the situation by robbing a bank.
Thalia Jean and Fox Martin meet after a failed experiment. One of them is trying to become parent. Patient turns murderous after having a near-death experience.
Set the timer for 90 seconds. List items you can find in a daycare. When the 90 seconds are up, write a story that includes all the words in your list BUT isn't near a daycare, has no connection to one either.
Describe in concrete terms how "curiosity suffers".
Write from the point of view of a wristwatch
Create a story or poem inspired by this: "Portrait of the spring, color, blue shadows of wild"
Choose any two of the following items. Describe a human character that takes on a mix of the qualities of those two items. pearl necklace shirt button domino set keys ice cube tray bow ring mirror
The seven elements of weather are - temperature - atmospheric pressure - wind - humidity - precipitation - visibility - clouds - sunshine duration Select randomly one of each, and use them to describe your scene
Choose a natural disaster and write about that
Choose a climate zone and write about that
Choose a biome and write about that
Choose five of your favorite characters from copyright free literature, and write a scene about them finding themselves in the same place at the same time, in modern world. Why did they come to the place? Something happened to force them to co-operate and communicate. What? How will they solve the problem?
One kid in a big city is bored. School won’t be out for a couple of months. There are no holidays to look forward to. He or she wishes the family lived in the country.
"What do you want? No, I mean, really want? No, really really want. Like more than anything. Like you would pay anything to have that, you would die to get it, you would kill to get it, you would do anything to get it...
Yes, yes, I know, my blogs will never get followers, because I'm unreliable. No matter how good my blog post are... but - to the few loyal followers and those who happen upon this blog, here's some writing prompts
1) Think about your favorite fairytale or myth retelling.
Retell the myth of Lugh
2) Tell a story about something that happens at sunset, or where the sunset plays an important role
3)
4) A family made corn dollies, to find the next morning that they have come alive during the night...
6) Write about fruitfulness - as this is Pagan writing prompts, look at fruitfulness from a spiritual point of view.
7) Write about reaping - as this is Pagan writing prompts, look at fruitfulness from a spiritual point of view.
8) Write about prosperity - as this is Pagan writing prompts, look at fruitfulness from a spiritual point of view.
9) Write about first harvest, first fruits - as this is Pagan writing prompts, look at fruitfulness from a spiritual point of view.
10) write about transformation, purification, change and sacrifice - as this is Pagan writing prompts, look at fruitfulness from a spiritual point of view.
17) Write a story where a carnelian or an object made of carnelian plays a role
18) Write about what makes autumn autumn, whether things you like or things you hate.
19) Write your own cereal myth, how wheat, corn, spelt, what ever became to be and how people found it, and "tamed" it, about the first bread or porridge or what ever you think people made of cereals
20) August 12th was the Middle Child Day - celebrate the Middle Children by writing a story where your hero is one
21) August 18th was the Mail Order Catalogue day. Write a story where a mail order catalogue or mail ordering plays a big role.
22) Write "Lammas Night's Dream" or "Lammas Eve"
23) Write a story about a rooster
24) Write a story about a phoenix
25) Write a story about a basilisk - where the basilisk is a good creature
27) “Because somehow, the sun rises each day. Emerging from the horizon, brighter and more beautiful than the previous day. You'll rise from the horizon too, learning to trust again. Learning to love again. Learning to heal. You'll emerge so bright that the haters will be blinded. And darling, you'll be the sun then, bright and beautiful, but they won't be your sunflowers.”
28) “They lay on their heathery beds and listened to all the sounds of the night. They heard the little grunt of a hedgehog going by. They saw the flicker of bats overhead. They smelt the drifting scent of honeysuckle, and the delicious smell of wild thyme crushed under their bodies. A reed-warbler sang a beautiful little song in the reeds below, and then another answered.” ― Enid Blyton, The Secret Island
29) “Forget who you are and why you're here-all that foolishness. In the woods the bushes are full of blueberries; go and pick some.” ― Marty Rubin
30) write a story about a family that goes to the woods to pick berries
32) August 22nd is the Tooth Fairy Day. Write about the Tooth Fairy
33) Take your favorite Christmas carol and write new lyrics to it, lyrics that fit Lammas, late summer, early autumn and August.
34) Write about deep greens, golden yellows, shimmering bronzes, tanned browns, the golds and browns of cereals and golden wheat fields, the dusty sage green of hay,
35) I lie amid the Goldenrod, I love to see it lean and nod; I love to feel the grassy sod Whose kindly breast will hold me last, Whose patient arms will fold me fast!— Fold me from sunshine and from song, Fold me from sorrow and from wrong: Through gleaming gates of Goldenrod I'll pass into the rest of God.
38. Write a satirical story about an orphanage that is managed as if it were an animal shelter, or write about an animal shelter that is managed as if it were an orphanage.
39. Children are delighted when a mama cat gives birth to a litter of five orange tabbies and one little gray runt.
40. A single mother leaves her two teenage children home alone for the summer.
41. A woman has three children, all of whom are soldiers in a military that is at war. Within the span of three days, she learns that two of her children were killed in combat. Six weeks later, there’s a knock at the door. When she opens it, she finds her third child standing there — the same child who convinced the other two to enlist.
42. The protagonist is raking leaves on the lawn. He or she pauses for a breath and glances at the neighbors’ lawn. They never rake their leaves, the protagonist thinks, and their dog is always using my yard as a latrine. The protagonist decides to do something about these inconsiderate neighbors.
43. The year is 1623. A visitor arrives in a small, tribal village in Nigeria. The visitor is wearing blue jeans, an old rock-band t-shirt, and a fedora and is carrying a pack that contains a solar-powered laptop computer.
44. The protagonist walks into his or her house and it’s completely different — furniture, decor, all changed. It doesn’t look like the same house anymore. And no-body’s home.
45. Scientists have figured out how to create hybrids: dog-people, cat-insects, and bird-fish. One of their experiments goes terribly wrong and unleashes a swarm of hybrid predators on the population.
46. Two athletes competing (either at an individual sport or on opposing teams) get stuck somewhere together (broken-down bus in a remote location, elevator, etc.) and fall in love.
47. The Great Depression filled the space between America’s Prohibition (which was still in effect during the Depression) and World War II. The Depression affected the entire world. Well-to-do people lost everything and found themselves standing in food lines. Ordinary people went to extraordinary measures to get a meager meal. Meanwhile, someone, somewhere profited.
48. It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Wait — no, it’s not! The holidays are cheesy. Bah humbug!
49. Two siblings capture a butterfly and a moth and proceed to argue over which insect is superior.
- collect ideas and inspiration - go through your collection every now and then and combine bits and bobs to see what happens
- retell a story - tell the story from all the different characters' point of view.
- idea brainstorming
- get inspired by images, for example British Museum's collections
- Try a story idea generator
- Open a book to a random page and write out the first sentence your finger lands on.
- Find a song you love and Google its lyrics.
- google "photo a day" prompt list and freewrite about the theme
To get random results, go to Wikipedia main page
There's
From today's featured article
Did you know...
In the news
On this day
and
Today's featured picture
What I found inspiring on the page was
"did you know that the Roman temple of Bziza, dedicated to the Semitic god Azizos, was converted to a church by the Byzantines?"
What if the God stayed in the temple (why wouldn't he), and is now being worshiped by all in that church, even though they say the Christian words?
Also, interesting here is that Azizos was the God of Morning Star. And Lucifer was also Morning Star... So they are worshiping Lucifer in that church...
Azizos was also associated with Ares.
"did
you know that Better Together's "The woman who made up her mind" advert
opposing Scottish independence so upset politician Sandra Grieve that
she changed her mind and began supporting independence?"
Sounds interesting.
and Today's featured picture which was about Aletta Jacobs
Sounds interesting. Someone should make a movie about her.
If you find nothing interesting, get a random number between 1 and 100.
Take the word that comes up as that number in "from today's featured article" and make a google search with that word - then go to the result of that number -
like today I got 43, the featured article was about James Park Woods, and the 43rd word was "force", and the 43rd google result was "Team Yankee Forces".
Absolutely boring and not a bit inspiring to me :-D So, great that I was already inspired by what was on that page ;-)
It's about 2 weeks to Midsummer. Let's write about that.
Read about Midsummer celebrations around the world.
Now, create your ideal Midsummer celebration. Create a Pagan family with at least three generation. There should be children in the family. Tell about this family's Midsummer celebration.
If you would describe Midsummer with one word, what would that word be? Write a short story that embodies the word.
Write about what makes summer a summer, whether things you like or things you hate.
Write about fire. You can write about real fire, or the fire inside.
Write your own myth about how sun came to be.
Write about passion, love and sex
Write about parenthood
Find a myth about a Sun deity and retell that story
Watch St.Elmo's Fire and write a Pagan version of it
June 2nd was International Sex Workers' Day - to create awareness for the problems and violence against sex workers. Do your part and write a story to make people aware of that sex workers are people, too, and should get the same rights and privileges as all the other workers. If you are against sex work, write about that.
Write your version of The Midsummer Night's Dream
What does honey mean to you? Write a story about honey - or honey wine, honey bread (gingerbread), or other honey derivate.
This is Russian honeycake. Bake it for Midsummer.
Write a story about an emerald.
Write a story about a horse.
Write a story about a robin. (The Secret Garden is one of the best known stories about a robin :-D)
Read the Russian fairy tale about the Firebird and then retell it
"He goes in and the door is shut. I think we will not open the door or follow him.
I think that just now we are not wanted there.
I think it will be best for us to go quickly and quietly away.
At the end of the field, among the thin gold spikes of grass
and the harebells and Gipsy roses and St. John's Wort,
we may just take one last look, over our shoulders,
at the white house where neither we nor anyone else is wanted now." — E. Nesbit
Write a story about a day at the beach.
Write a story about the sights, scents, tastes, sensations and sounds of Midsummer
Write about your favorite Midsummer food, drink, activity, decoration - When was the first time you remember eating the food? Is there a story involved in the decoration?
If you don't celebrate Midsummer, why the heck not!?
"You've never heard of the Trickster King?" Puck asked, shocked. The girls shook their heads. "The Prince of Fairies? Robin Goodfellow? The Imp?" "Do you work for Santa?" Daphne asked. "I'm a fairy, not an elf!" Puck roared. "You really don't know who I am!
Doesn't anyone read the classics anymore? Dozens of writers have warned about me.
I'm in the most famous of all of William Shakespeare's plays." "I don't remember any Puck in Romeo and Juliet," Sabrina muttered,
feeling a little amused at how the boy was reacting to his non-celebrity. "Besides Romeo and Juliet!" Puck shouted. "I'm the star of a Midsummer Night's Dream!" "Congratulation," Sabrina said flatly. "Never read it." — Michael Buckley (The Fairy-Tale Detectives)
What is your favorite summer song? Write a story about that.
Take your favorite Christmas carol and write new lyrics to it, lyrics that fit Midsummer, summer and June.
Write a story about Australia.
Learn more about the Australian Aborigines, and write a fantasy story with people based on the Aborigines.
June 5th is the Danish constitution day and June 6th is the Swedish national day (and May 17th was Norwegian independence day), and June 8th is the day the Vikings ransacked Lindisfarne - so write about vikings.
June 12th is World Day Against Child Labor - write about that
In many places Fathers' Day is celebrated in June. Write about fathers.
June 18th is International Picnic Day - write about a picnic.
June 20th is World Refugee Day. Write about a refugee.
Go to this list of solar deities. Pick 10. Learn more about them. Find myths about them.
Find a defining quality of your deities. For example, Eki, the Basque sun goddess is the protector of humanity and the enemy of all evil spirits. Now, think about how you could "help" her with this job
"The dried yellow petals of St. John's wort, which Old Marie called
'chase-devil'
for the way it could drive the megrims away. Gaudy
calendula, bright as the sun.
Sweet-smelling lemon balm, guaranteed to
lift the spirits with its aroma alone."
—
Kate Forsyth
Oh, dear... it looks like I'm coming by this blog every 18 months or so... Well... better sometimes than never, huh?
1. What is an essential quality, property of a Pagan? Love of everything living? Free spirit? Tolerance? Write a story exhibiting this quality and presenting it as something desirable. Why do you think it is essential, and for Pagans?
2. Write a story about your everyday connection with the spiritual world. Things you do in mundane, everyday, normal situations, like meditating while doing the dishes or spellcasting while cooking.
3. What is your favorite fairytale (or one of them) and what is it teaching?
For example, one of my favorites is Anahita, a Caucasian story, about a prince who fell in love with a poor girl, but she wasn't impressed by him. She demanded he learn an occupation before she marries him. He learned to weave rugs. They got married, and in time he became the king. Then, one day, he was out at war, was captured, and said he was a rug weaver, and asked if he could weave a rug to the foreign queen. His request was granted and he wove a code in the rug, so that his queen could come and rescue him.
I think one of the teachings of this story is that your status can change quickly. A poor girl can become the queen, a prince can become a prisoner. It is good to learn skills to deal with any situation that arises.
4.
Yes, why? Go write about what you really want to write about!
5. Think back at your life. Do you see God's influence in it (God, Gods, higher power, spiritual force, something else similar). What are some lessons from God in your life?
6. Would you live your life any differently if you weren't Pagan?
7. Describe a day of an ideal Pagan living a full life spiritually
8. "I need a spell, right now", he said.
9. The book's name is "Spicy". Write it.
10. Pick a random number between 1 and 250. Go here and find your number. That's your writing prompt.
Have a lovely Autumn Equinox, how ever you celebrate it. Celebrate it, though.
Why?
Now, that's a prompt for you.
Study the traditions and beliefs associated with equinoxes. I believe in synchronicity and I believe there's a reason why people noticed the fact that the day and night were equally long twice a year. (And every other day on Equator :-D)
Which consequences does this phenomena have? How does it show in your life?
And what about Autumn? Study the traditions and beliefs about Autumn and Autumntide. Why is it called "Fall"? Fall into what? From where?
What is it called in other languages and why?
In Germanic languages the names come from the same root as harvest.
"Ruska" is related to words like "aamurusko" (the lovely colors of sunrise), "ruskea" (brown, color of copper) and "rusottaa" (bloom, flourish, blush - it has nothing to do with roses, though, unless "rose" is a Finnougric loan to Indo-European languages.)
(It is pronounced "rouss-kah")
Here's a reminder of an old site with Pagan prompts. Even less frequented that my site... *blush*
If you have already written yourself through it, take a second round.
1. Write every day. Keep paper and pen with you at all times so that you can write any time.
2. Write by hand. And keep paper and pen with you at all times.
3. Set a timer and write AT LEAST 10 minutes. (Or 5 minutes or 15 minutes or what ever time suits your circumstances.)
4. Don't think. Write. Write without stopping. Just puts words on paper. After the 10 minutes (or 5 or 15) have gone, THEN you can start thinking and speculating and wondering and wandering and researching and letting that research lead you to other ideas. But the 10 minutes of prompt writing is just that. WRITE!
5. Don't start thinking what you feel about the prompt or if it's interesting or anything like it. Don't try to find alternatives you'd like better. See it as a chore. You have to write 10 minutes of this thing. To be able to write about anything, you have to write about anything. Even the boring and uninspiring and unlikable stuff. You are a writer. Writers write. Write!
6. Keep what you write for milking other ideas.
7. Write prompts even when you are working on The Next Big Novel. It works as recreation while upkeeping your writing skills.
Describe an important item from your childhood. Why was it important and where is it now?
Describe an event that happened in Autumn and that you think of every Autumn. If you don't have any such events, DO SOMETHING TO GET IT! But... you don't know what that could be!
Well... you thought about something... there was a fleeting thought, a hint, a touch, a scent of a thought, when you read that prompt. It might have been your memory, it might have been someone else's memory, it might have been a book you read or a movie you saw... but it was something. Catch it. (BTW, I was thinking about Stand By Me.)
You find out that you will die in five years or less. How did you find this out? What would you do in those five years?
You receive an unmarked envelope with a check for $5,000,000 inside. It's a legitimate check, what do you do with it? Do you ever find out who it is from? How does it change your life?
You are granted one super power. What is the power and what do you do with it?
For pagan witches this can be adjusted a little. All the fantasy witch descriptions are true. Which ability would you choose to have and what do you do with it?
Most everyone has had a near death experience, describe yours. If you've never had one before, create one. Embellish as much as possible.
How were you named? If you feel that your name is boring and the story behind it equally so, make up a name and come up with an interesting story behind that.
How'd you get that scar? Most everyone has a scar. Talk about it as if it you were about to get that scar for the first time. Scar free? Then you need to invent one! Or talk about another person's scar as if it was your own.
"I remember a much watched video tape with Nureyev on the Dame Edna show, where he explained that the scar on his lip came about when he was a child and was so thin that he looked like a bone, so a dog tried to eat him"Chirayliq: Rudolf Nureyev
I remember that he used to jokingly tell it was from a duel with swords :-D
You've awoken as the opposite gender. What do you do with this newfound switch? If you don't identify as any sort of gender, pretend that you are forced by the government to identify. What is your life like?
You are given the option for immortality. Do you take it or do you decline?
The tarot as writing tool
Now, there are dozens of divination methods, and you can use them all. BTW, I just found out about this new (to me) divination method called "junk oracle". It's based on bone oracle, you collect small things in a bag, and throw them on a cloth, and read what you see... one could make such a bag with the characters of your latest novel, and some symbols of events, happenings etc. and cast this on a cloth to get new ideas about what might happen in the book. Remember to throw in some ninjas ;-)
