Chapter 4
620 Words
As a writer, I love prompts that jumpstart my muse and get the creative juices flowing. Sometimes I want to write and don’t really know what I should write about, and prompts help guide me into a new story. I’ve written many stories that began as an interesting prompt in a writing class or author group, and then grew to take on a life of its own.
But I’m frequently disappointed with books of writing prompts because while they’re creative and inspiring, I find it very difficult to settle on any one prompt to work on at a time. I’ll find something, think it sounds good, then flip the page and find another prompt that looks just as promising, then turn to another page…you get the drift. I’m easily distracted, and would rather read through the entire book of prompts rather than pick one out at random and write.
When I began this book, I decided to eliminate that indecisiveness, in case other writers suffer from it as well. I thought if I wrote the book in a diary or planner format, with one prompt per day for an entire year, then it would be a no-brainer which prompt to use. Whatever day it happens to be, flip to that page, and viola! Instant inspiration.
The idea, of course, is to write everyday. It’s only by writing that one becomes a writer, and practice makes perfect. Even if you aren’t working on a particular story, writing a brief scene or a short thousand-word story is a great way to stay in shape and hone your writing ability. It also gets you into a routine, and writing daily will sooner or later lead to a finished story or book.
This collection of writing prompts can be used on a daily basis. Every day turn the page to the new prompt, set a timer for fifteen or twenty minutes, and write wherever the prompt takes you. Or, if you’re between stories and looking for something different to work on, flip to the prompt for today and start fresh.
The prompts in this collection are my own creations. They’re inspired by things I’ve seen or experienced in my own life. Many times throughout the day I think, “What if…?” The writer in me never turns off, and on an average day, I’ll get dozen of story or scene ideas. Unfortunately, I know I’ll probably never be able to write out all of them—most I forget after a few minutes, and I figure in that case they probably weren’t very good to start with. But hopefully these prompts will help trigger your own stories and get you writing—or, if you’re already writing on a daily basis, keep you going.
There are several types of prompts in this book. Some start simply, “Write a story about…” or “Write about someone who…” Others present a question you should answer through the story you decide to tell. And many are scenarios presented in the second person, where “you” can be anyone you want—male or female, gay or straight, young or old, human or not. I kept these deliberately vague to allow your imagination to kick into overdrive. These prompts can be used to write stories in any genre you prefer, be it contemporary, sci-fi or fantasy, horror, romance, erotica, paranormal…whatever tickles your fancy.
I hope you’ll find these prompts useful in kick-starting your writing or taking your current stories in exciting new directions. They were a lot of fun for me to write. I hope they’re just as fun for you to use as fodder for your next story!
J.M. Snyder
December 2012
- Writer
