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Wednesday Poetry Prompts: 167 (Risk Poems)
For this week’s prompt, write a risk poem. That is, write a poem in which either the narrator, a character, or whatever takes a risk, or in which risk is involved. For those who like board games, yes,...
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Take Action: How I Overcame Writer’s Block
BY RENÉE THOMPSON Ray Bradbury once said if you’re a writer and you’re blocked, well, you’ve picked the wrong subject then, haven’t you? At least he had a subject. For me, writer’s block was never so...
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Considering Absurdism
Albert Camus and Sysiphus | images via Wikimedia Commons The 7th of November is the anniversary of Albert Camus’ birth in 1913. A writer and philosopher, Camus was known for his belief in...
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Symbolic Animals
By A. Burnham Shute (Moby-Dick edition – C. H. Simonds Co) [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsHerman Melville’s nautical classic Moby Dick debuted in the US on November 14, 1851. As you may know,...
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Spiced Architecture
[Don’t miss your chance to enter the Writer’s Digest Short Short Story Competition! Impress us with your best story in 1500 words or fewer. Deadline Dec. 15.] December 12 is National Gingerbread House...
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The Vow of the Peacock
[Can you impress us in 1500 words or less? Enter the Short Short Story Competition today! Deadline January 15, 2018] As with many holiday traditions, most New Year’s resolutions have religious roots....
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Custom Etymology
[Don’t miss your chance to enter the Writer’s Digest Short Short Story Competition! Impress us with your best story in 1500 words or fewer. Deadline extended to Jan. 15.] This week’s prompt—which is...
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Going Viral
[If national prestige, $5,000 in cash, coverage of your win in Writer’s Digest and more great prizes are what you’re looking for, enter the Writer’s Digest Annual Writing Competition.] On January 30,...
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Musical Incantation
We at WD are nearly as passionate about music as we are about writing and reading. Our very own Robert Lee Brewer, for example, recently put together a delightful roundup of the 20 best songs for...
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Pranks and Perspective
What were your favorite April Fools pranks this year? I had a few favorites from the writing world. For instance, this one from Amazon Publishing was pretty spectacular: Launching April 1st, Amazon...
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Blahbarian
Did you know that the word “barbarian” comes from the Medieval Latin barbarinus, meaning “foreign, of another nation or culture”? The Latin word is from the root barbar-, which was used to imitate the...
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Extraordinarily Ordinary
I find that one of the greatest challenges I face in my own writing is finding new ways to describe settings. It’s easy to fall into clichéd diction and metaphors … which is why the exercise below...
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So Close, and Yet…
They say the journey is more important than the destination, but you’ve been planning this trip for months, dammit! The Prompt You have nearly arrived at your dream destination. Thus far, the trip has...
View ArticleMadder Libs
Since I threw a curve ball at you with last week’s writing prompt, I decided to make this one a bit more casual. Enjoy! Writing Prompt: Madder Libs First, think of… a word you use too much. the name of...
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Things We Lose
In honor of Harry Potter’s birthday (and J.K. Rowling’s), this week’s writing prompt is simply a line from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Do as you please with it—incorporate it into your...
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Give Them a Hand
Writing Prompt: Give Them a Hand Write a scene about a conversation or another interaction, and include a focus specifically on the characters’ hands. Include the appearance of the hands, as well as...
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Awry
Weekly Writing Prompt: Awry Write about a situation in which plans go awry, leading to disastrous consequences. Did you go to college anticipating success, only to flunk out? Does a character fall in...
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The Athlete
Writing Prompt: The Athlete Think of an athlete, coach or other sporting type you’ve met before. Using this person as a springboard, identify the following qualities about them and then incorporate...
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Did You Hear That?
As you likely know, the term onomatopoeia refers to words that imitate sounds associated with actions and objects. Incorporate as many onomatopoetic words into a story or scene as you can. Here is a...
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Lost Dog
Writing Prompt: Lost Dog The family dog has been missing for weeks, and everyone is devastated (except that one family member, of course). Suddenly, the dog returns, showing up out of nowhere. (Most...
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