Lucky number 13! Write something horrific, scary, bone-chilling. Think of what frightens you the most, and write it.
Challenge: Write it in second person. Using you rather than I gives a new level of scary to the reader.
Tip: Mentally frightening things (death, being trapped, controlled) can be just as frightening as physically scary things (monsters, murderers, spiders). Give both a try.
Ready. Set. Scream.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Day 12
What rouses you out of bed every morning? Love for a career, another, a family? The prospect of a new adventure? Simply because you have to?
What if you couldn't find the will to wake up?
Write the reasons you or a character have to keep chugging along, even when things are rocky.
Challenge: Use the word dapper.
Tip: Think outside of the normal things. Perhaps one reason is the promise of bacon for breakfast or getting to sit at one's new MacBook. Of course there will be bigger reasons as aforementioned, but think of smaller things that matter just as much.
Ready. Set. Live.
What if you couldn't find the will to wake up?
Write the reasons you or a character have to keep chugging along, even when things are rocky.
Challenge: Use the word dapper.
Tip: Think outside of the normal things. Perhaps one reason is the promise of bacon for breakfast or getting to sit at one's new MacBook. Of course there will be bigger reasons as aforementioned, but think of smaller things that matter just as much.
Ready. Set. Live.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Day 11
Dreaming is an entirely different world. Whether your fast asleep and living in a boundless realm or your looking towards your future and listing the possibilities. Write a dream - whether its one you've had or one you're creating.
Challenge: Write a dream journal. If you're feeling particularly ambitious, keep up with the journal every morning.
Tip: The wonderful thing about dreams is that nothing is realistic. Let your imagination go because, really, anything could happen.
Ready. Set. Dream.
Challenge: Write a dream journal. If you're feeling particularly ambitious, keep up with the journal every morning.
Tip: The wonderful thing about dreams is that nothing is realistic. Let your imagination go because, really, anything could happen.
Ready. Set. Dream.
Friday, June 7, 2013
Day 10
Goodbye.
Goodbye halls that I've walked everyday. Goodbye morning cups of coffee. Goodbye friend that's been there through it all. Goodbye love that's been worth every moment. Goodbye Chipotle runs and froyo stops. Goodbye sunsets in the suburb or mornings on the metro.
As if everything were changing and you were leaving it all behind, say goodbye.
Challenge: Only wish one, small, seemingly unimportant thing farewell. But make that item hold more meaning than anything else ever could.
Tip: Make your words and sentences melodic. Use a long, flowing sentence structure with flowery words. The more poetic it is, the more emotional and captivating it will be.
Ready. Set. Adieu.
Goodbye halls that I've walked everyday. Goodbye morning cups of coffee. Goodbye friend that's been there through it all. Goodbye love that's been worth every moment. Goodbye Chipotle runs and froyo stops. Goodbye sunsets in the suburb or mornings on the metro.
As if everything were changing and you were leaving it all behind, say goodbye.
Challenge: Only wish one, small, seemingly unimportant thing farewell. But make that item hold more meaning than anything else ever could.
Tip: Make your words and sentences melodic. Use a long, flowing sentence structure with flowery words. The more poetic it is, the more emotional and captivating it will be.
Ready. Set. Adieu.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Day 9
"We live alone. We die alone. Everything else is just an illusion."
Challenge: Write something that expresses this quote in a positive perspective.
Tip: Try to look at the quote in an objective point of view; don't see the words through your own life, see them through another's.
Ready. Set. Express.
Challenge: Write something that expresses this quote in a positive perspective.
Tip: Try to look at the quote in an objective point of view; don't see the words through your own life, see them through another's.
Ready. Set. Express.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Day 8
Home. Find the place where you feel you belong - no matter where that may be. Express that feeling of belonging, that place where everything is calm and okay.
Challenge: Write a pantoum about home. (Pantoum is a type of poem. Write ten lines that can stand alone. Then arrange them lines 1-2-3-4. 2-5-4-6. 5-7-6-8. 7-9-8-10. 9-3-10-1)
Tip: Put the audience in your place. Make them feel as at home in your setting as you or your character does. Describe the feeling of home and why it feels that way. Your reader should understand the setting and feeling as well as you do.
Ready. Set. Belong.
Challenge: Write a pantoum about home. (Pantoum is a type of poem. Write ten lines that can stand alone. Then arrange them lines 1-2-3-4. 2-5-4-6. 5-7-6-8. 7-9-8-10. 9-3-10-1)
Tip: Put the audience in your place. Make them feel as at home in your setting as you or your character does. Describe the feeling of home and why it feels that way. Your reader should understand the setting and feeling as well as you do.
Ready. Set. Belong.
Monday, June 3, 2013
Day 7
It's time to be brutally honest. What have you always wanted to say but never did? Today's your day to let it out. Whatever emotions your holding back, whatever hatred or love you've been neglecting to confess, whatever is on your mind, write it.
Challenge: Express your feelings through a fictional character in a "Dear You" letter. There should be pieces of you and your story, but it should ultimately still be fictional. This can be the best catharsis at times.
Tip: Words are only part of communication in writing. There are italics, bold print, underlining, all capitols, and punctuation. Use these to your advantage. It's the body language of the written word. It should be used sparingly, but it can make all the difference.
Ready. Set. Confess.
Challenge: Express your feelings through a fictional character in a "Dear You" letter. There should be pieces of you and your story, but it should ultimately still be fictional. This can be the best catharsis at times.
Tip: Words are only part of communication in writing. There are italics, bold print, underlining, all capitols, and punctuation. Use these to your advantage. It's the body language of the written word. It should be used sparingly, but it can make all the difference.
Ready. Set. Confess.
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Day 6
11:11 (or 22:22)! Make a wish!
Wishing wells. Genies in bottles. Dandelions. Crossing new bridges. Prayers. There are all these superstitions where you're supposed to close your eyes and make a wish. Choose one, or three, or all of them and make a wish - be it yours, a character's, a friend's, whoever.
Challenge: Write a memoir that's as good as fiction. Rather than just telling the story like you'd tell it to your friends, embellish the words and make your story creative. Don't forget the power of literary devices and emotional appeal. Writing isn't entirely about telling a story, it's about putting the reader in a scene and making him or her feel, see, hear, smell everything around them just as you once did.
Tip: Repetition is a wonderful tool that can make your point. You could start each paragraph with "I wish..." and continue to tell the story after each statement. This can give the piece a simple feel when, really, there are complexities and tales twisted throughout it. Repetition can take some practice to get just right, however. You need to know at one point it becomes overused (when you have twenty pages of repeating phrases) or when you don't use it enough to allow the audience to understand what you're doing (when you only use it twice or you use it a handful of times without any reason to its placement). Give it a try!
Ready. Set. Make a wish.
Wishing wells. Genies in bottles. Dandelions. Crossing new bridges. Prayers. There are all these superstitions where you're supposed to close your eyes and make a wish. Choose one, or three, or all of them and make a wish - be it yours, a character's, a friend's, whoever.
Challenge: Write a memoir that's as good as fiction. Rather than just telling the story like you'd tell it to your friends, embellish the words and make your story creative. Don't forget the power of literary devices and emotional appeal. Writing isn't entirely about telling a story, it's about putting the reader in a scene and making him or her feel, see, hear, smell everything around them just as you once did.
Tip: Repetition is a wonderful tool that can make your point. You could start each paragraph with "I wish..." and continue to tell the story after each statement. This can give the piece a simple feel when, really, there are complexities and tales twisted throughout it. Repetition can take some practice to get just right, however. You need to know at one point it becomes overused (when you have twenty pages of repeating phrases) or when you don't use it enough to allow the audience to understand what you're doing (when you only use it twice or you use it a handful of times without any reason to its placement). Give it a try!
Ready. Set. Make a wish.
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Day 5
Hope.
What does the word really mean? How can hope affect a person's life? How does hope show itself on a daily basis? Is hope even real? Investigate.
Challenge: Write an entire piece about hope, but never say the word. Instead, use symbolism to make your point about hope.
Tip: Figurative language is your best friend. Metaphors that are started at the beginning of the piece can be carried throughout the entirety of the work. This often brings the piece together and creates something quite cohesive.
Ready. Set. Hope.
What does the word really mean? How can hope affect a person's life? How does hope show itself on a daily basis? Is hope even real? Investigate.
Challenge: Write an entire piece about hope, but never say the word. Instead, use symbolism to make your point about hope.
Tip: Figurative language is your best friend. Metaphors that are started at the beginning of the piece can be carried throughout the entirety of the work. This often brings the piece together and creates something quite cohesive.
Ready. Set. Hope.
Day 4
(Sorry for the absence but the prompts are back!)
Travel back in time. Listen to the love songs of the fifties (ex. Under the Boardwalk; Who Put the Bomp; My Girl) and grease your hair or put on your poodle skirt. You're falling in love 60 years ago. Create characters, a setting, and unravel a story that could have only happened in the fifties.
Challenge: Write something that breaks the sheltered mold the fifties usually surround themselves with.
Tip: Take five minutes and do a bit of research. What was popular during the fifties? What were the social custom like? What was the slang? Make your piece as accurate as possible.
Ready. Set. Time Travel.
Travel back in time. Listen to the love songs of the fifties (ex. Under the Boardwalk; Who Put the Bomp; My Girl) and grease your hair or put on your poodle skirt. You're falling in love 60 years ago. Create characters, a setting, and unravel a story that could have only happened in the fifties.
Challenge: Write something that breaks the sheltered mold the fifties usually surround themselves with.
Tip: Take five minutes and do a bit of research. What was popular during the fifties? What were the social custom like? What was the slang? Make your piece as accurate as possible.
Ready. Set. Time Travel.
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