How to Use Writing Prompts Right. Day 9 of the Total Writer Transformation
Staring slack-jawed at the computer screen while drool meanders down your chin will not make words magically appear. If your mind is blank you might have a case of Writer's Block that demands treatment, STAT.
You won't need a shot or swallow dreadful concoctions because writing prompts will help cure you!
By spending ten or 15 minutes creating a story around a preset theme you reset your brain, which is usually all it needs!
Prompts can also lead to bigger ideas when you get back to that thing you were writing before being attacked by The Block, build confidence, give a new spin or perspective based off of the prompt material, build your stamina with practice, and allow you to master techniques.
Your prompt can be anything- a line from a song or poem, a myth, a photograph or painting, the park you are sitting in while your toddler conquers the slide; anything that inspires you and gets your writing juices flowing.
The writing prompt itself doesn't even matter! It's what you do with it. So choose something interesting, or challenging.
Todays Challenge
Pick a prompt. You can find "prompt generators" online, and there are plenty of books filled with nothing but prompts for every occasion. Steemit's very own magnetic mistress of merit @mariannewest even hosts a daily #Freewrite prompt.
Write.
You can set a timer or not, that's up to you.
Random
Indecisive? How about chancing a roll of the dice? You can practice techniques you need to work on, too.
- Roll a die. The corresponding number is the point of view you must use with your writing prompt:
1 = First Person
2 = Second Person
3 = Third Person Limited
4 = Multiple Points of View
5 = Objective
6 = Omniscient
You can practice any combination of writing techniques, such as character description, theme, dialogue, flashbacks and flashaheads, etc. Simply combine any prompt with one of the techniques.
- Do Not Edit. Prompts are about adventuring and exploring.
Writing every day keeps writers block at bay. ~ Start writing, no matter what. The water doesn’t flow until the faucet is turned on. ~Louis L’Amour
Write on and keep your faucets flowing, my friends :)
Happy writing Steemit!
Images via Pixabay and Creative Commons
Be a Better Writer in Just One Month! Join the 31 Day Writing Challenge to transform your writing and your life!
Day 1 The Truth About Making Time For Writing
Day 2 How to Incorporate Ideas From Life in Your Writing
Day 3 Master the Art of Captivating Your Readers
Day 4 Banishing Distractions
Day 5 Get Your Writing Noticed!
Day 6 The Importance of Morning Pages
Day 7 Why You Should Write Even if You're Not a Writer
Day 8 How to Personify an Object
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I appreciate your support :)
If you find this article after day 7, please consider upvoting a recent article.
Loving all the shout outs 😄
Thank you so much. And rolling the dice is such a great idea. I guess dice is now acceptable as singular as well. Which makes sense since everyone has been using it as such for a long time. Love how language changes!!!
Really? I had not heard! Thanks!
Dice definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/dice
(daɪs ; dīs) plural nounWord forms: singular die or dice. small cubes of bone, plastic, etc. marked on each side with a different number of spots (from one to six) and used, usually in pairs, in games of chance. 2. [
Merriam-Webster still has die but gives dice as a synonym, Oxford dictionary - at least online, also gives both options and I have seen it as dice in both singular and plural with a reference that it used to be die. I think most people didn't know that dice was the plural form anyway...
Really helpful post ,thank you so much for share
So happy it's helpful for you!