Writer's Journey

 Greetings! Ready for a short but fun writing challenge? This writing prompt gives you five words that you probably use quite often—just not together. You will have to tie these words together in a short story. The catch? You only have four minutes to complete this challenge.      Why would I ask you to do this? First, because it forces you to think outside the boxes you are used to working within. It opens you up to new levels of creativity. Second, it helps you break writing habits that can make your work predictable.  So, set a timer for four minutes and start writing. Don't worry about perfecting grammar or spelling mistakes. The goal is to get one or two paragraphs written (depending on your speed) that are a rough draft. I use this type of writing prompt with all of my students weekly. You can use these words in any order you choose to. They should not be forced into just one sentence.  Words:  garbage can mustard helmet Alaska carpet Have fun wr...

 Greetings! Are you ready for another writing challenge? I like to mix up these writing prompts to give you a chance to think outside the box with your creativity. When we always write in the same genre, we get into patterns that repeat sentence structures and word choices. We often don't even realize the habits we have found ourselves stuck in.  Changing genres for writing prompts helps writers refresh our writing styles. We push ourselves to change up our normal sentence structures and vocabulary. This doesn't mean that we have to change what genres we write in for our own writing projects. It does mean that we can approach them with fresh ideas and new options to keep our writing exciting and relatable for our readers.  For students, this applies to nonfiction and academic writing as well. We don't want everything we write to be predictable and lackluster.  The Knitting Snowman Snowballs  Can you guess what genre I am going to ask you to write in today by the...

 Greetings! I hope all of your writing projects are going well! If you need a creativity boost or are struggling with writers block, try this writing prompt to help you put some words down on paper. Sometimes we need a writing challenge to help us break out of our predictable writing patterns and restart our projects with a fresh voice and new energy.  This writing prompt has multiple challenges involving the lake pictured above. Complete as many as you can even if you work on these over several days instead of in one sitting. (And remember, you are just writing a first draft. Don't stress about spelling or grammar with these writing prompts. You can go back and edit later if you decide to use something you wrote in one of your own writing projects or for a writing contest.) Challenge one: In at least 500 words (or try for 1000 minimum), write a short story about two brothers who grow up vacationing on or living near this lake. Tone: positive, lighthearted, joyful. This story ...

  As academic and/or creative writers, we need to strengthen our skills daily. Often we have projects with deadlines that we need meet, so those writing assignments become our priority. When we only focus on one style of writing, however, our work can become predictable and dull. We stop growing as writers. In order to grow, we need challenges that push us to think outside of our normal patterns. Here's a writing prompt to help you challenge yourself a bit:  Write a scene at least 400 words long (longer if possible) that highlights the thoughts of two characters. One character is on a train coming to meet the other character. Both characters' thoughts need to be shared with the reader. You can define how these characters know each other (friends, family, classmates, peers through work or a project).  You can also define their relationship with the tone of their thoughts: are they angry with each other, in love, trying to forgive each other, starting life together, about t...

When writing about local artist Michelle East for a newspaper article, I remembered how many times I broke through my writer’s block with the help of art. It started with an art appreciation class that I took at Memphis State University (now University of Memphis). I had never studied much classical art--or modern art either, for that matter. A graduate student taught the class which was geared towards non-art majors picking up optional credits. One week, I had two writing assignments due in other classes. I also had to tour a local gallery and answer a few questions about certain pieces of art selected by the professor. I tried to finish my writing assignments first, not wanting to get behind in any classes in my major. I took paper and pen to my quiet workspace and to the backyard. I tried writing in the library and in the student center. No words appeared flowed at all. I gave up and headed to the art gallery. I answered the required questions in front of a colorful pain...