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Young Writers Society


The Prompt Machine



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Sat Feb 25, 2012 3:25 am
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Cspr says...



I deal with writer’s block pretty often. Normally stemming from ‘oh gah, if I’m not inventive I’ll end up the Velveeta cheese of authors!’ In my biased opinion, I can create fair characters, write rather good dialog, and come up with decent settings--on the other hand, I’m always stuck for plots. I’m like: “It’s like I’m George Lucas and making a space opera Odyssey--only it’s a fantasy Odyssey and not half as memorable.” Or I come up with something actually cool, but then my writing muscles are so weakened it’s difficult to keep trekking.

Hence, I always wish for plot bunnies so I have incentive to work those writing muscles. I assume I expect them to rain from the sky like they do when I’m not mentally taxed (dear childhood, I miss thee). I mean, I used to come up with complete novel ideas in bathrooms and the cleaning product aisles of drug stores. I was amazing, obviously.

So, since plot bunnies aren’t raining from the sky, I’m going to challenge you all so you won’t be like me. Being like me is often boring now, you see. Also, I figure if I give a little--simple ideas to prompt you to write quickly something below--maybe you’ll return the favor! Or maybe just seeing how you all take ideas and turn them into pure brilliance (which will be what happens, obviously), I’ll get inspired.

Here’s how this will work:

(1) I will put something like: “Your protagonist now has Superman-like powers. What caused them--and what happens next?” or “Your antagonist now has Superman-like powers. What does this do to the power balance?” I may even put: “Your character is in Bavaria. Why?” or “Someone has just been referred to as an Agent Peacock, why? And how did your characters break the fourth wall and learn about TV Tropes?” Or I may put the title of a song. I might suggest you try out a wholly different writing style. I might even do a horrible thing such as: “Write from the perceptive of a person of a different class/race/gender/sex/species/sexuality/mental state/etc.” Or, in other words in the case of the previous, “Be Ursula K. le Guin for a second.”

(2) After the prompt (which will show up on some day, probably Friday or a down-time-day), you will write a flash fiction story or poem. You could, of course, weave the prompt into an existing work (which is fine), write fanfiction, or write a preface/prologue/first chapter of a novel from the prompt (doubtful--and everyone knows prefaces/prologues are like bow ties; only some people can pull them off). In short, this is just to prompt you to think, and, well, create characters, brush up on your description and dialog, work out motives, write something new to get out of the merciless abyss of writer’s block, etc.

(3) This is like a weekly(-ish) NaNo, buds. Avoid editing at all costs! Or backspaces! Feel free to write in a totes shoddy way! Everything will be brilliant even if you use as many exclamation marks as me!

(4) Feel free to put the time it took you to write what you did. This may help you realize how soft your inventive muscles have gotten (-coughs awkwardly-).

(5) Also, feel free to send me in prompts/plot bunnies! I shall cherish them and perhaps use them for a new challenge when I can’t think of one.

So, questions/comments/suggestions can go below or in the form of a PM. I’ll probably put up a prompt shortly, but I’ll go ahead and give you guys a small amount of time to maybe make a suggestion. See if that function will be at all applicable before I jump the shark and let you all see my crazier ideas I have no idea what to do with or how to plot around so I toss them at you like confetti.
My SPD senses are tingling.
  





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180 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 771
Reviews: 180
Fri Mar 30, 2012 1:32 pm
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Cspr says...



'Kay. So. I'm terribly late with getting around to this. Fortunately, I've been doing cool IRL things. Unfortunately, I haven't lived up to my Internet-responsibilities.

Which leads me to this prompt:

Your character is terribly late for something. This isn't too unusual, no? However, your character is terribly late to a wedding/funeral/important!birthday/biggest-business-thing-of-their-life/etc.--some big event that is extremely important. Why are they late? Is it because they've become a mythical creature (werewolf/vampire/mermaid/etc.) or returned from (insert alternate world here)? You decide, but make it special!

Now write the scene--show other characters' reactions to yours, your characters' physical/mental response, and, perhaps, what the heck is going on. Feel free to have a crazy creative license, folks.

Good luck.
My SPD senses are tingling.
  








Go and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here.
— Neil Gaiman