Writing prompts
November 16, 2016
Music is a powerful force, evoking strong emotions and reviving half-forgotten memories. I recall how, as teenagers, a friend and I walked along a road in our town, singing ‘Manic Monday’ by the Bangles. And I remember sitting on the edge of the town pool, feet dangling in the water, as the cast of the school musical […]
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September 20, 2016
Writing Prompt: Leaving Home
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My previous post described seven dystopian worlds as imagined by Australian writers. Each story involves characters whose everyday, familiar world becomes fraught with danger, risk and loss. In some, the characters stay to fight; others decide that leaving home offers the greatest chance of survival. I invite you to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) […]
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I recently posted a list of 11 writing opportunities for young writers, which is great if your head is full of ideas and you’re already scribbling them down any chance you’ve got. But what about when the creative juices aren’t flowing, or you’re only writing a story because your teacher told you to? Although ideas […]
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August 1, 2015
National Bookshop Day aims to celebrate all that’s great about bookshops. I’m a big fan of local, independent bookshops and have been for a long time. If at all possible, I’ll order my books through one of these rather than a chain store or on-line, for reasons I’ve explained in an earlier post. I’m reminded of a story […]
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July 15, 2015
Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been writing for years, whether you are 9 or 89, everyone has days when they need help to get the creativity cranking. I often have to ‘trick’ myself into writing by telling myself I only have to write for 10 minutes. Usually, that’s enough for the words to start flowing, although some days are […]
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