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young writers

Creative Prompts for Young (and not so young) Writers

Melinda Tognini January 5, 2021 No Comments
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Stephen King believes that ‘Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration; the rest of us just get up and go to work’.

So here are some prompts to help you get to work!

1. Five random words

Start writing a story, poem or even a piece of artwork incorporating the following five words/phrases:

  • microwave beeps
  • beginner
  • pen
  • poppy
  • gel pen

2. Images

Choose one of the following images and ask ten questions you would like to know about the person in the image—obviously you will not know the answers simply by looking at the image.

Now, use your imagination to create the answers to your questions.

Let these answers help form the beginning of a new story.

[Photo by Tien Vu Ngoc on Unsplash.]
[Photo by Juli Kosolapova on Unsplash.]
[Photo by Kenny Luo on Unsplash.]
[Photo by Dan Senior on Unsplash.]

3. Fire and Flood

Create a poem or story about a fire or a flood.

Alternatively, look up the words to Vance Joy’s song ‘Fire and the Flood’ and write a story based on these lyrics.

[Photo by Ricardo Gomez Angel on Unsplash.]
[Photo by Nazrin B-va on Unsplash.]

4. Last Sentence

Pick up a book you haven’t read for a while. Turn to the last sentence of any chapter.  Use this as the first sentence of a new poem or story.

5. First Sentence

Diana Rahim’s short story ‘A Minor Kalahari’ (which can be found in the anthology In This Desert, There Were Seeds, edited by Elizabeth Tan and Jon Gresham) begins with the following phrase:

It all started when …

Write your own story that starts with this phrase.

Over to You

Which prompt will you start with first?

Remember: just begin.

 

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Melinda Tognini

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    I would love to know what you think once you have finished them - I always love seeing your perspective on the books you read x
    In 6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found
    I found that fascinating too - especially given the reasons for the connection were totally different.
    In 6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found
    There are so many fabulous writers in Australia (both fiction and non-fiction), so I love being able to share them with others who might be less familiar with them!
    In 6 Degrees of Separation: From Sorrow and Bliss to Lost and Found

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