13. A Change of Place

Finding the time–and the place–to write can be a bitch. Read more →

14. Somewhere to Play

When I first started writing fiction, my characters often walked around a blank landscape. Imagine two cartoon characters, say Calvin and Hobbes (my favorites), centered on a white page with nothing to play with, nothing to break or throw or kick or transform. Nothing to do but talk to each other. That’s where my characters used to live, in that boring, blank universe. And guess what? Nothing much happened. Read more →

15. Let’s Try That Again

Sometimes it’s difficult to decide whose story to tell. You’ve got your conflict – a guy (let’s say he’s a photographer) leans over the guard rail of a bridge and may or may not be about to jump while a woman driving by thinks he needs saving and decides she’s the one to do it.

Now you’ve got some choices to make about who gets to tell the story and how that character is going to tell it. Read more →

16. Bitch Slap Your Inner Control Freak

Ms. CF (a/k/a the control freak who rules my life) has been in my head a lot lately, making it hard to write. She and the rational side of my brain (let’s call him Mr. R) are besties. They love to commiserate about how to get me away from this writing…thing…and into something more practical and monetarily satisfying. Something safe. Something controllable. Read more →

17. You’ll Never Guess What Happens Next

To some writers–including me–plot can seem like the dirtiest, most despicable of four letter words. Read more →

18. Embrace

For this exercise, you get to choose an image to pair with the writing prompt. Read more →

19. Let The Wheels Turn

Here’s a writing exercise to do with your morning coffee, or over iced tea at lunch, or with a drink late at night.  Read more →

20. The Days of Cards and Candy

One of the hardest parts about writing is getting started. That’s why I incorporate writing exercises–both in-class and take-home–into all my classes. Writing exercises are a way to get the creative side of your brain working without the judgmental side chiming in. They’re a way of generating ideas. They’re a way of getting unstuck. Which is why I’ve decided to start sharing writing prompts on this blog.  Read more →