Prompt A Day

Prompt #105 The daily purge

Ralph — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 19:53:52 +0000

The Daily Purge: End your day with a ten minute free-write in which you consciously let go of the day’s stress.

Prompt #104

Ralph — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 19:51:59 +0000

I’m back. I’ll jump in here from time to time. For now, here is a simple prompt to get me back in the mood:
“i still wonder what might have happened if . . .”

Just thought you should know . . .

Ralph — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 16:19:12 +0000

Okay, so I’ve been a little lax with the prompts. The prompts are inevitably the result of my current writing. When I finish a piece these days I post a prompt that is related in some way. So, for each of these prompts there is a story in the background. Eventually, I’ll post all my stories, poems, and such along with the prompts. I’d also love to post your stories, so send them in.

Prompt #103

Ralph — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 15:28:50 +0000

Oooh, Scary!

Everybody thought the old place was haunted. . .

Prompt #102

Ralph — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 13:04:22 +0000

texting

Write a short story entirely as a cell phone text exchange.

Prompt #101

Ralph — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 19:09:17 +0000

The Elements: Sky

The sky may not seem to be an element to us, but it is one of the four mythological elements. Like earth, water, and fire, it was seen as complex and mysterious. How do you interpret sky?

Write a story, poem, play or essay based somehow on the theme of the sky.

Prompt #100

Ralph — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 18:16:34 +0000

The Elements: Water

Of all the elements, I seem to relate most readily to water in all of its forms. I’m also connected to wind in some strange way, but that may well be because it has so much in common with water and is so much a part of the movement and power of water. And, of course, both are intimately connected to the sun, the moon, and the earth itself.

So, for today, write a story, poem, play, or essay based on water. In response to this exercise, I wrote a short story about a mysterious waif who claims to be a rainmaker. I’d love to see what you come up with.

Prompt #99

Ralph — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 00:57:09 +0000

The Elements:

Fire

It warms us; it burns us. It creates light; it destroys indiscriminately. It represents passion; it represents obsession. We love and fear fire, and we are all made up of fire in one way or another. We eat it, dragons breathe it, Hell is said to be a river of it, the earth’s core and our sun are strange, wonderful manifestations of it, and we all eventually succumb to it (metaphorically speaking).

Write a story, poem or essay based on the theme of fire. It can be purely symbolic, or you may choose to write about some aspect of actual fire.

Prompt #98

Ralph — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 13:33:48 +0000

First, I have been absent for some time. I’ve been buried in unusual job related stressors, and I’ve been lending my son and daughter in-law a hand with their move- talk about stress. Now, I’m back to my usual level of anxiety, and I’m ready to get back to the prompts.

The Elements:

The four classical elements at earth, fire, water, and sky. Some people also include spirit, but I believe that’s a modern addition to the list.

Write a story or essay based on the theme of earth. It can be purely symbolic, or you may choose to write about the aspect of the physical earth.

Prompt #97

Ralph — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 12:48:53 +0000

Bomb, bomb, who’s got the bomb?

According to the news reports, one out of ten people you know is a terrorist, spy, rapist, axe murderer, lawyer or politician. It’s downright scary (I’m kidding!). For this prompt, write the story of a terrorist the before he or she dies as a suicide bomber.