10 Thought-Provoking Writing Prompts {WriterlyWednesday}

 

Hello out there...guess who's back from a lovely vacation at the beach?

Well, it was a terrific week and I was sad to leave, but here I am again back home and true is the saying - there's no place like home.

 

I might do a random photos post (with pictures from the beach) some time soon but today you're simply getting some handy writing prompts which I found on Pinterest. (that site has everrrrything)

I hardly have used writing prompts but sometimes when you're lacking inspiration or motivation, simply pondering a specific prompt can do wonders. So hopefully this post will accomplish just that, and get your brain juices flowing!

 

 

1. List five of your worst phobias; add one of them to your antagonist's character profile. Ohh, I like this one! And I'd maybe add something to a protagonist's profile, in this fashion, as well.

 

2. Write about the worst thing your protagonist has done. You might not even use this in the actual WIP but it could help you get to know your character better...and who knows, in the process, you might actually get an idea for a new scene in the book!

 

3. Write about sacrifices you've made, and promises you didn't keep. Perhaps you'll get inspiration for a moving emotional scene here.

 

4. Write about the worst physical pain you've experienced, using all five senses. Wow, this one could be a killer, if applied to a character in your WIP. Remember, use all five senses. Have the person not only feel the pain, but smell and hear it as well. This, if not anything else, should be a truly fascinating exercise to stimulate the brain activity.

 

5. List your protagonist's five favorite countries. Give a reason why he likes each one. This may sound trivial, but do you even have a protagonist? Well then, don't you want to know him as well as you can, and be able to pick apart his every detail of existence? Nobody likes bland, detail-lacking characters...knowing even the little, seemingly-trivial tidbits of a character's mind can make all the difference in the overall outlook of that figure.

 

6. Your antagonist is making tea for his mother. What is he thinking? Write this scene out, listing his thought processes as time ticks on. Don't forget to use all five senses if possible!

 

7. Write about the sound of winter. Yes, the sound. Rely primarily on this sense, and try not to use any of the others. I know it's summer right now, but that gives you all the more opportunity to rely on your imagination and recollection, therefore possibly forcing the brain to think deeper.

 

8. Write about the smell of your favorite food. Now, to focus on the nasal sense. As with #7, write this sense alone and none other combined.  You could also turn this prompt into writing about the smell of your antagonist/protagonist's favorite food, and make it apply more directly to your WIP.

 

9. Write about the last dream you can remember. The main point of this exercise is to get working on your memory skills, and precision of memory recollection. Write out the dream in the sharpest detail you can.

 

10. The worst possible, unimaginable thing just happened to your antagonist. How does he handle it? You could also flip the question and make it apply to your protagonist. Our characters are nothing more than characterizations until we see what they really are when faced with tribulation, conflict and their worst nightmares. Only then, do we see true character.

 

 

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So there you have it! Did these prompts help? I know they got me thinking as I wrote them down - now I myself am wanting to try a couple of them! *winks*

 

 

Hope y'all are having a blessed summer - I certainly am!