Twister (the original!) (writing prompts!)
And some inspiration from novelist Lauren Groff...
As always, let's start with a quote. This is novelist Lauren Groff talking about her writing (or, editing) process:
“I tend to pare to the essentials during the editing process. I write twice, sometimes many times, the number of pages I need, and then condense the story to as economical a length as I can make it. This (sometimes) helps to create the old Hemingway iceberg. (Hemingway: 'If a writer of prose knows enough of what he is writing about he may omit things that he knows and the reader, if the writer is writing truly enough, will have a feeling of those things as strongly as though the writer had stated them. The dignity of movement of an ice-berg is due to only one-eighth of it being above water. A writer who omits things because he does not know them only makes hollow places in his writing.') I know things the reader doesn’t, but the reader can still sense them in the text, which leads to an intimation of a fuller world beyond the story.”
Think about what you’re writing right now. Can you condense?
Okay, let’s get to it.
Today’s prompts were inspired by the movie TWISTER (1996).
EXERCISE #1: “Periodically, nature will, in a kind of psychotic fit, go completely randomly mad.”
JOURNALING PROMPT: Write about your worst experience with weather. Write it as if you’re sitting around a campfire with friends telling them this story. Try to make the weather come to life.
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative, pick a scene you’ve already written and rewrite it (from memory) but this time include some terrible weather elements.
RANDOM ELEMENT: a whisper
EXERCISE #2: “Stop living in the past and look what you got right in front of you.”
JOURNALING PROMPT: Think about something positive in your life that you don’t appreciate enough and write an ode to this thing or this person.
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative, make a list of all of your protagonist’s “blessings,” or all of the positive things going on in their life (whether or not they appreciate them). Pick one thing from your list to write a monologue about.
RANDOM ELEMENT: a moment that lasts longer than you expect it to
EXERCISE #3: “What could I possibly need a therapist for? Huh? You’re the doctor, tell me!”
JOURNALING PROMPT: If you were sitting with a therapist right now, what’s the most pressing thing you would discuss with them?
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative, write a scene where your protagonist goes to visit a therapist. Even if this isn’t something you would ever include in a final draft – do it as an exercise. What would the therapist work through with them?
RANDOM ELEMENT: something HIDDEN
EXERCISE #4: “Honey, your car is in a tree around the corner.”
JOURNALING PROMPT: Write about a time when you misplaced or lost something important.
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative, write a scene where one of your characters is desperately looking for something important.
RANDOM ELEMENT: Feeling trapped.
EXERCISE #5: “Don’t worry about me. I know my way home.”
JOURNALING PROMPT: Make a list of every place you’ve ever considered to be “home.” Jot down at least five sensory images of each place.
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative, what does “home” mean to your protagonist? Free-write/brainstorm what they associate with the concept of home.
RANDOM ELEMENT: wearing a mask
EXERCISE #6: “I was just wondering if you wanted to chase this tornado or if you just wanted to catch the next one?”
JOURNALING PROMPT: Think of a time when you were faced with a potentially life-defining “either/or” situation – what would your life look like now if you had made the other choice?
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative, write a scene where your protagonist is debating the merits of a huge decision. Ramp up any indecisiveness they might be feeling. Make them talk through all the variables of this decision.
RANDOM ELEMENT: a bad taste in your mouth
EXERCISE #7: “Why can’t we spend a normal day together?”
JOURNALING PROMPT: What would your ideal, perfect day look like?
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative...write a quotidian, boring, aggressively “normal” moment for your protagonist. What does their life look like when the stakes are LOW?
RANDOM ELEMENT: A fall...
EXERCISE #8: “Don’t breathe. Don’t look back.” (Twister poster tagline.)
JOURNALING PROMPT: Write about one moment from your past that you would rather NOT look back on.
FICTION PROMPT: If you’re writing a narrative, answer that same question for your protagonist: what is one moment from their past they would like to forget? Brainstorm everything you can about that moment.
RANDOM ELEMENT: stupidity
Get my prompt books: https://www.camdenhighstreetbooks.com
Attend a writing sprint with me on Zoom: https://www.patreon.com/erikpatterson
Commission a prompt via Cameo: https://www.cameo.com/erikpatterson
Read one of my plays: https://www.camdenhighstreetbooks.com/plays