Hey hey there folks & happy Wednesday! How is your week thus far?
One thing, or rather a couple things I’m adding to my goals is writing more short stories and attempting more writing prompts, my own and those provided by others. It’s not news that writing is an art, a skill, an exercise that requires practice. I think an issue I run into is being too strict in my thinking andd approaches to writing. Not across the board, no, I’ll write anywhere anyhow I can. I will find something to write about if I feel like it. However, while I can do all of that it doesn’t mean I do.
Much of the time when I set up (mentally physically and both) to write I’m thinking WIP WIP WIP, which right now means work on your novel Elpy! And that’s good because that’s what I should be doing; there is a lot of work to be done on that front. But a couple weekends ago my partner inadvertently reminded me that I can work on other projects. Which in turn reminded me that I should.
Some days I’m inspired to write about something that is not related to my current story, or work in progress (WIP). I usually shelve it as for the future project or I forget to make note of it swearing eventually I will. The other week I was reading Popshot (Quarterly), a great illustrated literary magazine (UK based I believe) that still publishes in print. The current issue’s theme is fantasy. I read some pieces and it just hit me. Damn I would like to write a short story, yes I would. So yes I did, okay I started it. 😉 And it’s good to flex these little muscles. In a recent yoga class (video) the instructor took us through an unalignment class. She talked about how we reach plateaus after doing things for a while, and that sometimes we even regress. It’s good to do things differently to train the body differently, testing yourself in new ways, reawakening the parts that don’t always get used. Really great stuff.
The point is probably obvious, this applies to all facets of life not just exercise. At least I know it applies to me and my writing. I’ve been in a kind of slump with my novel. It’s not that I can’t write, I do, but I’m just not finding that natural flow with my story that I’ve had so many times before. I’m feeling a bit stagnant and not allowing myself to open up and let the story come.
Twice now I’ve done the 99-word Flash Fiction Challenge at Carrot Ranch Literary Community. (Thank you Charli. 🙂 ) I’m so happy to have found Charli Mills & the Carrot Ranch (thank you Ritu at But I Smile Anyway for sharing your posts based on Charli’s challenges). Charli Mills has some awesome posts (some because I haven’t read that many, yet) in which she talks her life and/or writing as well as providing these prompts. My 99-word prompt about a mail carrier comes from her fabulous post about writing characters. She truly provides a dynamic literary community as her title says and I look forward to using this resource to improve my writing.
Inspired by writing challenges in the past (by the way, Charli’s is not the first I’ve seen of challenges I just tend to fall away from them), I’ve written a few blogs saying I might start writing my own prompts and/or writing exercises but then I don’t keep up with these ideas. What I’d like to do for real for real is once a week – probably Fridays – I’m going to create a prompt, a writing challenge of my own. I do this not to replace my use of Charli’s, nope I’ll continue with hers, but rather to increase my writing practices. I want to challenge myself with different parameters, push myself and my creativity. Committing myself to blog challenges can help this as well I get to share some of my writing with you all. Seeing as you can’t read my novel until it’s out this is another way to share. Plus I see that other writers like to get in on the challenge and it seems there can never be too many. So I figure, why not join the community of challenges and prompts by inviting others to follow along? Right? Lovely.
So every Friday I’ll have a new prompt for you. PAUSE [I wrote this post and intended to publish it on the 7th of February. But it needed to be edited, links added and I was too tired to finish. Then I didn’t have time. Then another day passed and another. But I like what I did hear so I’m going to go ahead and post this on a Wednesday. Feel free to write your own 38-word story for the challenge. This Friday, the 14th, I will post a new one.) RESUME from the 7th: Today’s is 38-words. Yes I said ONLY 38 words for your story. I will tell you the story behind my number. It will often be the same as today, meaning it will increase. I do believe we’re in the 38th day of the year right? There you have it. In addition to only using 38 words (no more, no less) I want you to follow the concept of doing things different. Interpret that as you may, new ideas, different habits, etc. Please do title your piece.
And in case you don’t already know, a 38-word story would be considered flash fiction. 😉
Post your piece in the comments and link back to my post on your site should you have one you’re posting on. Or you can just post your link back to your story. Let’s get started!
Believe me, I will
Two more feathers today. I flex them, I think I do. It took a lot for me to believe. Then they grew.
If I keep believing I’ll have a full set. I will believe, I will do new.
Sweet! There you have it, my 38-word story on doing things different. Whatcha think and whatcha got for me?
