Just realized I've been reading writing prompts all wrong

I overheard two people at a coffee shop talking about how a good prompt should leave room for interpretation but also give you a specific conflict to solve. I always picked prompts that were too vague and ended up staring at a blank page for an hour. Anyone else figure out they approach prompts totally wrong after hearing someone else break it down?

3 comments

3 Comments

jana11917d ago

I see it a little different. A vague prompt can be the best kind if you let your mind wander and don't force it.

fiona_young16d ago

My last vague prompt was "a cat in an unusual place" and I ended up writing 3,000 words about a cat that got stuck in a quantum physics experiment. Three thousand words of a cat blinking in and out of existence. So yeah, vague prompts can work but sometimes my mind wanders straight off a cliff.

lisaf3817d ago

Honestly, same here. I used to pick prompts that were like "a person finds a door" and then just sat there questioning my whole existence. @jana119 is totally right though, a good vague prompt can let your brain go wild, but I had to learn the hard way that I need a little more direction or I'll just spiral. Now I look for prompts with a clear conflict, like "your neighbor starts growing weird plants at night and they move," and suddenly the ideas actually flow.