A nudge for your imagination

More on writing prompts to jump start your creativity

Our stories, if only we could get them onto the page, have such potential. Our profound and powerful words would entertain, inform, excite—enlighten, even. But sometimes, words get stuck. Our imagination bogs down, and we’re not sure how to get ti going again. We feel blocked.

The job of a writer is to engage their own imagination, and make a connection, through words on a page (or screen) with the reader’s imagination. Right now, by writing, I’m inviting you to think, to consider ideas and respond to them. What an astonishing thing, really. By imagination, I am not speaking of fallacy or imaginary things. Rather, imagination is our ability to conceive of things, to hold ideas in our minds and examine them. In some ways, our imagination is the lens through which we view and interpret the world.

Writing can provide an opportunity to examine that lens, to step back from the stories we tell ourselves. In other words, to see the world from a different perspective. To figure out what we think, explore other perspectives.

Last week, we began a short series on writing prompts. When we play with prompts, we take the pressure off. A writing prompt is like a musician playing scales, an athlete warming up. It’s just practice, to nudge our imagination into gear.

As I wrote last week, a writing prompt is a brief question or “set up” that introduces and focuses a writing topic. It’s an open-ended, intriguing question to launch a quick writing exercise. It motivates you because it asks you to write a short response on a very specific topic. In my work as a writing coach, I find prompts and well-crafted questions help writers find freedom and productivity.

For those who missed last week’s post:

Last week I promised to put a few prompts on the Powerful Story Facebook page. I hate to admit it, but I only managed to put one up there. We got a fun response from writer Tracie H. Jump over to the page to read her creative response, and to post your own writing!

This week’s prompt

Want to play with prompts? Jump on in. Write 500 words or less in response to this prompt. Don’t edit or critique yourself, just write quickly and freely.

Graduation addresses have been in the spotlight lately (in a bit of a controversial way). Today's writing prompt: you've been invited to speak at the graduation ceremony of your high school or college. Do you accept the invitation? How do you feel about this? What do you say?

Photo by Pixabay: https://www.pexels.com/

Use this prompt to write 500 words or less. You don’t have to share it, but if you’d like to, you can do so in the comments below, or on the Powerful Story Facebook Page.

P.S. I believe writing can help us pay attention—to our lives, to God, to our deepest desires. It can help us to listen. If you are wondering how to listen to God, my book Listen is a helpful and encouraging resource. The Kindle version is only $7.99 and you can grab a copy here.