Editor, Proofreader, Writing Coach
You’ve probably had one of those days when it seemed like everything went crazy.
Maybe you were trying to get something done and nothing went right.
Perhaps unusual things were popping up left and right.
Or you just felt surrounded by chaos.
Maybe it was a hard time, or it might have felt comical.
Even in the craziest days, we sometimes find peace, wisdom, direction, or a new outlook.
Continue reading “Writing Prompt: When Everything Went Crazy”Free writing is a great way to practice writing from your heart. It’s a way to keep your inner editor quiet. To enjoy the creativity of writing.
Free writing is just putting pen to paper and writing whatever is on your heart, without hindering yourself. You can go in circles, shift gears, change directions. No restrictions. Just write.
Spring is a great time for free writing. Whether you’re sitting outdoors or observing through a window, you’ll find lots of inspiration in the beauty of spring.
You can describe colors, feelings, textures, sounds, memories. Whatever you feel inspired to write. Don’t edit, don’t delete, don’t put pressure on yourself. Just write.
Our writing prompt for this month: What I love most about spring is …
You can start with that prompt, if it helps, or create your own prompt. You can write about spring or something else.
Don’t overthink it. That’s why prompts can be helpful. You start by writing those first words, and then see where it takes you.
When you’re ready, set your timer for 15 minutes. Start by writing, What I love most about spring is … And then just keep writing till the timer goes off.
As a writer, your creativity will benefit by writing from your heart without self-editing. And your inspiration will grow as you spend time focusing on the beauty of spring.
Spring is a season of change, the beginning of new things. How often do we go through changes without realizing something new is starting?
Can you look back at a time when you were becoming someone new? But you didn’t realize it then?
Continue reading “Writing Prompt: I Didn’t Know It Was the Beginning”February is a time to celebrate love. With Valentine’s Day and anticipation of spring, it’s easy to carry love in our hearts.
Love appears in a variety of ways: love for a spouse, child, parent, sibling, friend, neighbor, pet, place, hobby, way of life. Love shows up in big and small ways. Sometimes it’s in the smallest moments when you notice and remember love the most.
For this month’s writing prompt, focus on a quiet way someone loved you. Not a big way, but something meaningful yet easily overlooked.
Continue reading “Writing Prompt: A Quiet Love”A writing prompt is a way to practice creative skills while having some fun with writing. If you ever feel stuck, try a writing prompt. It helps you regain momentum. You might even find a new path forward in your writing project.
Continue reading “Writing Prompt: Describe a Winter Scene”As Christmas approaches, I’ve been remembering the cookies my grandma and great aunts used to make. I’ve also been cleaning out my kitchen as part of a puppy-proofing purge. In the back of a cupboard, I found a wonderful surprise: a printout of some of my grandma’s and great aunts’ recipes, including the Christmas cookies.
Now, I’m not exactly a baker, so it’s unlikely I’ll try to make the cookies. Although we never know when inspiration can strike. However, as a writer, I am very excited to include the cookie recipe on my family history blog. That prompted me to reflect on different ways we can use favorite family recipes in any kind of writing project.
Continue reading “A Family Recipe Can Enrich Your Writing Project”It’s that busy Christmas time of year. As writers, we often take a break to enjoy the season—as we should! But we may find it hard to feel reinspired in January.
During busy seasons, just writing a little something can keep the creativity flowing. When things calm down again, and we have more time to write, we won’t feel creatively sluggish.
Continue reading “Writing Prompt: Christmas Scene”It’s that time of year when we’re reminded of things we are thankful for. Thankfulness lasts all year long and is a wonderful habit to cultivate. But the beauty of Thanksgiving is that thankfulness sits in front of us. That makes thankfulness a great writing prompt for this season.
Continue reading “Writing Prompt: Thankfulness”Whether you’ve started writing a book or are preparing to start soon, you might find writing prompts a helpful exercise. You can do journal prompts, where you write in response to a phrase. You can do memory prompts, where you describe a particular memory. You can also write in response to a photo prompt, which is what we will try this week.
Continue reading “Try a Photo Writing Prompt”One of the fun things about writing family history is you can experiment with different writing formats. You can tell a family story by writing a poem or a song, describing a photo, sharing a recipe and the story behind it, creating a diary-style note, or writing a letter.
Today, we’ll look at a writing prompt for a seasonal letter you can write. This letter is partly an encouragement to future generations of your family, and it’s partly a way to share your own memories.
Continue reading “Writing Prompt: Back-to-School Letter for Future Generations”
Janet Eriksson 