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KATHERINE BRANDON (GINA'S ALTER EGO) |
January Writing Prompts by Gina Ardito |
Due to new educational guidelines, students in elementary and middle schools around the country are encouraged to write a lot. Thus, many schools fall back on writing prompts to get kids penning essays about topics more diverse than "How I Spent My Winter Vacation." Wouldn't it be nice if we all had something fresh to start in the New Year? Here's a list of twenty actual writing prompts teachers are using. Maybe one or two of these can jumpstart your next manuscript. Feel free to use any or all of these, play with them, change genders or specifics. The trick is to make the prompt solely your own. 1. "The snow keeps falling. Already I can't see two feet in front of me. . ." 2. "Shortly after midnight on January 1, she broke her New Years resolution when. . ." 3. "Splat! A snowball hit the back of his neck, sending icy water and bits of hard-packed snow sliding down his spine. . ." 4. January 14 is "National Dress Up Your Pet Day." Describe what your pet may be thinking when dressed in a costume. 5. Describe snow to someone who's never seen or felt it. 6. You've just been elected President of the United States. What new laws would you pass? Who would be in your Cabinet? 7. Finish this mushy love letter, making it as sickly sweet as possible. "Dear Fuzzy Wuzzy, I love you so much. You're my cupcake, my little apple dumpling. . ." 8. Pretend someone hurt your feelings. Now write them a letter saying you forgive them and why. 9. "She slept peacefully, unaware of the war nature waged outside her window. . ." 10. Do memories hinder or help people in their effort to learn from the past and succeed in the present? 11. "His life might have been different if he'd never met. . ." 12. Create a story in which your characters get locked in a bathroom together. 13. "I once dreamed about. . ." 14. Choose a fairy tale and tell it from the villain's (or a secondary character's) POV. 15. "Behind him, the noise escalated. . ." 16. You wake up, go to the bathroom, and look in the mirror. A stranger's face stares back. Whose face is it and what do you do? 17. "Revenge is bliss. . ." 18. What if a Fortune 500 company hired a fortune teller? 19. On January 1, 1892, Ellis Island opened. Put yourself in the shoes of a new immigrant to the United States. 20. "She touched the little box in her pocket and smiled. . ." If any of these skyrocket you to the New York Times Bestseller List, drop me a line and let me know. Until then, happy writing! |