Summary

Susan Brearley introduces a novel writing prompt concept designed to encourage creative and speedy writing among participants through a chain of individual tagging and subject word challenges.

Abstract

In a time when many find themselves with an abundance of time due to lockdowns, Susan Brearley, an aspiring comedian and writer, proposes a new approach to writer's prompts. Dubbed "Speed Writing for Pirates," this initiative encourages writers to pick a word and a person to tag. The tagged writer must then create a post using the given word, tag another person with a new word, and embed the previous post to maintain a chain of creativity. This method is intended to simulate the organic spread of a virus, with a focus on passing the creative baton quickly, akin to speed dating. The goal is to foster a community of writers who can respond rapidly without mass tagging, and the project is open to anyone eager to participate, regardless of an official tag.

Opinions

Brearley enjoys stirring things up and is looking for engagement with her new idea.
She emphasizes the importance of thinking and being creative during lockdowns to avoid cabin fever.
The initiative is designed to be inclusive, allowing multiple contributions from individuals but focusing on the one-on-one exchange to maintain the chain.
Brearley is open to questions and is enthusiastic about seeing how far the writing prompt chain can spread.
She encourages quick response times, coining the term "SPEED WRITING" to describe the process.
The project is part of Brearley's broader mission to make any topic humorous and aims to achieve a Medium top writer's badge.
Brearley acknowledges her recent venture into comedy writing, hinting at her relatively new experience in the genre.

FUN AND GAMES

A Writer’s Prompt

Slow To Catch On. Fast to Get Written.

SPEED WRITING FOR PIRATES!

Well what have we here? We’ve got what appears to be a whole load of extra time on our hands now.

To type. To write. To think.

It’s the thinking part that is what can lead to cabin fever. And it’s only been a few days since lock-down.

So I was thinking….

How can I transform the way writers’ prompts work?

I like being the elf that stirs things up. Heheehee.

So, here’s my idea. Let’s see if it might get some traction.

Pick a word, pick a person. The person you pick is tagged to write a post and they are requested to use the subject word in their post. Also, in that post, you tag a new person, and give them a word. Responses can be written in any form. Essay, short story, poetry — anything goes.

So there’s no MASS tagging here. One by one. Just the same way a physical virus spreads.

At the bottom of your post, imbed the post of the person who tagged you. This will leave a breadcrumb trail of all the posts that came before you. Give these same instructions to the person you tag.

Any questions about how this works? Let’s see how far we can take it!

Can you write more than one post? Sure! But tag only ONE PERSON at a time! While there’s no time limit to write, strive to pass the baton AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE! It’s like SPEED DATING for writers. SPEED WRITING.

Ready, steady, GO!

I tag Janie Emaus. Your word is “Boogy. Or Boogie.” Either or both.

Oh, and if you are reading this and just can’t wait for a tag or a word, comment below and I’ll autogenerate one for you! All rules still apply!

Susan Brearley practices writing in all forms, editing, chef-ing, and being a community grandmother. She is also working on her first stand-up comedy routine in the field of Granny Humor. On a mission to prove you can make any topic humorous. And get a Medium top writer’s badge for it. Eventually. When the data pipeline is clear.

She’s been writing comedy for about 2 weeks.