“Dear George Washington”

A list of effective writing prompts!

That empty page reflecting our intimidated gaze back to us must be filled. You can regain control. Thanks to writing prompts.

You might have some questions though. “Exactly how often do writers use writing prompts? How do I know which prompt will work for me?”

There’s no right answer to this question because using writing prompts can often be a personal choice. Some authors find it greatly benefits their ability to turn out creative results. Some authors know that they already have the right ideas for a book in their heads. With using writing prompts, you need to decide on what’s best for you. Whatever method helps you generate ideas is what’s best for your writing! — writtenwordmedia.com

Personally, I need a stimulating thought or anecdote to get the juices flowing. If not through a conversation I’ve overheard, a news item, or sometimes even a dream I’ve had, inspiration is hard to come by.

I’ve gathered a few writing prompts from websites I frequently visit that have worked well for me in my freewriting exercises and I’ve organized them by genre, along with their sources, to cover a variety of written material; short stories, creative writing, freewriting exercises, novels, etc. Prompts for the young writers among us will be covered in a separate article that could help with school exercises like essays and short stories.

Feel free to pass these along in addition to trying them out yourself, and I look forward to hearing how these have helped you and hearing some of your personal favorite writing prompts. I’m always on the lookout for more because you never know what you may discover from one day to the next!

Sci-Fi

1. Technology becomes illegal. (writtenwordmedia.com)
2. You have the power to build one separate planet. How do you build it? Who gets to live there? (writtenwordmedia.com)
3. Every day, you get one hour to revisit any moment from your life. What do you pick? (writtenwordmedia.com)
4. Astronauts finally land on Mars — only to find that exact copies of themselves have already arrived. (masterclass.com)
5. The last person on earth walks across a desolate wasteland. One day, for the first time, a voice comes through her walkie-talkie. (masterclass.com)
6. Water is about to run out on Earth and the race is on to find another alternative… or another planet. (jerichowriters.com)

Fiction

1. You have to get to the bottom of your family’s deepest secret. (writtenwordmedia.com)
2. You’ve just returned home from war only to find your family missing without a trace. (writtenwordmedia.com)
3. You get one chance to talk to any person in the world. Who do you choose? (writtenwordmedia.com)
4. Two old friends are reminiscing on a prominent and life-changing event. They have very different memories from that day. (squibler.io)
5. An ongoing murder investigation takes an unexpected turn when it is discovered that a prolific group of corrupt police officers were behind the whole thing. (squibler.io)
6. Your main character suffers a terrible concussion. After recovering, they cannot control the vivid nightmares about the accident. (squibler.io)

Nonfictional/Creative Writing

1. Everyone’s addicted to something in some shape or form. What are things you can’t go without? (thinkwritten.com)
2. Write about someone you admire and you thought to have had a beautiful mind. (thinkwritten.com)
3. Write about doing something you don’t want to do. (thinkwritten.com)
4. If you were to write an autobiography, how would it start? (smartblogger.com)
5. If you were to buy a plane ticket today — no expense spared — where would you go and why? If you were to write an autobiography, how would it start? (smartblogger.com)
6. Write about a toxic relationship you had, and how you were able to overcome it. (selfpublishing.com)
7. Write about a significant historical event you lived through, and what others can learn from your experience. (selfpublishing.com)
8. Write about your struggles with mental health, and help others with what you’ve learned. (selfpublishing.com)

Don’t miss my next article!

I cover topics such as photography, gaming, music, and lifestyle. Please consider subscribing if you like what you read; it will help me out a lot. Thank you!