Writing Prompt: What’s Your Superpower?

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Abstract

Arthur Dent, who accidentally was saved by his friend who turned out to be an alien on the day Earth was schedule for demolition to make way for a hyperspace bypass. Most of the humor comes from the fact that he is so ordinary and out of his depth in the larger, chaotically surreal universe.</p><p id="eda9">As much as we have a hunger for reading about the ordinary person dealing with incredible circumstances, though, sometimes you just want to write about a larger-than-life character.</p><p id="af74">This person may have all the qualities you lack. Wealth, physical beauty or prowess, razor-sharp wit, coolness in every circumstance (think James Bond). Or preternatural gifts of speed, strength, charisma, or the ability to fly or swing between skyscrapers on a slender thread (think the superhero genre, or the modern version of vampires).</p><p id="7c91">If you had superpowers, what would they be, and why?</p><p id="b4c9">All the great superheroes have their kryptonite. Maybe it is something external to them, like kryptonite is to Superman or the sun is to vampires. Maybe it’s internal, like arrogance, or temper, or fear to abuse power so they don’t even use it. What is your external or internal flaw or antagonistic force?</p><p id="a4d8">For me, I would like to be invisible, and I would like the ability to teleport anywhere instantly. That way, I could travel without hassle or danger, interacting with others when I wished but also able to observe without harassment. The danger, of course,

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is that I might let my powers go to my head and slip in where I’m not invited. Or I might turn to theft to fund my adventures. But… what good could I do with it? My invisible self, sneaking into places of power, and punishing or exposing those who commit crimes…</p><p id="ec82">Have fun with this! What superpowers would you like? Ordinary ones to get through life? Or wild ones that lend you superhero or iconic status? What would you do? Where would you go?</p><p id="1159">Set a timer for 15 minutes and just write, without censoring yourself. What would you really want to be able to do, if someone granted your superpower for 24 hours? A week?</p><p id="ee8a">Now through the end of December, get 10% off any book coaching package or course at <a href="http://www.setyourmuseonfire.com/">Set Your Muse on Fire!</a></p><div id="0c63" class="link-block"> <a href="https://jana-vanderveer.medium.com/membership"> <div> <div> <h2>Join Medium with my referral link - Jana Van der Veer</h2> <div><h3>As a Medium member, a portion of your membership fee goes to writers you read, and you get full access to every story…</h3></div> <div><p>jana-vanderveer.medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*hxlJjQJQwX4pMfCR)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

As Spiderman blows up the box office, it’s time to play with your own inner superhero

We can’t get enough of superhero stories, it seems. The latest Spiderman movie is currently having a killer opening weekend, the third-biggest in history at the time of writing. For decades, superheroes and vampires and magicians have ruled the box office, and are perennially popular with readers as well.

Other stories and memoirs are about ordinary people thrust into extraordinary situations. Even if they aren’t “bitten by a radioactive spider and turned into a superhero” kind of extraordinary, they take on things like “I thought my marriage was completely normal until I realized my husband was a bigamist with another family in a different state and he embezzled a million dollars from his company to pay off his gambling debts and I had to divorce him and start over with three kids and no work experience.”

Even absurdist comedy, like Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy revolves around the most ordinary of men, one Arthur Dent, who accidentally was saved by his friend who turned out to be an alien on the day Earth was schedule for demolition to make way for a hyperspace bypass. Most of the humor comes from the fact that he is so ordinary and out of his depth in the larger, chaotically surreal universe.

As much as we have a hunger for reading about the ordinary person dealing with incredible circumstances, though, sometimes you just want to write about a larger-than-life character.

This person may have all the qualities you lack. Wealth, physical beauty or prowess, razor-sharp wit, coolness in every circumstance (think James Bond). Or preternatural gifts of speed, strength, charisma, or the ability to fly or swing between skyscrapers on a slender thread (think the superhero genre, or the modern version of vampires).

If you had superpowers, what would they be, and why?

All the great superheroes have their kryptonite. Maybe it is something external to them, like kryptonite is to Superman or the sun is to vampires. Maybe it’s internal, like arrogance, or temper, or fear to abuse power so they don’t even use it. What is your external or internal flaw or antagonistic force?

For me, I would like to be invisible, and I would like the ability to teleport anywhere instantly. That way, I could travel without hassle or danger, interacting with others when I wished but also able to observe without harassment. The danger, of course, is that I might let my powers go to my head and slip in where I’m not invited. Or I might turn to theft to fund my adventures. But… what good could I do with it? My invisible self, sneaking into places of power, and punishing or exposing those who commit crimes…

Have fun with this! What superpowers would you like? Ordinary ones to get through life? Or wild ones that lend you superhero or iconic status? What would you do? Where would you go?

Set a timer for 15 minutes and just write, without censoring yourself. What would you really want to be able to do, if someone granted your superpower for 24 hours? A week?

Now through the end of December, get 10% off any book coaching package or course at Set Your Muse on Fire!