10,000 Hours

In Malcolm Gladwell’s book, Outliers: The Story of Success, he details the concept of the 10,000-hour rule. That’s a reasonably well-accepted theory that to become thoroughly proficient at something, a person needs to practice for about 10,000 hours. Gladwell’s most famous examples include the Beatles and Bill Gates. Prodigies — the exceptions who prove the rule — are popularly known. However, they...

Literary – January 17

“Love, friendship and respect do not unite people as much as a common hatred for something.” – Anton Chekhov, born this date in 1860. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a particular contempt shared by your protagonist and antagonist leads your protag to make a costly mistake.

Journaling + Fiction – January 17

“Curiosity is a gateway drug to sympathy.”Victoria Schwab Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about a moment when curiosity inspired you to sympathize with another person. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist learns s/he should have been sympathetic towards another person but was not because s/he was too busy to be curious.

Big Questions – January 17

How much is too much? Journaling prompt: Spend 15-20 minutes writing your answer in the spirit of exploring yourself and the world around you. If you can answer with a simple “yes” or “no,” explain the sources or implications of your response. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene that forces a character in your story to answer the question, or spend 15-20 minutes answering the question in the voice of a character...

Romance – January 17

Eartha Kitt — called by Orson Welles the “most exciting woman in the world” — was born on this date in 1927. Her most famous song: Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist learns that a sugar daddy/momma’s generosity is not as extravagant as your protag has grown to believe it is.

Mystery – January 17

“I have spent the best years of my life giving people the lighter pleasures, helping them have a good time, and all I get is abuse, the existence of a hunted man.”- Al Capone, born this date in 1899. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your antagonist’s downfall occurs because of something relatively insignificant.

SciFi/Fantasy – January 17

“The incapacity of sound sleep denotes a mind sorely wounded.” -Charles Brockden Brown, the first American gothic novelist, born this date in 1771. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist can’t sleep.

Secondary – January 17

“So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable creature, since it enables one to find or make a reason for every thing one has a mind to do.” -Benjamin Franklin, born on this date in 1706. Explain whether being reasonable in Franklin’s sense is a good quality.