Journaling + Writing – November 14

“Hate is too great a burden to bear.”Martin Luther King, Jr. Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about what hate has achieved for you in your life so far. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist is stunned to discover that hate is just one point on the scale of passion.

Journaling + Fiction – November 13

“The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone.”Harriet Beecher Stowe Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing a letter to someone with whom you’ve left unsaid words. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist receives a loved one’s deathbed blast of reality.

Journaling + Fiction – November 12

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.”Albert Einstein Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about encountering a thing or idea you did not understand at the time but considered beautiful on first consideration. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist experiences awe when confronted by the incomprehensible.

Journaling + Fiction – November 11

Listen to the mustn’ts, child. Listen to the don’ts.Listen to the shouldn’ts, the impossibles, the won’ts.Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me. . .Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.Shel Silverstein Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about what can be that isn’t yet. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist stops listening after the...

Journaling + Fiction – November 10

“You have power over your mind — not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”Marcus Aurelius Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about an experience when external circumstances disrupted your best-laid plans. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which an unforeseeable event completely ruins your protagonist’s plan to overcome a significant...

Journaling + Fiction – November 9

“You cannot be fair to others without first being fair to yourself.”Vera Nazarian Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about an experience when you treated someone with more fairness than you would have treated yourself. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist presses an unfair advantage against an ally.

Journaling + Fiction – November 8

“I don’t have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness – it’s right in front of me if I’m paying attention and practicing gratitude.”Brene Brown Journal prompt: Reflect on your previous journal entries and spend at least 20 minutes writing about something you’ve grown to take for granted during the past year. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist loses something s/he did not...

Journaling + Fiction – November 7

“Kindness is the golden chain by which society is bound together.”Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about whether society is growing more closely bound together. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist feels trapped by another’s kindness.