Journaling + Fiction – October 14

“Keeping an active mind has been vital to my survival, as has been maintaining a sense of humor.”Stephen Hawking Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about whether humor can save a life. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist drives his/her compatriots crazy by finding humor in their shared adversity.

Journaling + Fiction – October 13

“Prudence in action avails more than wisdom in conception.”Cicero Spend at least 20 minutes writing about the fallout from an experience when you acted before thinking. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist’s action plan falls apart in execution.

Journaling + Fiction – October 12

“You don’t lead by pointing and telling people some place to go. You lead by going to that place and making a case.”Ken Kesey Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about the difference between leading and ruling. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist assumes the people behind him/her are following.

Journaling + Fiction – October 11

“The more man meditates upon good thoughts, the better will be his world and the world at large.”K’ung Fu-tzu Journal prompt: Reflect on your previous journal entries and spend at least 20 minutes writing about the best thought in your head right now. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist tried but fails to forget a wrong done to her/him by a frenemy.

Journaling + Fiction – October 10

“Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.”Kahlil Gibran Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about how you hide weakness from others. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist lashes out at a defenseless ally to mask his/her weakness in the face of an antagonist.

Journaling + Fiction – October 9

“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening, that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique.”Martha Graham Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about whether your thought or your action makes you more unique. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist acts in a unique way for a...

Journaling + Fiction – October 8

“The world is full of people who have never, since childhood, met an open doorway with an open mind.”E.B. White Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about the most important doorway you’ve walked through since your childhood. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist refuses to cross an important threshold.

Journaling + Fiction – October 7

“The highest tribute to the dead is not grief but gratitude.”Thornton Wilder Journal prompt: Spend at least 20 minutes writing about the person who’s shuffled off this mortal coil for whom you’re most grateful. Fiction writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist pays respects to the surviving family members of an important ally.