Romance – December 3

“Being a woman is a terribly difficult task, since it consists principally in dealing with men.” -Joseph Conrad, born this date in 1857. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a simple task is made difficult for your protagonist by the participation of a member of another gender.

Romance – December 2

“Hope is a horrible thing, you know. I don’t know who decided to package hope as a virtue because it’s not. It’s a plague.” -Ann Patchett, born this date in 1963. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a character realizes what s/he thought was a strategy was really nothing more than hope.

Romance – December 1

“I do not pick the wrong guys. They pick me.” -Candace Bushnell, born this date in 1958. Writing prompt: Write the scene in which your protagonist realizes why inappropriate suitors constantly pick her/him.

Romance – November 30

“Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” – Sir Winston Spencer Churchill, born this date in 1874. Writing prompt: Write a scene that that makes your protagonist realize s/he’s at the end of the beginning of the relationship with her/his partner.

Romance – November 29

“Girls are so queer you never know what they mean. They say No when they mean Yes, and drive a man out of his wits for the fun of it.” -Louisa May Alcott, born this date in 1832. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which a man who believes this to be true tries to make time with your protagonist.

Romance – November 28

“I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me.” – William Shakespeare, who on this date in 1582 bonded his marriage to Anne Hathaway. Writing prompt: Write a dialogue in which your protagonist expresses the same sentiment to her or his best friend.

Romance – November 27

“I cannot stand the idea of people mincing around the subject rather than just getting on with it.” – His Royal Highness Henry Charles Albert David Duke of Sussex, who on this date in 2017 became engaged to Meghan Markle. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist’s mincing creates more problems than if your protagonist had just got on with it.

Romance – November 26

Annina: Monsieur Rick, what kind of a man is Captain Renault? Rick: Oh, he’s just like any other man, only more so. -From Casablanca, which premiered on this date in 1942. Writing prompt: Write a scene in which your protagonist does something s/he shouldn’t do for all the right reasons.