Summer writing prompt archive
I am en route to Iowa City today to teach a weekend workshop at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival, so I am thinking about all my favorite writing prompts, and the beautiful, tender magic of writing in a room with other human bodies.
Occasionally, in the Writing Group, we compile our favorite writing prompts— exercises readers have come up with on their own, or have picked up elsewhere. In lieu of the regular Friday recommendations, and in the spirit of this essay, I thought I’d open this summer prompt archive up to all paid subscribers this time. My hope is that, whether you consider yourself a writer or not, you can take these prompts with you into summer and find some creative inspiration.
So: Please share a writing prompt you’ve encountered recently that has helped you discover a new way into your writing, or a new way of thinking about some element of your practice or craft.
Alternatively, feel free to share any revelations you’ve had recently about your own creative work, such as those that have helped you dig deeper into the part of it that you value.
If you’re sharing a prompt from a writing class other than my own, please be sure it’s with permission from the instructor and proper attribution!
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I’ll start: Here’s a prompt from the class I’m teaching this weekend: