c/creative-writing-prompts

30

baker.christopher•5h ago

The prompt I submitted to a contest got rejected and I'm still trying to figure out why

I used to write these sweeping fantasy prompts full of epic lore, but after I got a 3-word rejection from a magazine editor last year I started doing tight 50-word slice-of-life scenes instead, so has anyone else had to completely reinvent how they pitch ideas to fit what the market actually wants?

19

nina_hall48•9h ago

Warning: I thought the "show don't tell" rule was overhyped until I did a 180

I scoffed at writing forums for years saying you gotta show emotions instead of just naming them. Then I took a workshop last March where the instructor made us rewrite a scene using only actions and dialogue. The difference was night and day, my critique group finally got invested in my characters instead of skimming. Now I'm paranoid I've been doing it wrong for like a decade. Has anyone else had a writing rule they dismissed that totally changed your story when you actually tried it?

19

bailey.jennifer•1d ago

My character arc fell apart because I forgot the small town's main export

Was writing a scene set in a fictional mining town in Colorado. Had this whole emotional beat where my main character gives a big speech about the town's economy. Then my buddy who actually lives in a small Colorado town asked what they mine. I froze. Total blank. The whole speech relied on knowing that one detail. Had to rewrite the scene from scratch. Anyone else ever build a whole plot point around a detail you forgot to research?

28

the_miles•1d ago

Had to pick between describing a character's room or their morning routine in my short story

I was stuck on a scene in a flash fiction piece about a guy who fixes old neon signs. I couldn't figure out whether to spend two paragraphs describing his workshop with all those glowing tubes and bent glass, or show him making coffee at 5 AM with his shaky hands and a busted percolator. I went with the morning routine because I figured the room details could get sprinkled in later when he actually works on a sign. Turns out that choice let me show his patience and his frustration way better than any description of a dusty shelf ever could. The scene ended up getting picked up by a small lit mag after I submitted it to three places. Has anyone else had a similar fork in the road where you picked character action over setting and it just clicked?

4

erickelly•2d ago

TIL feedback on my dialogue killed my favorite character

I had this one character who talked in this real flowery, poetic way, and I thought it was genius. Then a beta reader told me, 'Nobody talks like that, not even wizards.' They were right. I rewrote his lines to just say 'Pass the salt' and it actually made him feel more real.

3

emmaking•3d ago

Noticed creative writing prompts got way more detailed since 2015

I was scrolling through old prompts from like 2014 on here and they were mostly just "write about a door" or "a character finds a letter." Now people are posting whole opening paragraphs with specific settings and emotional stakes built in. The shift happened around 2016 or 2017 when writers started adding constraints like word counts or required dialogue tags. I think it's because more published authors started sharing their actual process instead of just vague ideas. There's less room for interpretation now but the responses seem richer. Has anyone else found the older style easier to riff off?

29

angela_morgan•3d ago

Bumped into a retired librarian at the thrift store who changed how I write dialogue

She grabbed a beat-up copy of *The Sun Also Rises* off the shelf and said, 'Hemingway lets his characters talk past each other, that's real life.' Now I go back to that every time my dialogue feels too on the nose, has anyone else had a random stranger drop a writing tip on them like that?

21

the_brian•4d ago

Bought a $50 plotter program for my novel outlines and it wrecked my flow

I dropped 50 bucks on that fancy plotting software after seeing a 'how to outline a novel' video. Ended up spending three hours clicking buttons instead of writing, and my story still feels dead in the water. Has anyone else had a tool make their writing worse instead of better?

3

the_holly•5d ago

Pro tip: stop opening every prompt with 'The door creaked open'

I was judging a local writing contest last month and 14 out of 30 entries started with someone opening a door. It kills the tension before anything even happens because readers already know that move. How do you start a scene without falling back on basic movement like walking or entering a room?

9

fiona_kim97•5d ago

Found out most writers only finish 3 out of 10 story ideas they start

Came across this stat in a writers survey from last year. It said something like 70% of ideas get abandoned in the first chapter. Makes me feel way better about my messy drafts folder honestly. Has anyone here actually dug out an old abandoned idea and finished it?

21

amyh12•5d ago

Spent $150 on a plotting software and it saved my story

I used to hand-draw all my timelines and character arcs on poster paper. After three failed drafts in a row, I dropped $150 on Plottr. Now I can see plot holes before I write a single chapter. Anyone else find a tool that stopped them from rewriting the same story twice?

11

paige166•7d ago

Found an old journal from 2018 and my writing voice has completely flipped

I stumbled on a short story I wrote for a local contest back then, full of flowery descriptions and big words. Now my stuff reads like someone talking to a friend... way more raw and stripped down. Did anyone else's style change after they stopped trying to sound smart?

11

max_cooper21•8d ago

Picked a character-driven story over a plot-driven one for a contest, lost by a landslide

Last month I had to choose between two ideas for a local writing contest with a $200 prize. One was a tight thriller with twists every 3 pages, the other was a slow burn about a guy who replants his dead wife's garden. I went with the garden one because it felt real. Judge said the pacing was too slow and I didn't even place. Has anyone else bombed a contest by going with the 'meaningful' option instead of the crowd-pleaser?

31

the_claire•10d ago

Vent: That 'just write garbage first draft' advice cost me 6 months of edits

Everyone says to just vomit words on the page. Fix it later. Tried that on my 80k word novel. Took 4 months to write the slop. Then 6 months of gutting and rewriting. Should have plotted first. Spent 10 hours just reorganizing chapter 3 alone. Has anyone else found that method actually backfires big time?

20

nancy_king29•10d ago

Finally tried that 'show don't tell' prompt trick I always rolled my eyes at

I did a 10 minute warmup where I wrote a scene without using any emotion words like 'angry' or 'sad' and it turned into the most real dialogue I've written all month. Has anyone else had a writing exercise they hated actually work?

26

emmaking•10d ago

Stopped forcing my characters through plot points and it fixed everything

For like 2 years I would outline a story and then FORCE my characters to hit each beat even if it felt wrong. Then I was writing this scene set in Portland where my detective was supposed to confront a suspect, but she just drove around for 3 pages thinking about coffee instead. That's when it clicked that I was treating my characters like puppets instead of people. Does anyone else let their story drift when a character wants to do something random?

28

quinn161•11d ago

My old writing teacher gave me advice that backfired hard

Back in community college, Professor Hayes told me to always start a story with action, no setup. He said readers get bored with descriptions and want to jump right in. So I wrote this whole short story about a guy finding a locked box in his attic... started with him prying it open with a crowbar. I submitted it to a small contest and the feedback was brutal. The judge said they had no idea why the box mattered or who the guy even was. I realized Hayes meant action like conflict, not just physical movement. Now I start with a quiet moment that hints at what's coming, and it works way better. Anyone else get writing advice that sounded good but messed you up?

3

olivermason•11d ago

That writing prompt about the talking cat felt way too forced

I saw a prompt on here yesterday where someone wanted a story about a cat that gives financial advice... come on, that's just silly. It had 80 upvotes before I even clicked it. Why do we keep upvoting gimmick prompts over ones that actually let you explore real emotions or characters? Can we agree to stop rewarding the lazy stuff and push for deeper ideas instead?

20

jessem59•11d ago

That whole week in Nashville when everything went wrong at once

I drove down to Nashville to help a buddy move his restaurant equipment, and the first day the U-Haul broke down on I-40. We lost a whole day just waiting for a replacement truck, and then on Tuesday the dolly wheel snapped off while we were rolling a freezer across the sidewalk. By Thursday, I dropped an 80-pound crate of dishes on my foot right outside the back door. What made it stand out was how every little thing just kept piling up, like the universe was testing me. Has anyone else had a moving job that turned into a total disaster like that?

19

phoenixk64•12d ago

Debate: Does strict worldbuilding box you in more than it helps?

I mean, I keep going back and forth on this. Some writers I follow say you need to map out every rule of your magic system or sci-fi tech before you write a single word. They say it keeps things consistent and readers can tell when you're making it up as you go. But then I see other folks who just wing it and let the story shape the world as they write. They argue that too many rules kill creativity and make the story feel like a textbook. What's your take on this? Have you found a middle ground or do you lean hard one way?

29

abby_cooper•12d ago

Prompt engineering in fiction writing: does strict planning kill creativity or make better stories?

I've been on both sides of this. A year ago I wrote a 50k word novel with zero outline, total pantsing, and the first draft was a mess that took 4 months to fix. Then last month I tried a detailed 3-page outline for a short story, and I finished the draft in 6 days but it felt stiff. Which approach do you lean toward and why?

21

emma96•12d ago

Picked the window seat over the aisle for a 6 hour flight to Denver

I always choose aisle so I can stretch my legs, but this time I wanted to watch the Rocky Mountains come into view. Turned out I got boxed in by two snorers and couldn't get up for three hours straight. Has anyone else made a seat choice they instantly regretted like that?

26

charles_baker28•13d ago

The debate over detailed worldbuilding vs leaving gaps for readers

I've been on both sides of this for years. In my fantasy series I mapped out every city, language, and history down to the last detail, and readers loved the immersion. But then I wrote a short story where I left half the lore vague on purpose, and someone posted a 3-page theory about what it all meant that was way better than what I'd planned. Which approach actually makes for a better story, giving them the full blueprint or letting them fill in the blanks themselves? What's your take after writing something that went one way or the other?

6

phoenix_singh25•14d ago

Tried writing a horror prompt from the monster's point of view

I threw together a quick story where the ghost was actually terrified of the living family. Posted it in a prompt swap thread here last Tuesday. Got 47 replies in 24 hours, mostly people saying it broke their usual block. Guess the lesson is flip the script completely, even if it feels stupid at first. Anyone else found a weird angle that just clicked?

6

troyknight•15d ago

TIL most creative writing prompts about time travel don't consider that the butterfly effect would apply to the writer remembering their own life differently

I was reading a physics blog last night and it hit me that if you go back and change something minor, the version of you that returns wouldn't have the same memories as the one who left, so how do you even write that character's voice without it falling apart has anyone else run into this wall?