I didn't really plan to go this route but it's where my train of thought decided to go. Sometimes I'm just along for the ride. This sprint kind of lends itself to that. Write about freedom. What does it mean? Are you seeking freedom from something? Let your mind and words flow for 30 minutes. Set your timer and go!
Today marks the anniversary of the freedom of the last American slaves on June 19, 1865. I am not a history buff in regards to dates and names so I did research this for accuracy. For example, I was almost positive of dates that I have since found were mistakes. I thought the enslaved people were kept blind for a year and a half but I now realize it was two and a half years. Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation that went into immediate effect on January 1, 1863. Due to very deliberate and bloody efforts, union soldiers were not able to reach Galveston, Texas to enforce the release of slaves there until June 19, 1865. Let that land. For 18 months, they were legally free from enslavement, free from debt to their perceived debtors. They just didn't know. Interject here!
I didn't really plan to go this route but it's where my train of thought decided to go. Sometimes I'm just along for the ride. This sprint kind of lends itself to that. Write about freedom. What does it mean? Are you seeking freedom from something? Let your mind and words flow for 30 minutes. Set your timer and go!
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Hello, writers! Today's quick write prompt is called "P's in a pod" because we're going to incorporate these wonderful words that start with the letter p into your writing. You choose your genre, topic, etc., so try something new like a poem. Just make sure you use all the words on our list.
This is a quick write so don't think to hard. Just let it flow. You can always edit on the days I don't post a new prompt. Have fun and go! One of the first men I ever met was this cool dude that introduced me to all my "cousins", thought it was funny and adorable that I thought gin was white, sang Smokey Robinson's "Cruisin'" to me and made me cry because I thought he was leaving me (I was like 4 and never told anyone why I cried until now), and decorated a watermelon for me on my birthday instead of a cake. That was the best birthday "cake" ever. His name was Rico, El Freak Forrealo, Garcia, and eventually Rev. Carter. I called him Daddy and he was one cool dude. Seriously, I still get told that on a regular basis.
I'm not sure where to really start when it comes to my daddy. Over the years, I've heard, "Garcia's a trip" more times than I could ever count. That doesn't help me narrow things down, though. Daddy was a trip because he expected things that no one else had the audacity to even imagine. He was a trip because he could rival Einstein on the inventions he dreamed up. When you're able to say, "Call Mike" and a hologram of Mike is standing in front of you thanks to a chip in your head, you might briefly (and erroneously) think of George Lucas. Nope, that would be my daddy's idea. There are others that he talked about years ago and now exist. Unfortunately for the world, he was too busy to make them. Speaking of being busy, that's another way he was a trip. He was a doer. He had a decent job with great benefits despite not having a high school diploma. He worked full time and came home at night to study for his GED, which he earned. He wanted us to live in a house so he fasted, prayed, got some books and support of friends, and built us a house by working each day after work, except most Wednesdays because that was Bible Study night. Often people would say my daddy was a trip because his thinking was never dictated by popular vote. There were things he encouraged me to do and things he would not allow me to do and he didn't care what people thought about, especially once he had prayed on the thing. We bumped heads a lot because he felt I was supposed to follow his instructions unconditionally. I only went to college, in his eyes, to bide my time until some man asked him for my hand in marriage. I guess i should still be in school, then. I, according to him, was still in his household since I was unmarried. I and my rent check I had just written didn't agree with him. He felt I, my cousin who had three children, and other single mothers should live in a rehabbed nursing home he was going to buy so that we could share the work of raising the children. I'm good! I really could go on and on about my daddy but the facts are he truly has inspired and shaped my life and I really miss him. There are some things that I didn't appreciate fully, some things I'm starting to appreciate as a parent and a person, and some things about him I may never understand. Yep, he was a trip and I wouldn't have traded him for the world. Ok, technically the photo is Dorothy Dandridge as Carmen Jones in the updated version of Bizet's opera, "Carmen". Well, I'm posting today's prompt a little early because we are off to the second performance of Cincinnati Opera Association's performance of "Carmen" so I thought let's write our own story of a femme fatale. Maybe it's your alter ego, or men, a woman you know with another secret side to herself. Tell her story! Go! A full honey moon on Friday the 13th has superstitions and fears on my brain so we might as well attack them! Instead of timing ourselves, let's do a modified word war. We're on the honor system, of course, so be honest. No timer but in a single session, write 500 words describing your biggest fear. I personally only got to 484 before I got distracted. So close! Let us know how many words you get down.
Go! Have you ever seen a movie or read a book that infuriated you once you got to the end because the ending was just that bad? Maybe you simply wish the author had gone a different route. Here's your chance to make it right.
Challenge: Rewrite the ending to the story of your choice. No time limit, no word challenge, just tell the story. Some ideas if you're stuck:
We've done quite a bit of fiction let's try a bit of persuasive writing today.
I've met many people who say their parents made them take music lessons for a while, they eventually quit, then as an adult they regretted not continuing their studies. I've known parents who say they will not push their kids to study anything because it's the kid's life. In your opinion, should parents push their children or let the children figure out what they want to do? There is no time limit for this one. I do encourage you to share this prompt with a child or teen and perhaps share your responses with each other. One of my favorite things is folk tales. I considered a career in storytelling for a while before deciding against it. I still tell stories every chance I get. Even more than telling them, I love hearing them. Zora Neale Thurston wrote about "telling lies" or maybe you know it as telling fish tales. You know when people get together and tell extremely exaggerated stories of things they've experienced? That's what we'll do today.
Challenge: Write a version of an experience in your life but with exaggerated details. NO TIME LIMIT. Just tell the story. GO! Hello, writers! Today's sprint gives you a chance to revisit one the prompts you missed or one you'd just like to respond to again. You can also choose to just write out your wonderful randomness for 30 minutes. The challenge: use only pen and paper. No laptop or tablet for this one. Share #quickwrite, set your timer, and GO!
I hope you all are writing and possibly sharing these ideas with others. One way to do sprints is to simply announce to friends online or possibly those in your home and have everyone write for the specified amount of time. If you're that social type, try #sprintwrite and see if any new friends join in. You can even decide on your time limit, word goals, etc. I'm going to throw an hour at you one day but for now, as some of us find our stride, I'm working with the 30 minutes. The last couple of days have been rough for me but we'll keep on keeping on.
That brings us to today's prompt. You choose your voice, your setting, and even fiction or nonfiction but write for 30 minutes and use the words astonishing, entourage, purple, and fathom. Set your timer and GO! |
AuthorTrina A. Carter was raised in Lincoln Heights, Ohio and graduated from Princeton High School. She also graduated with a degree in music education from Central State University. She is the mother of two wonderfully talented children with beautiful spirits. They inspire pretty much everything she does. Archives
July 2014
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