This may not be a typical creative writing prompt but it acts as one for me. I learned it from a book on writing by David Morrell. He is a genius and that one book had more insights and helpful advice than entire classes I have taken on the subject.
Here is the trick, you have a conversation with your computer or typewriter. It sounds silly but it will bring out details about your story that you have not fully realized yet. It can act as a loose outline and if your interest starts to lag halfway through the story, you can reread it and recover your excitement.. For instance, I have been toying around with an idea for a supernatural action book and this is how I would use the technique.
Tom: Hi Computer.
Computer: Hello Tom, what are we going to write about today?
Tom: I have been thinking about a story about a criminal profiler that works for the behavioral analysis unit of the FBI.
Computer: Okay..how will it be different from that show on TV called Criminal Minds?
Tom: On one of his cases the evidence leads him to believe that the killer is a monster, as in fangs, hairy or undead monster.
Computer: Now you have my interest, where does it take place?
Tom: The first case takes place in Maine.
Computer: Why?
Tom: I have always loved Maine and it just sprang to mind.
Computer: What specifically fascinates you about Maine?
Tom: The forests and the parks mainly. You can walk out of some towns for 10 minutes and be completely isolated and swallowed up by the forest. Plus, every night in the fall is like a template for the perfect Halloween night.
And so on.
It is just like sitting down with a friend to talk over a story idea but the friend is inanimate and doesn’t mind if you want to talk about it in the middle of the night.
Let me know in the comments if this helps you or if you would have preferred a standard creative writing prompt like last week.
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