Writing Prompts-Blogging Insights 3.0 # 3

TODAY’S QUESTIONS:

How do writing prompts affect your creativity? Do they expand it, or do they restrict it?

Can they be considered ‘real’ or ‘true’ writing?

What is your favourite kind of prompt?

MY ANSWERS :

How do writing prompts affect your creativity? Do they expand it, or do they restrict it?

When I first started blogging, I was skeptical of writing prompts. I thought they were for people who could not come up with their own ideas. How wrong, and how shortsighted I was then, in 2018.

At the behest of my friend, blogger Sadje, I began to write in response to prompts. What a world it opened up for me ! I found that a prompt could trigger thoughts, ideas, and even long buried memories. Since then, I have become hooked to prompts, creating two of my own nearly every week.

I wish I could write posts in response to all the writing prompts out there. But that would be like saying, “I wish I could read all the books ever written.”

A writing prompt can never restrict your creativity. It does quite the opposite. Even those with strict word or sentence criteria are good exercises since they force you to be ingenious in expressing yourself in a particular way.

Can they be considered ‘real’ or ‘true’ writing?

It is often said by veteran bloggers with far more experience and talent than I that even a grocery list or recipe is ‘true writing’. The posts that arise in response to prompts are varied. They can be fiction, nonfiction, poetry, wherever your creativity takes you. All of these are forms of ‘real’ or ‘true’ writing.

What is your favourite kind of prompt?

Whatever prompt strikes my fancy and makes me want to write is my ‘flavour’ of the moment. I enjoy the one word prompts, as you can take them in whatever direction you please. Once, I created a post made up entirely of images in response to a one word prompt. I find the question format easiest and quickest to do.

What about you? I would love to know what you think?