Image by KnownColor via Flickr
What’s the craziest thing a stranger ever said to you?
Image by Raul P via Flickr
When was the last time you unplugged?
By: [email protected],
on 5/22/2011
...all of New Orleans last week, posted here chronologically.They tell a story only I know, although you could write a fictional story using these photos, in this order. Or, mix up the order. Or, choose only ONE photo and write a story. Choose three. Which three would you choose? What stories could you tell?
Image via Wikipedia
What’s the most unusual bar you’ve ever been to?
Image via Wikipedia
What’s your best Las Vegas story?
Image by Julie Rashelle. via Flickr
What’s your best DMV story?
Image by dietadeporte via Flickr
What happened the day your life changed?
Image via Wikipedia
What was the last reunion you attended and what was the most memorable thing that happened there?
Image by Neighborhood Centers via Flickr
What’s the last thing you Googled?
Image by mau.photo de retour via Flickr
What was your last fantasy?
Image by Martin Deutsch via Flickr
What was your last deadline debacle?
Image via Wikipedia
When was your last rampage?
Image by Eilam Gil via Flickr
What is the story behind your last bout of aches and pains?
Image via Wikipedia
What’s the one wrench that got in the way of your latest plan?
Image via Wikipedia
*Dear readers, you have inspired me to continue with one more year of questions. Thanks for the new subscriptions and the encouragement. The next year of questions starts tomorrow. Here’s this year’s last answer*
The skeleton was real.
One fearless thing. That’s all I wanted. One crazy-ass thing.
But I never thought it would happen the way it did. I never thought I’d jump. And the real kicker is? I know the real reason why and I’ll never tell. I guess you could say I took it with me to the grave. But I’m totally claustrophobic so it was more like taking it to the crematorium which is a way creepier sounding word than grave, but just doesn’t have the same ring to it. Since the world’s running out of places to bury people maybe it’ll catch on.
It all started at a football game. There was this guy. And there was my lying boyfriend. And, there was my sister’s raised eyebrows. For the first time in my college life something started that wouldn’t stop. It would follow me and put a smile on my face. And would have followed me until I was old and gray because when your jumpmaster is a red-headed, Irish, politically-incorrect joke cracker named Angus and his company mascot is a full-scale [whispered to be real] human skeleton named Winston, well, that crap sticks with you. I think of it every time I eat Giordano’s.
“Look. look. check. check. Pull.”
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By: Cheryl Rainfield,
on 3/2/2011
Author Laura Davis (co-author of The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse
) is offering free weekly writing prompts & inspiration, coming to your inbox every Tuesday.
Laura Davis is one of my heroes. And Ellen Bass, her co-writer, is another. When I was a teen being abused and remembering sexual abuse, I carried around The Courage To Heal with my everywhere. I read it so much, it got a bit tattered, and so many pages were marked with post-it notes! Both women continue to write, and I think Laura Davis will have a lot of good to offer.
By: Adventures in Children's Publishing,
on 1/18/2011
By: Adventures in Children's Publishing,
on 1/11/2011
By: Adventures in Children's Publishing,
on 12/21/2010
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By: MP,
on 10/5/2010
Mary Elizabeth Summer is a Portland, Oregon-based writer who spends her days writing training materials for various companies and her nights racing pell-mell across the keyboard after her rampaging imagination. She writes novel-length stories with occasional forays into shorter fiction, and she writes for young adults, except for when she doesn't. She has a BA in creative writing (she BSes everything else), and she haunts bookstores for fun. Her current writing project is a young adult novel about a girl on the grift. Non-writing interests include volunteering at a horse-therapy program for autistic children and learning the fine art of parenting from her newborn daughter.
interview by Marcia Peterson
WOW: Congratulations on placing as one of the Runners Up in our Spring 2010 competition! What inspired you to enter the contest?
Mary Elizabeth: Thank you! I was very honored to be chosen from among such talented writers. Actually, I was inspired to enter the contest when I read that I could receive a critique of my entry. I didn't expect to actually place in the contest. I was happily surprised when I did, but also happy to get a professional opinion about the story.
WOW: Glad your expectations were exceeded! Can you tell us what encouraged the idea behind your story, "Of Crepes and Constancy?"
Mary Elizabeth: It's kind of a funny story. My writing group decided to try a variation of the exquisite corpse exercise in which each of us put two sentences into a hat and then draw two sentences out. One sentence was to be used as the first sentence of a story, and the second sentence was meant to be the last sentence of the story. The first sentence I drew was "How many times can you burn a crepe before it really does mean something?" In my original version of the story, I managed to end it with the second sentence, but in the revision process, I had to cut it, because it didn't quite work. As for the substance of the piece, at the time I wrote it, I was noticing a pattern in the relationships of people around me--a certain sort of insincerity that led to mind games and dissatisfaction. I had actually meant it to be a comical story, but it didn't turn out that way. Funny how characters sometimes take a story and run in completely the opposite direction with it.
WOW: For writers who may be interested in what you do for a living, could you describe what it’s like writing training materials for various companies?
Mary Elizabeth: It can be challenging at times. I have to take a bunch of information about something I know absolutely nothing about and shape it in a way that makes sense to someone else who knows nothing about it so that they learn. It involves a lot of adult learning theory and subject matter experts and ridiculous budget constraints and unrealistic turn-around times and blah blah blah corporate blah. It is a pretty sweet job, though. I essentially get to write for a living, which is the golden apple, right?
WOW: It sounds like a demanding but interesting job. How do you switch gears to write fiction at
By: [email protected],
on 9/29/2010
I'm in Scottsboro, Alabama. I drove up today from Birmingham. As I wound into the north Alabama mountains and rounded the soft corners of a low mountain range, late-afternoon sunlight dappled the windshield. I spotted a gorgeous body of water spreading out on my left, serene and full of greenery -- even lilypads -- and thought, Yes. A little bit of beauty everyday, that's all we need....
Then I topped a rise and saw this.
By: [email protected],
on 9/14/2010
By: [email protected],
on 9/9/2010
Mostly photos today, with a little narration, to catch up the summer, and swing into fall. We are about to make our annual trek to the beach. Remember last year's photos with one-word headings?
By: Jill,
on 7/11/2010
By Jill Earl
Don't know about you, but with temps soaring into well over 100 degrees here in the East, the only thing on my mind has been the cooling blast of AC. So when I recently trolled the 'Net for some ideas to get my heat-baked brain moving, I found the CreativityPortal.com site, with dozens of ways to awaken or boost your creativity.
Clicking on the ‘Writing & Prompts’ link located near the top of the homepage directs you to the site’s writing guide, with more links to choose from. Then click on the ‘Writing Prompts’ link within this listing and scroll down for the 'Seasonal and Holiday Prompts’, where writer Chris Dunmire offers up a selection of summer prompts, like the one below:
Writing Prompt 3:
What is your favorite summer memory? How old were you when it happened? For 10 minutes relive that memory through writing about it as if you were right there recording it in real time.
While I’m not crazy about summer, I do remember my days at sleepaway camp, by far my favorite summer memory. During those 10 minutes, I recalled horseback riding and archery lessons, the camp carnival, canoe trips, nature walks, even an encounter with a skunk and thankfully, I wasn’t the unfortunate victim! With the exercise over, I now have some experiences ready to be used in a story, or perhaps inspiration for a future article or blog post. Besides that, it was fun to revisit those carefree days.
For the rest of Chris’ list, head over to CreativityPortal.com. Stay motivated during these sizzling summer days! Grab a prompt or two and get to writing!
By: [email protected],
on 5/10/2010
They change us, these everyday moments, like airing the linens or making limeade. They enhance and make possible our momentous occasions as well. Along the way, we use all our senses to make connections with one another and our stories -- what do we see, hear, taste, touch, smell, in each moment? Yesterday, for instance....
Breakfast dishes drying:
Going back to earlier posts about handwork, I'd like to request you write a post about how to make clover/daisy necklaces. I am resting and writing at our vacation home in North Carolina and my yard is FULL of clover. (Clover necklaces = good memories!)
Danette! I shall! Where in North Carolina? xoxoxo
Brevard. You and Jim would love this place. Yo-Yo Ma performs here in August! http://www.brevardmusic.org/
we'll visit! A clover chain tutorial in person. how long are you there?
Alas, we are only here for the week. But we should make plans to meet up another time, clover or no clover. (There's always something in bloom!)