I don’t seem to write fiction so much as anecdotes or dramatized lessons. Be that as it may, this piece came to me this morning. Enjoy or not as you see fit. Continue reading “Fiction Experiment: The Way of the Spider”
Category: Fiction
Writing About What Hurts
I participated in an hour-long online on “How to Write Stories That Matter,” hosted by Jeff Leisawitz. I keep trying different things to kickstart my internal creativity, but quite frankly nothing’s helped. “Writer’s block” is putting it kindly. I found the session quite useful–it’s not Jeff’s fault that I’m stuck. Still, I appreciated Jeff’s inputs, perhaps the most useful/important for me being, “Write about what hurts.” Continue reading “Writing About What Hurts”
Fiction Experiment: Creating a Deity
It’s been a while since I wrote a response to one of my Creative Writing Prompts, but this one amused me. The task here was: Create a deity. Describe its origin, its powers, how it looks – anything you want. Enjoy as you see fit. Continue reading “Fiction Experiment: Creating a Deity”
Writing Experiment: Fictional Holiday
Continuing with my daily Creative Writing Prompts. I seem to have fallen into a pattern that works for me. I use the five-minute/one-word prompt as a journal entry for my own pleasure to get warmed up. The second (“Midday”) prompt I write full out as intended. The third (“Dinner”) prompt becomes a poem, at the moment a limerick. I’ll share some of the limericks at some point. Meanwhile, here’s today’s midday prompt:
Create a holiday! Describe its history, how to celebrate it, etc. Word it as an essay about the holiday, as if completing a boring school assignment.
The silliness continues. Continue reading “Writing Experiment: Fictional Holiday”
Fiction Experiment: Wanted Poster
Tonight’s fiction prompt for sharing:
Write a WANTED ad for a serial cat burglar who is, in fact, a cat. Continue reading “Fiction Experiment: Wanted Poster”
Fiction Experiment: Quarterling
Today’s fiction experiment is below. The midday prompt was as follows:
A magical mishap shrinks your character for 24 hours. How does the day go?
Fiction Experiment: French Roast
Continuing with my Creative Writing Prompts, here’s today’s effort. A couple of notes here before you jump in: The prompt for midday was Your pet dragon has been misbehaving. I moved “Bart” and family into the future and kept his parents married past his seventh birthday. Note, again, as this is a work of fiction, my mother is/was not a coffee addict…at least not to the point of getting grouchy in the morning if she didn’t have a cup. Beyond that, enjoy! Continue reading “Fiction Experiment: French Roast”
Fiction Experiment: Garga Seeks Treasure
In an effort to get some practice, experience, and confidence with my fiction writing, I purchased A Year of Creative Writing Prompts. Below is one of my attempts from today’s assignments. They provide a five-minute exercise, a mid-day exercise, and a dinner time exercise. I decided to kick these out all at once, just to get rolling. Will post these as I think the warrant sharing. The trick for me will be to insist on the discipline of daily writing, even if it’s someone else’s assignment. Continue reading “Fiction Experiment: Garga Seeks Treasure”
Why I Write Fiction
From time to time I mention that I have written or am writing fiction (usually of the science fictional variety), yet I never have said works published. One might wonder, if I have some skill as a writer, why I have not tried to get my work into print for others to see. I had cause to examine that very question this week. I’ll share some of those thoughts now. Continue reading “Why I Write Fiction”
What I Read vs. What I Write
This week I picked up a collection of short fiction by my favorite author, Poul Anderson. Anderson’s writing (he passed on in 2001) caused me to reflect on the difference between the types of fiction I read and the types of stuff that I actually write. Anderson, along with Robert A. Heinlein, Jerry Pournelle, and Ernest Hemingway, are all of a type, in that they all tend to write about bold, adventurous men happy in the outdoors and capable of wresting from the world what they want with their bare hands. It’s fun, energetic storytelling, and their works have given me much enjoyment over the years. Yet their works diverge greatly from what I write when given time to myself. Why? Continue reading “What I Read vs. What I Write”
The Real Bart Leahy 