12 Writing Prompts to Spark Your Creativity

I’m a writer.

I always feel weird saying that.

“I’m a writer.”

Most days I don’t consider myself a writer because all I do is create poetry and jot down my thoughts and feelings about life, and other things. I don’t necessarily think that skill is needed for “my type of writing”. That being said, I’m obsessed with learning new things. I don’t know if it’s my ADHD, or just my appreciation for learning. Maybe it’s both.

My new goal is to learn how to write fiction.

I’ve done my research and I believe I’m ready to give it a go. I just didn’t know where to start. That is, until I stumbled upon a list of words. This list displayed uncommon words and provided their definitions. The list wasn’t composed of just “regular, uncommon words”. It was composed of words depicting emotions that most people feel, but cannot explain. Upon viewing these words and their definitions, creativity was sparked within me.

“I could write short, fictional stories depicting the emotions of each of these words.”

What a great idea!

This was a way to spark my creativity without using those rigid, writing prompts that are so often seen all over social media. I didn’t want to be selfish and keep this idea all to myself. I wanted to share this with other writers to help them spark their creativity; whether they’re writers of fiction, poetry, or any other variety.

I’ve compiled twelve of my favorite words from the list I stumbled upon and turned them into writing prompts. I tried to keep each prompt as open-ended as I could, to avoid rigidness and inspire stories of all genres. Feel free to grab inspiration from one prompt, multiple prompts, or all of the prompts. I will be trying my hardest to create a short story for each of the prompts. As I have little experience with fictional writing, I don’t expect my stories to be good, but that’s exactly what this list of prompts was created for. Practice!

Whether you’re an experienced writer or a novice, I hope you all can receive some inspiration from this list of prompts. Some are more difficult than others, but that's what makes it a challenge!

Happy Writing!

Prompt 1

Sonder: The realization that each passerby has a life as vivid and complex as your own.

Write about your character watching others from afar, depicting this deep realization that others have lives as vivid and complex as theirs.

Prompt 2

Opia: The ambiguous intensity of looking someone in the eye, which can feel simultaneously invasive and vulnerable.

Write about a scenario in which you would find your character in the position of looking someone else in the eye. Make sure your story depicts the vulnerability and invasiveness of the scenario.

Prompt 3

Monachopsis: The subtle but persistent feeling of being out of place.

Write about a scenario in which your character(s) are somewhere new, but have a subtle and persistent feeling that they don’t belong.

Prompt 4

Vellichor: The strange wistfulness of used bookshops.

Write about your character(s) exploring a used bookshop that has a nostalgic and melancholy feel. What does your character(s) see? Is there anything strange?

Prompt 5

Rubatosis: The unsettling awareness of your own heartbeat.

Write about a scenario in which your character is suddenly aware of their own heartbeat at the most unsettling time.

Prompt 6

Kenopsia: The eerie, forlorn atmosphere of a place that is usually bustling with people, but is now abandoned and quiet.

Write about a scenario in which your character(s) are exploring an abandoned place that was once lively and bustling with people.

Prompt 7

Chrysalism: The amniotic tranquility of being indoors during a thunderstorm.

Write about your character(s) tranquil feelings of watching a thunderstorm from the comfort of their home.

Prompt 8

Kuebiko: A state of exhaustion inspired by acts of senseless violence.

Write about a scenario that depicts the exhaustion of your character(s) after their experience of acts of senseless violence.

Prompt 9

Lachesism: The desire to be struck by disaster -- to survive a plane crash, or to lose everything in a fire.

Write about a character’s unsettling feeling of the desire to be struck by or experience disaster.

Prompt 10

Nodus Tollens: The realization that the plot of your life doesn’t make sense anymore.

Write about a scenario in which your character suddenly realizes that their life has gone many different directions, and no longer makes sense to them.

Prompt 11

Onism: The frustration of being stuck in just one body, that inhabits only one place at a time.

Write about the frustration your character feels about being stuck in their own body, and their longing to experience life from multiple bodies at the same time.

Prompt 12

Occhiolism: The awareness of the smallness of your perspective.

Write about a scenario in which your character is suddenly aware that their perspective on something or all things in life, is just a speck compared to others.

I look forward to seeing the creativity spew from all of you writers! I cannot wait to see the stories you'll bring to life! You can share your writings with me on my Twitter page, @elisa_writes_ and I'd be happy to give them a read!