Inspiration
Prompted: #1. Top Story - February 2024.
PROMPTED: INTRODUCTION I'm new here, but I'm a fan of writing prompts (I have a few things to say about them HERE) and I'm a fan of creating community and uplifting other writers. So, I thought I'd attempt to host a writing challenge (unofficial). If it gets enough interest, I hope to make this a regular monthly exercise. I welcome your feedback and encourage you to join in the fun.
By Randy Baker3 years ago in Writers
A Story Every Day - Prompts for February 2024
February is almost on us, so here are some prompts for you for your brain to mull on! Reminder: The aim is to post a short story (microfiction) EVERY DAY in 2024. Here's the post about it, and the follow-up. Word limit is 366 (minimum count 300) The prompts are aids only, not challenges (unless you want to use them that way). It doesn't have to be perfect. Hopefully a decent standard, but not perfect. Perfection is the enemy of creativity, no? The idea is to get the juices flowing. Stories that are short and sweet, and plenty of them. There's a way to keep your streak going if you know in advance you won't be able to get online on certain dates
By L.C. Schäfer3 years ago in Writers
Quantum, as I feel
Quantum! Have you ever heard the word? Now, the apprehenders are wondering what the hell this guy is asking about the most successful physics theory ever produced in the world of science! But remember, everyone is not an apprehender and a science engrossed.
By Esala Gunathilake3 years ago in Writers
The Balance of Navigating Writing and a Full-Time Job
For most writers, there is always the dream of being able to spend the day lounging around and writing stories that sell enough to pay the bills, but instead, they have to wake up at ungodly hours and have a long commute to a job that they may or may not like, before dragging themselves home and into bed before repeating it all the next day.
By Elise L. Blake3 years ago in Writers
Hey World, I'm a Writer
Writing is scary to me, but not writing is also scary. I’m scared to let people know what I think. I’m scared to put myself out there and be judged. But I am also scared of living a life without purpose and of being on my deathbed full of regrets and what ifs.
By Joe Mellen3 years ago in Writers
Boundaries and comfort zones
2023 was the definitive year of change for me. 2024 will be the year of metamorphosis. A transformation of the utmost certainty will take place because it must. I have been running in slow motion. I have been standing still and wondering why I haven't moved an inch. I was always better when I was working towards something. I am at my best when I am motivated and ambitious. I love working towards a goal and establishing more goals when I advance. I love writing poetry and this platform has helped me tremendously in overcoming my insecurities. I have a fear of feedback because I am always seeking perfection when I write. I know this is meaningless because perfection doesn't exist but I am always in search of it. I want to write something that will stand the test of time, something people will speak about it decades from now. I want to write something akin to an epiphany, something that changes people's perspective that they didn't see coming. I want to write a poem that I'm so insanely proud of. I want to write the next great novel. I want to write a story that absolutely must be told. Fear and judgement has kept me from attempting my very best. I always believed my best was never good enough so I hardly even tried. I was afraid of what others would think of my work but how can they read what I've written if I never take that plunge? How can I become legendary without taking that gigantic leap off the precipice? My creative journey has always been solo but without including an audience, how will I ever progress? Writing must include other writers and feedback. Vocal media has helped me in overcoming the first obstacle which was just simply writing again. I had writer's block from 2019 to 2021. Putting pen to paper is easy. Getting the words out is also easy to accomplish. Risking myself by putting my words onto a public platform helped me grow and develop my potential. Learning to take constructive criticism and feedback is something I am still adapting to. Reading material from other writers is a goal of mine so I don't compare myself to others. Each of us has a different story to tell and we all have something so diverse and unique to contribute. Each of us has our own special voice and technique and by sharing that gift with others, we can transform ourselves into the best version of ourselves. I believe we all go through evolutionary stages to become what we already know we are. We all know how capable we are; we just don't test those boundaries and we don't jump into those frigid waters. Some of use never push ourselves out of our comfort zones but we must in order to achieve what we know we can. There is a belief that we can accomplish wonders by simply having faith and losing our fear of heights. That first step is never easy but each consequent step becomes easier because we are already flying. In order to get over my fear of nonexistent perfection, I have to try to my best and hope someone out there can connect with my words. I want my poetry, my stories of fiction, to speak to people, even if it's just one person. I want to inspire the way I have been inspired. Words are the building blocks to creativity here on Vocal media and I want to explore the unknown with these very words. Who knows what undiscovered poems lay hidden in the dark recesses of the universe? Who knows what fictional stories lay dormant in the far corners of our very own minds? We will never know until we try. In order to try, we must get over the fear of failure, the fear of falling. What if things don't work out? What if they do? What if I have the potential to be as great as I want to be? Well, the universe is beckoning me. Who will join me in this monumental crusade?
By Anna Torres3 years ago in Writers
Failure Is Not an Option!
Some people look forward to the new year with hope and optimism; I am not one of them. That wasn’t always the case. When I was younger, I bought into the “New year, new you” mentality. I used to make New Year’s resolutions like everyone else. I genuinely believed they would come true and that my life would get better by the end of the year, but our circumstances don’t undergo some big dramatic change just because the calendar changes. Life has a funny way of derailing hopes and dreams, as I learned the hard way.
By Morgan Rhianna Bland3 years ago in Writers
