Just hit 30,000 words on a story that started from a single sentence prompt

I kept seeing people post prompts that were full plots, like three paragraphs of backstory and world rules. That's not a prompt, it's an outline. A real prompt should be one line that kicks the door open for the writer. I started a novel six months ago from 'The last library book has a due date written in blood.' That one image gave me everything. What's a prompt that actually got you writing?

2 comments

2 Comments

bettywilson7d ago

People get weirdly gatekeepy about writing prompts. A good idea is a good idea, whether it's one line or three paragraphs. The whole point is to get words on the page, not win some purity contest about prompt length.

emery8797d ago

Exactly, what even is a gate for here? The whole point is just to get that first spark, and a spark can come from a single sentence or a whole page of notes. The only bad prompt is one that doesn't make you want to write.