Category Archives: Writing prompt
Pecan Gems
I woke up this morning thinking about this piece I wrote in Summer 2009 for the Meals and Memories workshop I conducted with students from the UW-Madison’s Odyssey Project. The assigned theme was “Favorite Holiday Foods.” -Sarah White I am … Continue reading
It’s Okay to Point
Carol Newman blogs at www.angelinyourinkwell.blogspot.com, where I drop by often to see what fresh ideas she has to stimulate me as a writer. Two things always impress me abut Carol’s blog — her ability to use images as writing prompts, … Continue reading
Naming Names comes up again
One of my fearless, peerless writers just turned me down. I invited him to post an essay he’d written on being trapped with smokers as part of his job. His words evoked so vividly the world before smoking bans, you could … Continue reading
“I Ain’t Marchin’ Anymore”
By Sarah White I thought I’d follow on Dan Schuette’s “Invasion” post about the U.W. Campus 1967 with a memory of what I was doing about that same time. I wrote this in response to an assignment I gave my … Continue reading
A writing prompt from Pee-Wee Herman
In the 1985 movie “Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure,” the man-child sets out to find his beloved bike, which has been stolen. A psychic tells him the bike is hidden in the basement of the Alamo. On the way there, he meets … Continue reading
My Earliest Branching Point
In my writing workshops I encourage memoirists to focus on life’s branching points. These are the events that leave your life forever changed. A branching point may come about by choice or by chance; it may seem terrible at the … Continue reading
Contests give aspiring authors goals and recognition
One of the many hats I wear is Contests Workgroup Coordinator for the Wisconsin Regional Writers’ Association. Entering WRWA writing contests can be rewarding financially, and offers benefits apart from prize money. Success in a contest raises your profile, and can … Continue reading
Invasion as writing prompt…
For the first session of a writing class, I face a challenge. What will we do with the “read and share” portion of our time? The answer I’ve come up with is to do an in-class writing exercise. We write, … Continue reading
A thought toward a New Year’s Resolution for 2011
In Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Eat, Pray, Love, she says, “People tend to think that happiness is a stroke of luck, something that will descend like fine weather if you’re fortunate. But happiness is the result of personal effort. You fight … Continue reading
Foxy
By Sarah White This piece was written for a “Show & Tell” assignment in Anne Short’s Reminiscence Writing workshop at the Westside Senior Center, in Spring 2006. I became the workshop leader in Spring 2008 when Anne retired. ~ … Continue reading
True Stories Well Told 