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Prompts for July 2025
July 28 This week’s writing prompt is an open ended one. Remember, any interpretation is appropriate! The phrase is: But these days, writer’s block feels more like … July 21 This week’s prompt gets to the heart of most character arcs: Tell us about a mistake that one of your MCs keeps making. How do
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Writing with Gratitude: an Interview with Barbara Swihart Miller
What is your name/pen name/name you are comfortable giving us? Barbara Swihart Miller What project or projects, if any, are you currently working on? I have so many projects that are in the process of being written. The most prominent one, my WWII novel, that I believe I am ⅔ of the way through my
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Eco-horror Book Giveaway
Local author Nicholas Belardes’ latest novel, The Deading, takes place in Baywood (that is, fictional Baywood Park) … and we held a giveaway for a signed copy of his book. To enter, writers pitched book ideas that could only take place in SLO County to our Discord server. We randomly selected a winner at our
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Prompts for June 2025
June 30 Hate, anger, fear, jealousy, pride — is there such a thing as a negative emotion when writing fiction? June 23 As our members Quinn and Katelyn recently discussed, some good scams hide in plain sight. What are some effective scams in your fictional world? What do scammers want, how do they fool people,
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Prompts for May 2025
May 26 Working against your protagonist isn’t easy. Conquering the world, even worse. Your villain (or other antagonist) deserves a break. So in this week’s prompt we ask, how does your antagonist spend their day off? Describe their pastime or write a scene in which they do anything except their protagonist-thwarting role in your story.
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A Dark Mind and Rapid Finger Clicks: Interview with Fantasy Author Michelle Dornish
What is your name/pen name/name you are comfortable giving us? Michelle Dornish, though I am considering publishing my fantasy series under M.A. Dornish. What project or projects, if any, are you currently working on? Pen & Pier is a big focus for me right now, especially the first published anthology which I am very excited
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Prompts for April 2025
April 28 Whether it’s Kansas City or King’s Landing, many stories depict cities with as much character as the characters who inhabit them. Deep lore, detailed architecture, natural wonders are great, but seemingly mundane questions can reveal great details too. This week we have a worldbuilding prompt: In either a story you’re writing or reading,
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Prompt for April 7, 2025
Disguises. Aliases. Faking identities. Hiding in plain sight. Characters in many stories find many reasons — and many ways — to fake their identity. So consider this: How would your characters either disguise themselves as another person, or hide who they are in a public space? Remember that disguises are more than just changing your
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Prompt for March 31, 2025
Dragon Soul Press tries to every niche that readers are likely to buy. But in every case, they require authors to pitch their work. This week’s writing prompt asks, what’s your pitch? Choose a story that you’ve written or are currently writing. Then write: Our members respond to and discuss writing prompts on our Discord
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Prompt for March 24, 2025
Some stories leave little impressions on readers, but others stay with them. With that in mind this week’s storytelling prompt has three parts: Name a story (novel or otherwise) that left you thinking long after you finished. Then describe how the writing evoked a deep emotional response. Finally, how can you affect readers like that
