The Importance of Writing Prompts for Growing Writers
Part I
Writing prompts aren’t for everyone. Sure, some writers really dig them and sit in class, pencils ready, just waiting for the teacher to hand out an assignment. These are the same folks who love hearing their own writing. Their hands shoot up as soon as the exercise wraps up, worried the teacher might miss them and not let them share their work.
On the flip side, there are other writers—just regular folks (like me), who don’t have inspiration on speed dial—who aren’t as excited about writing exercises. For them, prompts feel like the writing version of eating your veggies: not exactly fun, but good for you. Just like those veggies that fill you up and leave no room for dessert, prompts take up time that could be spent crafting something meaningful. Something epic and important, like that dream book of yours. Prompts might seem as appealing as soggy brussels sprouts, but they do have their benefits. Here are a few solid reasons to give prompts a shot in your writing.
And I’ll even have more for you next week.
Lower stakes lead to higher output.
When we dive into a project we care about, the stakes feel sky-high. We want to create something that lives up to this brilliant idea, so we pile on the pressure. This kind of stress can actually hinder our writing, sometimes causing full-on writer’s block. Instead, if we start with a warm-up exercise, there’s less pressure and mistakes are totally okay, which means we’re less likely to freak out about performance.
Prompts are like a musician practicing scales or an actor doing vocal warm-ups. You wouldn’t do this on stage during a performance, but it helps you relax and get ready to shine.
Prompts can really boost your confidence.
Most of the time when you write from a prompt, you go in knowing that what you produce will probably be terrible. But when you go back and read what you’ve written, you might find a few hidden gems among the mess. Suddenly, your writing doesn’t seem as hopeless as you first thought.