A thousand thanks to those who showed up! We had a great time writing and sharing our words & observations, jibing on the collective flow. I’m already thinking about images for the next one…

Couldn’t make it but still wanna practice? Grab your notebook and follow along with the recap video ☝️ (if you only see a clip, start your free membership for full access)—and get inspired hearing some incredible writing produced on the fly by supposed “non-writers” just having fun!

📝 Writing Prompts & Images (Setting)

Warmup – 5 mins

Write Right now I am at the top of the page and just keep going, stream of consciousness til the timer. More about this prompt.

Time & place – 7 mins

Introduce the setting:

Mine: Afternoon fades as the sun arcs toward the far horizon beyond the house. Decades ago they were so proud of the windows, the glass shipped from out East. Long since broken out by stones hurled by superstitious passersby. Picked up from the dry desert wasteland surrounding the house. Tufts of scrub grass eking out a living from the barren rocky soil—where once grandpa grew corn and hearty kale.

The windows gaze blindly out from cracked plaster walls watching for some drained future. While

Engage the senses – 7 min

Describe the setting:

Mine: They built the bridge in a day, hauling in the fresh boards in stacks on the wagon. The smell of pines filled the air, and the fresh misty scent of the river churning between lichen-crusted boulders over algae-slippery rapids.

They built the bridge in honor of their friend who fell while crossing upstream a ways, and was found wedged here in the rocks. The fresh cut plank ends dripped with resin in the warm sun as they laid them across the long steel supports and bolted them down with a clank of hammers, that still sometimes echo in the forest when the air is just right, when the moon reflects through the trees at the right angle. Through

Mood & tone (part 1) – 5 mins

Introduce the setting through the lens of Excitement/Eagerness:

Mood & tone (part 2) – 5 mins

Introduce the same setting through the lens of Fear/Anxiety/Dread.

⏰

Mine part 1, Excitement/Eagerness:

I finally climbed the stairs and fitted the key in the lock. How many times had I envisioned this moment? I bought the whole house sight unseen for its attic—which they assured me was untouched since the Great Old Legend died.

Paintings filled the tiny cramped space, leaning modestly on walls & bannister with their backs to me as I stooped under the rafter lined with antique pottery and surveyed the room. How many millions worth of unreleased works in this cluttered treasure chest of a room? Like that vivid array of flowers sprayed across a canvas

Mine part 2, Fear/Anxiety/Dread:

He slowly sinks to the floor, crosslegged on the dusty paint-spattered raw boards. The shout comes again from downstairs, from the front door just kicked open moments ago. He traces the oilpaint ridges of a vase of flowers, the slight give of the canvas as the boots clomp up the stairs.

Behind the tapestry is a door to the roof…but he can’t leave the attic. Can’t let them find what they’re looking for. The code is on back of one of these canvases…if they find it, all is lost.

He reaches into a pocket and strikes a match…as the attic trapdoor creaks open…inhaling the cleansing aroma of sulfur and wood and dry canvas…

👇 Join our next live session—He Said / She Said “Dialogue Day”!

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