Tag: emotional responses

Your Worst Self

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

            We have good days, in-between days and terrible, horrible rotten days. On our good days, everything works well. Our boss is happy, our significant other is as well and all is wonderful in the world.

            The in-between days are partly good, partly not-so-good. The dinner comes out delicious but the toilet won’t shut off. The front door sticks but the roof doesn’t leak.

            Our worst days are filled with dismay, dislike and depression. Everything triggers our anger and we lash out at coworkers, friends and family. Things break, leak or fall apart. The phone rings with endless spam callers and every time someone knocks at the door, you find a religious troop or a peddler selling high-priced chocolates.

            Those days bring out the worst parts of ourselves. We yell, sometimes obscenities, call names, and slam things about. We say things we later regret. We fight with the people we love when we’re really angry at someone else.

            Your task is to write a story in which your protagonist is having a horrible day. Begin by setting the scene: establishing setting and situation. Make the other characters do something annoying, something that will send the protagonist on an outrage.

            Have fun with this one.

Being Invisible

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

            There are many ways in which individuals are unseen that have nothing to do with fantasy.

            Obese people have felt that invisibility for most of their lives. Clearly, they can be seen: who could miss a two-hundred-pound (or more) person strolling through a store? No one, but that doesn’t consider the shocked looks, the averted eyes, the glued eyes, the snickers, laughs and cruel jokes.

            Often when Caucasians see a person of color approaching, they give the same types of looks, the averted eyes, the terrified looks, the crossing to the other side of the street. While the person of color is as visible as the obese person, scared reactions tend to discredit those feelings.

            Your task is to write a story in which invisibility plays an important role. You can choose fantasy to tell your story or base it on the real world. What’s important is to catch the essence of what being invisible means and how it influences events.

            Have fun with this one.

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

            After searching for a new shirt, you find one in your size that fits. You carry it to the register, already picturing how wonderful you’ll look wearing it. You hand the clerk your card. It fails to go through.

             The payment is due on your car insurance. You use your credit card. It supposedly has insufficient funds.

            Embarrassed is too mild a word to describe how you feel.

            Your task is to write a story in which your character attempts to spend money using a credit card, but is denied. This story needs to shows the range of emotions that she goes through. There might be disbelief at the beginning, followed by hopefulness. Possibly anger. Frustration. Definitely embarrassment.

            Begin with the setting: place and time. Readers need to be there as he selects the items for purchase or is waiting in line to pay at a service center. The story could take place at a supermarket, car repair shop or insurance office.

            There will be dialogue between your character and whoever is processing the payment.

            Have fun with this one.

Self-Reflection

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

            Sometimes it’s good to look back over the things we’ve said and done. It gives us a new perspective as to whether we should have approached a given situation differently or if what we did still feels okay.

            If we would change things, how would we do it? Would we walk up to the person and apologize? Send an email? Text? The method we choose might affect the outcome in ways that we hadn’t foreseen.

            Your task is to write a scene in which your character realizes that she didn’t behave the way she should have. She then contacts the injured party to try to make amends.

            This should be a tension-filled situation. Your character has no idea how the other person will react. She’s going to be nervous and possibly rehearse what she’s going to say. She might practice with a trusted friend before the meeting.

            The other person could accept the apology with grace or could strike out with hurtful words. Both scenarios work because sometimes we need a feel-good ending.

            This situation calls for dialogue and body-language. Include sensory details so that readers know exactly where the meeting takes place.

            Have fun with this one.

Starting Over

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

            Who doesn’t like a fresh start? Well, many people might resent being told to scrap work and begin again. Imagine putting in hours designing what you thought was a winning presentation, only to find that it wasn’t what the boss had in mind. You’d be frustrated, angry and hurt.

            To many, however, having a chance to start over might bring a sigh of relief. Picture a student who received a poor grade on an important test. The grade is so low that it will pull down her grade point average, possibly endangering her scholarship. The professor, after learning that she has a previously undisclosed disability, agrees to give her more time. She redoes the test in the learning center. And…her grade is substantially higher!

            Both cases involve scratching the first attempt. Both have different feelings attached.

            Your task is to write a scene in which the protagonist has to start over. It can be in a relationship, at work or school, on a project for the house, or even writing a book. Emotional reactions will vary depending upon the situation that you set up.

            The first step is to establish character. An angry character will just get angrier while a passive one might just shrug it off. Someone prone to tears reacts differently from a stoic.

            Next come up with a challenge that has stakes attached. It could be a promotion, purchasing a house, or repairing a car.

            Have fun with this one.

Wish Giver

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            Imagine that someone you know is dying. As you sit next to him, holding his hand, he asks you to fulfill his dying wish. He says it isn’t a big thing, but something that’s been on his mind for some time. What do you do?

            Your response will be leveraged by your morals and beliefs, by the time it might take to complete, and by costs involved. For example, he asks you to travel to Norway to visit a long-lost cousin. The expense and time such a venture would take determines how you respond.

            What if he asks you to paint the outside of his house so that his widow has a pleasant place in which to live? If you have the skills, time and money to pay for paint and materials, you might choose to get this done. In fact, you could organize a group of friends on a Saturday morning, all of whom come prepared with materials needed and the energy to complete the project.

            Your task is to write a story in which a dying person asks your protagonist to grant one last wish. To increase complexity, choose something that either goes against your character’s beliefs or something that requires a great amount of time and energy.

            How to begin? Set the scene through dialogue and description. Put readers in the room. Allow readers to see what’s happening, feel the relationship, and experience the range of emotions as your character understands what is being asked of him.

            Have fun with this one.

Embarrassing Moment

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

What was the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you? Most likely there are a range of options to choose from, for as we grow, we often find ourselves doing or saying something that cause our cheeks to crimson.

The event might occur on the playground or in the office. It could involve what you thought was a romantic relationship, but the other person didn’t see it that way. Perhaps you prepared a special meal that turned out to be a complete flop.

Did you ever wear mismatched shoes to work? What happened when someone commented?

Your task is to write a scene in which a character is royally embarrassed. Choose something that would cause your cheeks to blush so as to allow your reactions to direct your character’s emotions. It is important to set the stage through scene development. People the story with interesting characters who are not afraid to speak up.

Dialogue is as important as description.

Have fun with this one.

The Invitation

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

            Who doesn’t like receiving an invitation in the mail? Picture yourself bringing in a stack of letters. One envelope stands out: it’s smaller than average and its purple color reveals that there’s a card inside. You open it, wondering if it’s a thank you for something you’ve done, or a friendship card from someone you haven’t seen for a while.

            Do you open it immediately or save it for later when you’re less busy? What emotions go through your head as you break the seal? You might be excited or you might be filled with dread, especially if it’s from someone you don’t really like.

            Your task is to write a story in which an invitation comes in the mail. Your character must show emotion. She could be surprised, anxious, or angry. She could be disappointed when the event conflicts with something already in her calendar. If she doesn’t want to go, she might struggle with how to let the host know.

            There are all kinds of possibilities that might occur.

            Have fun with this one.

Dead Letter File

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            Recall a time when you fired off an angry letter. All your feelings were on the page. Your grievances were aired, your hurt feelings exposed, your vulnerability revealed.

            What did you do with it? Did you send it? If so, what happened as a result? Or did you save it in your dead letter file? What went through your mind during the decision-making process?

            It’s not just letters that get us into trouble. Imagine a phone call to your boss or to your brother in which you let it all loose. You ranted and raved, accusing the other of all kinds of nefarious deeds. You gave them no opportunity to speak, to defend themselves.

            What happened as a result? Did you regret your actions? Why or why not? If you had a chance to do it over, what different actions might you have taken?

            Your task is to write a story in which your character composes the angry letter or makes the explosive phone call. Readers have to feel the anger and understand where it’s coming from. Dialogue will be important even if it’s a letter that gets sent, for once the words are read, the recipient will respond.

            Raw emotions are painful to read about, but they are a part of life. We’ve all experienced those feelings, so if your story is intriguing, readers will identify with the protagonist.

            Have fun with this one.

The Hollow

On By Terry ConnellyIn prompt, Uncategorized, Writing promptLeave a comment

            Do you ever feel an intense need to fill yourself? That there’s an emptiness inside? When this happens, what do you do to remedy the situation?

            Hollow spaces yearn to be filled. If it’s hunger, we want food. If it’s loneliness, we turn to family and friends. If it’s sadness, we search for things to make us smile. No matter the cause, we instinctively desire to put something in the hollow.

            Your characters also experience emptiness. Perhaps it’s not all-consuming, but it’s there nevertheless. Those intense feelings interfere with everyday life.   How does she focus on work when there’s a hole that needs filling? What does she think about when she’s standing in line at a store? When the phone hasn’t rung for days, how does that make her feel? And when the hollowness acts up, what are her go-to solutions?

            Your task is to write a story in which your character experiences the loss of something crucial. Think beyond a missing watch or a scarf that has disappeared into the depths of the closet. Make the “thing” significant enough that he cannot function normally until either the hole is filled or he forces himself to move on.

            Set the scene with description and narrative. Bring in other characters so that dialogue can reveal the emotions playing in his mind. Through that dialogue readers will learn how he reacts to suggestions. He might be pleased or he might become belligerent.

            Have fun with this one.