I liked being in the know when it came to current events. I liked learning from others’ stories. I was competitive by nature, and plenty curious too. On top of all that, I even liked to write.
Yet still, when I began my first job in journalism at age 22, copyediting a short-lived English-language business magazine in Egypt, I never thought that a career in media would stick. More so, it was an opportunity to make a few hundred dollars a month while learning Arabic and hanging out with friends at Cairo bars that overlooked the mighty (and quite dirty) Nile.
“I like writing, but I definitely don’t want to be a REPORTER. You know, the sort of person who does interviews and goes to press conferences,” I wrote in a journal at the time.
Fast forward five years, and now I have a book coming out about exactly that, my life as a foreign correspondent in a country I never dreamed that I would call home, Yemen.
How did I become a freelance foreign correspondent?
While there have been some hard knocks along the way, and there are parts of journalism I really — I mean really — don’t like, and I definitely have embarrassed myself in front of editors (“What’s a nut graf?” I once asked the foreign editor of the San Francisco Chronicle during a phone conversation), I wouldn’t trade in this life for anything else.
That’s what being a freelance foreign correspondent-turned-author has become: a life. It’s far from a 9-5. It’s all-encompassing, and in the end it was exactly what I wanted.
Furthermore, it wasn’t as hard as one might think to get here. At least not conventionally difficult. Living in a place with scant electricity while trying to file stories for the New York Times, that was hard, but getting the gig wasn’t.
Learning the tricks of the trade
After I began the job copyediting at the magazine in Cairo, I was speaking with a friend of a friend at a party late one night over a bottle of duty-free Jameson.
“You speak Arabic. You’re young. You should do it! Why not?” he encouraged. This twenty-something American, Steve, was a freelance correspondent who wrote for publications like the Christian Science Monitor. He was moving back to the States shortly and thus, he said, was happy to tell me the tricks of the trade. I emailed him the next day, pushing past my defeating headache, and asked if we could meet for coffee.
That’s when Steve taught me how to pitch a story. All I needed was a good idea and the ability to write, he told me. That’s it. I didn’t need to go to journalism school — though he had — and I didn’t need any fancy accreditations.
Notably, the fact that we were abroad made my start in journalism all the more possible. The playing field was smaller. That’s why when new graduates ask me how to start a career in journalism, I often tell them to move abroad and find a job at local English-language press, because I know if they are savvy enough, they’ll figure it out from there.
[bctt tweet=”Want to be a journalist? Move abroad and work for English-language media, says @kasinof”]
Turning ideas into action
Back in Cairo at 22, I didn’t think following Steve’s advice would be easy, but it was. I was full of ideas.
What was interesting about life in Egypt? That Egyptian young people were using Facebook to organize politically in a country where other avenues for freedom of expression were cut off. Another: that Iraqi refugees who worked for the U.S. military during the invasion were now being denied resettlement to the US.
Making my own lucky break
I can’t say that I am very proud of my clunky writing from those years, but I was trying. I called editors and bugged them and forced them to listen to me. Most important of all, every time I crossed paths with a real foreign correspondent, someone established, I showed them I was eager to learn. Occasionally, one of those people would help me.
That’s how I was connected with the New York Times. A friend in Cairo introduced me to the Times’ Cairo bureau chief. Two years later, he would let me do some work for him. I sat in the paper’s small apartment-turned-office on a tree-lined street in the neighborhood of Zamalek, saw my byline in the New York Times and didn’t believe my eyes.
Then I moved to Yemen, and then the Arab Spring started. Protests and hope from the Middle East filled the media, but so did violence. The learning curve skyrocketed. I learned about reporting because reporting for the Times was such a serious endeavor. I learned about how humans behave in conflict, and I learned how to weasel my way into interviews with government officials.
My best advice for aspiring journalists
When new journalism graduates come to me for advice, they’ll often ask: “How will I know if I have what it takes?”
“The most important thing for someone who is trying to start a career in journalism,” I’ll tell them (and this advice holds true for anyone who wants to be a writer) “is to not be afraid of failure.” Listening to fear when I was in a conflict zone in Yemen was wise. But letting it prohibit me from putting my all into my writing? Never.
Have you ever dreamed of working as a foreign correspondent?
While there are endless literary techniques that writers can use to spice up their writing, polysyndeton is one that you mayor may not have heard of.
Whether you know it by its name or not, you have certainly come across it in your reading. Maybe you didn’t notice it while you were reading, but once you understand what is is and how it works, you will begin to see it in more places as you continue to read books.
You might even find that you use it in your day-to-day life. One example might be when you’re describing your day ahead to your spouse, “First I need to go to the post office and then the grocery store and deposit my check while I’m out and then finally pick up the kids from school.”
Now, it may or may not be a tool you end up using as a writer, but the more tools you have at your disposal, the better.
In this article, we’ll be going over what polysyndeton is, how to use it, why you should as a writer, and then taking a look at some classic examples throughout literature so you can see how writers use it in their books.
What is Polysyndeton
Let’s take a look at the definition of polysyndeton:
“Polysyndeton is the deliberate insertion of conjunctions into a sentence for the purpose of “slow[ing] up the rhythm of the prose” so as to produce “an impressively solemn note.”
In grammar, a polysyndetic coordination is a coordination in which all conjuncts are linked by coordinating conjunctions (usually and, but, or, nor in English).”
Even as you’re reading, you might not catch the use of polysyndeton, but if you start to read sentences out loud you certainly will notice them.
Polysyndeton is a literary technique used to give weight to each action in a sentence. It also provides a little bit of a rhythm to each sentence as you read and can chop up sentences in a unique way.
The word polysyndeton comes from the Ancient Greeks which essentially means “many bound together with”. You can imagine that means that there are many ideas, thoughts, and actions all strung together in a sentence.
You’ll see in some examples below how authors have used this technique, but let’s dive into what you need to know before we move on.
How to Use Polysyndeton
If you want to use polysyndeton, know that they’re intentional repetition of conjunctions close to each other to create an effect when reading.
If you want the reader to slow down for a particular part or make sure they’re focusing on each of the actions a character is doing, that’s a good reason to use the polysyndeton technique.
In school, most of us were taught that run on sentences are “bad” writing, but that is not always the case. Famous authors from Ernest Hemingway to Cormac McCarthy used these techniques in their writing.
While it’s not the same thing as a run on sentence, just know it can take a while to mentally undo what you were taught in school and start to use advanced literary techniques in your writing.
If you’re not using it to have more of an effect in your writing, then it is a run on sentence instead of polysyndeton.
What Writers Need to Know About Polysyndeton
For the most part, using polysyndeton is a stylistic choice that will be decided by each individual writer and author.
Some writers love the style and how it works as a literary technique, and some writers thinks it makes sentences far too long and drawn out.
It should be something you experiment with to see if it enhances your writing and style or if it is something you don’t want to use.
For example, if one paragraph or scene in your book doesn’t seem to have as much impact as you want it to have, try out this technique and see if it adds more of an impact to each individual action and thought.
Examples of Polysyndeton in Literature
Cormac McCarthy, most famous for his book, The Road, was a big user of polysyndeton in his writing. Let’s look at some of his examples:
Out on the road the pilgrims sank down and fell over and died and the bleak and shrouded earth went trundling past the sun and returned again as trackless and as unremarked as the path of any nameless sisterworld in the ancient dark beyond.
From his book, The Road
And another one:
The horse screamed and reared and the Apache struggled to keep his seat and drew his sword and found himself staring into the black lemniscate that was the paired bores of Glanton’s doublerifle. […] Dust stanched the wet and naked heads of the scalped who with the fringe of hair below their wounds and tonsured to the bone now lay like maimed and naked monks in the bloodslaked dust and everywhere the dying groaned and gibbered and the horses lay screaming. […] The judge wrote on and then he folded the ledger shut and laid it to one side and pressed his hands together and passed them down over his nose and mouth and placed them palm down on his knees. […] He bows to the fiddlers and sashays backwards and throws back his head and laughs deep in his throat and he is a great favorite, the judge. He wafts his hat and the lunar dome of his skull passes palely under the lamps and he swings about and takes possession of one of the fiddles and he pirouettes and makes a pass, two passes, dancing and fiddling at once.
From his other book, Blood Meridian
As you read through all of these examples, take the time to read them out loud and see how they read differently or create a rhythm in each of the sentences.
A shorter example by writer James Joyce:
“They lived and laughed and loved and left.”
From his novel, Finnegans Wake
As you read each part, it feels like each of them are separate thoughts and experiences. They are moments in time that feel longer when they’re put together like that instead of, “They lived, laughed, loved, and left.”
Ernest Hemingway also used this literary technique to give us perspective into how his character is feeling:
“I said, ‘Who killed him?’ and he said ‘I don’t know who killed him, but he’s dead all right,’ and it was dark and there was water standing in the street and no lights or windows broke and boats all up in the town and trees blown down and everything all blown and I got a skiff and went out and found my boat where I had her inside Mango Key and she was right only she was full of water.”
From his book, After the Storm
Even poets have used polysyndeton in their work. While it’s a shorter example than the others above, it will give you a good idea of the possibilities for even shorter text.
And soon it lightly dipped, and rose, and sank,
And dipped again…
John Keats from his poem Endymion
As you can see, that’s a short and right to the point example of how you could use polysyndeton in your writing to make a line stand out or create a whole new rhythm.
What To Do Next
Ready to step up your writing? You won’t want to miss the essential editing tool that every writer needs:
Writing a book is an art form, and that means that there’s not one right way to do it—it’s going to look different for everyone, and as long as someone’s method works for them, it’s fine.
That said, if you’re a new writer looking for advice, this can make a project as big as a novel feel daunting. How do you even start to tackle a project that might be a few hundred thousand words long before it’s over?
If you’re a painter, you need to learn about different methods and techniques and try each to see which resonates with you—you learn how people have been doing it, because that gives you a foundation of information to work with. With that foundation, you’ll eventually gain the experience necessary to use what works for you and leave the rest.
It’s the same with writing. While you’ll eventually reach a point where you’ve got a book writing process which works for you, you may need to try a few different methods before striking gold. In this article, I’ve got five methods for you to add to your toolkit—feel free to mess with them as you need to so they’re effective for your project’s needs.
For each process, I’m going to talk about how it works, who it might be helpful for, and what sorts of tweaks you could make to give you an idea of how to customize these processes. But before we get into that, I want to talk about brainstorming and outlining.
Brainstorming and Outlining
Before you start actually writing your book, you’re going to want some idea of what the book is about. You’ll probably need to know:
– who the characters are
– where the characters are
– what the characters want (at least in the beginning)
& what the book is About (what big themes or ideas you intend to explore).
Some writers have this more or less all in their head before they sit down to write, but I recommend jotting it down. Here are a few ways you might brainstorm before you start getting into the meat of your novel:
1. Mind Map
Write a word in the center of a piece of paper related to your novel—it might be a character’s name, the setting, an idea, a theme, whatever. Draw two lines away from that word and write the first related thing that comes to mind, and do this until the page is full of characters, plot points, settings, phrases, and so on which correspond to your novel.
2. Stream of Consciousness
Set a timer for two, five, or ten minutes (whatever works for you) and write down literally whatever comes to mind. If you’re writing ‘I don’t know what to write and I think this brainstorming idea is terrible,’ that’s cool. Keep going until you’ve got enough to work with.
How do you know you’ve got enough to work with?
There’s not a hard rule, but basically, you’ve got enough to work with when you feel that the brainstorming process is done. You feel ready to start writing. You may need to revisit the brainstorming process while you’re writing to work out plot holes or sticky spots, and that’s fine! This is just to help you get started with a solid foundation.
And once you’ve got that foundation, you’re ready to write your book, and that’s where these five processes come in.
The Snowflake Method
Randy Ingermanson’s Snowflake Method is built on the idea that “good fiction doesn’t just happen, it’s designed.” The Snowflake Method forces you to start small and expand outwards until you’ve got a fully fledged novel. This process is outlined in detail on Ingermanson’s website, but we’ll go over a brief summary here.
Steps 1-7: Synopses and Character Description
You start with an elevator pitch for your novel. If you’re not sure how to write one, look up one-sentence novel descriptions to get a feel for how they should look—they’re basically a summary intended to sell the listener on the story.
Steps 8-9: Outlining
Here, Ingermanson instructs to use a spreadsheet to outline your novel. You’ll use one line for each scene. Then, you take this information and write out a narrative description—basically, you’re converting the spreadsheet to a word document and writing out how the book plays out. He says this step is optional.
If you’re using software like Scrivener, there might be a feature built-in for you to list your scenes. Otherwise, Google Sheets is free.
Step 10: Drafting
Draft the novel! You might need to take breaks to edit the design documents you’ve been creating as things change, and that’s okay. Ingermanson explains that these design documents will have to be edited if you’re doing well—as your ideas develop and change, you’ll have to reflect those changes in the pitch, character synopses, and plot summary.
The Snowflake Method is great because it offers structure for the process without enforcing structure on your book itself. You can use this process with whichever plot structure you like, and at the end of it, you’ve got the documentation you’ll need to sell this book to publishers or market this book on your own as an indie author.
If you’re going to tweak this method, tweak the time frames—Ingermanson lists how long each step should take (which is hugely helpful for keeping creative momentum going), but if you need to take more or less time on a given step or if you need to take breaks between steps, no one’s stopping you.
Discovery Draft
A discovery draft is what a lot of writers might refer to as ‘pantsing.’ For this, you might or might not have much idea of what you’re going to write about—if you have anything written down, it’s probably just a premise or starting point: a character in an interesting setting, a specific fight, whatever.
The idea of a discovery draft is that you sit down and draft the novel as quickly as possible, figuring out details about characters, plot, and all that as you go. Some discovery drafters will edit as they go—I recommend that you don’t, but do make notes or keep a separate document going with the changes that come to mind as you work.
This allows for a lot of creative momentum, because you’re discovering the story as you go—it’s exciting. The downside is that because you might not know where you’re going, you may get stuck. If this happens, I recommend slapping down a note that says “GOT STUCK HERE” and jumping to the next scene. If you don’t know what the next scene is going to be, that’s also okay. You can pause and brainstorm to figure out what happens next, or just decide what would be the worst possible (and realistic) thing to happen to these characters at this time and go with that.
You’ll end up with a first draft that’s also an outline and also a character sheet. Once you’ve finished this draft, go through and identify character arcs and plot arcs and determine how to hone them. Almost none of your discovery draft is likely to end up in the finished product, but that’s true of any first draft.
Bullet Point Outline
A bullet point outline is a great option if you’re looking for something super flexible, and it’s the foundation for many other methods you’ll see. Basically, this is the spreadsheet step in the Snowflake Method.
On a piece of paper, in a word document, or on a spreadsheet—doesn’t matter—you’ll dedicate a line to each plot point.
If you want a super detailed outline, you might write each beat as its own line. If you do this, I recommend organizing your outline so that each chapter has its own heading, just to keep everything streamlined and easy to refer to. You can use highlighters or different-colored fonts to color-code based on character, subplot, or whatever you desire.
If you don’t want to get that detailed, you can write down the major plot points in your novel and forget the rest.
As long as you have enough information to feel comfortable drafting, you’re good to go. A detailed outline can help save time in the drafting process, but a loose outline might make you feel a little more free to change things up as you draft—if you get lost along the way, skip along to the next beat, and figure out how to close that gap when you revise.
Start at the End
Have you heard of Sagging Middle Syndrome? It describes the phenomenon wherein you breeze through the setup of your novel, then stall out in the middle—around the middle of act two, it becomes impossible to reach the climax. Characters hang out doing unrelated shenanigans until the climax comes to rescue them (and the reader).
This is a pretty natural thing to happen, especially in a first draft. If it’s a particularly tough struggle for you, try starting your novel at the end. Where do your characters end up? Who wins, and what happens as a result of that? Knowing how the story ends makes it easier to figure out how to get there.
Another variant on this method is starting with the climax. If you’re the type of author to get an idea for a really cool climax before you think of anything else, just write that climax down. Yes, it’ll probably change dramatically as you rework it—this is inevitable.
After you’ve written the end or the climax or whichever scene you’ve decided to start with, ask yourself the following questions:
– who are these characters?
– how did they get here?
– who ultimately wins in this confrontation?
You can keep working backward, or you can pause and switch to a bullet outline—whatever works for you.
Storyboard Method
If you’re a visual learner, this might be your ticket.
Storyboards are commonly used for visual mediums like comic books, T.V., or movies, but you can use them for novels, too. Use index cards to draw out the scenes you want to have happen in your novel and tape them to a piece of posterboard, the floor, the refrigerator, or your bedroom wall. Instead of drawing the scenes, you could also write them out using short sentences or descriptions.
Again, if you want to use color-coding or some other unique marker to pick out characters and subplots, go for it! If not, cool. This method is great because it allows you to literally see missing spots in your plot, and it allows you to literally pick up and move scenes and see what they’d look like in other parts of the story.
Some writing software like Scrivener has features which allow you to do this, so if you’re looking for a way to do this that saves some space, you might find that useful.
When you’ve got everything lined up the way you want it, take that information and put it into a word document. This will serve as a bare-bones first draft, which you can get straight into revising!
You have probably heard of Reese Witherspoon’s book club at some point over the years. In fact, recently you may have noticed that the mega popular, novel-turned-major-motion-picture, Where The Crawdads Sing, is not only a New York Times bestseller, but stamped with an important sticker: Part of Reese’s Book Club.
So what exactly is this type of club? Why do they matter? Are they just for avid readers or can authors take advantage of these clubs as well? In this article, we get into the following:
What Is A Book Club?
Benefits Of A Book Club
List Of Book Clubs
If you’ve never been part of a club like, or simply want to learn more details about their benefits and how you can take advantage of them as an author, keep right on reading!
What Is A Book Club?
A book discussion club is simply a group of individuals who come together for the sole purpose of discussing books. You will commonly find clubs discussing topics such as:
What they liked about a book
What they disliked
Their opinions
Book takeaways
While not every club follows the same format, typically, they are laid back with a deep focus on a particular book. Everyone in the club is tasked with reading the same nonfiction or fiction work, and at a specific, recurring time, they all come together for discussion.
Think of this form of club as an in-person forum where you can share your thoughts with other readers, hear their insights, and share the commonality of a love for reading.
Benefits Of A Book Club
Joining a club is a great way to engage with fellow readers, gain more insights into plot and characterization, and hear what’s selling well and why. If you are an aspiring author, joining one such club could be the perfect opportunity for you.
Not only will a club surround you with fellow-readers but it will enable you to interact with your potential target audience in person. Below is a list of benefits you may find when joining as a writer.
#1 – Immerse Yourself In Literature
While we may all want to read the classics, it can be difficult to find the time and motivation to do so. Depending on what type of book club you join, you may discover that reading a classic with a group is much more fun than you once imagined. Of course, not every book club reads the classics, but knowing famous stories that stood the test of time can help you grow as a writer.
#2 – Broaden Your Insights
The more you surround yourself with other writers and readers, the more you will discover about the world of books. It’s easy to get stuck in a one-track mindset and walk away from a story with one set of takeaways. When you join a book club, the opposite happens. Yes, you experience your own insights, but you also get the privilege of hearing what others discover through the story.
#3 – Get A Feel For Audiences Across Genres
As a writer, your job is to connect with your target audience in such a way that they read your book and desperately want to read your next one. Book clubs study a myriad of genres, and your target audience is bound to exist in one of them. Joining a book club will help you understand your audience at a more personal level, and ultimately, write better books.
#4 – Learn From Genres You Don’t Naturally Read
While writers read, not all writers enjoy genres outside their own. That said, it’s extremely beneficial to open yourself up to new writing opportunities through familiarizing yourself across genres. Imagine how well you could write historical fiction if you immersed yourself for a month or so in biographies of historical figures?
#5 – Discover Feedback Without Sharing Your Work
One of the larger benefits of joining a book club is taking note of what other readers say about genres similar to yours. It can be intimidating to share your work-in-progress with beta readers, let alone your final draft with an audience. Book clubs allow you the inside scoop on what types of plots and characters work well in specific genres, and which ones do not.
Now that you know several reasons why you could benefit from joining a book club, let’s discuss some actual book clubs you could join or even submit your own book to.
A List To Get You Started
Check out the below list to help you get started in your search today!
#1 – Reese’s Book Club
Popular for a reason, Reese Witherspoon is known for her book-to-screen adaptations. If you want to read up to twenty-four books a year, join Reese’s club! Join 2 million other readers and keep up with both YA and adult reads on social media.
#2 – Between Two Books
Did you read The Goldfinch or love the movie? This book club began in 2012 and was established by fans of Florence Welch. This is an online club with over 100,000 members. A community that always seems to be involved in books somehow (video readings, discussions, etc.) this is a great club to join if you want a more intimate feel.
#3 – Silent Book Club
What if you are an introvert but you want to get out more and interact with other readers? Join one of Silent Book Club’s more than 240 chapters, spread across over 30 countries. This club focuses on readers coming together, not to talk, but to read books in the presence of other readers.
Book Club Steps For Authors
What if you are an author and want to submit your book to a particular book club? You may want to try looking into the Greenleaf Book Club, which has been in existence since 1997. When pursuing how to submit a book club, a crucial step is to learn all you can about what readers love.
Unique individuals fill every book club, so while you may want to pitch your book to famous celebrity clubs, it’s crucial to submit your book to the correct audience.
A second way to create an in with a book club is simply by engaging as a proactive member. Invest in the other readers, share your thoughts on books you loved, books you want to read, and authors you aspire to be like.
The more you engage as a member, the more likely other members will respect what you have to say and want to hear your opinion. Once you establish yourself as a contributing member of a group, consider talking with the person who runs the book club and pitching your book as a potential read.
Just as you need to understand your target audience and comparative works when writing your book, these details are vital to getting your book in for a book club as well. Before submitting your work, ask yourself the following questions:
What types of books has this book club read?
What books did the members gravitate to?
How is my book similar?
How does my book stand out?
Best wishes as you pursue both engaging with a book club as a reader and submitting your own book!
Although purple prose sounds pretty and like a way you would want your writing described, it’s actually not a good thing to have your writing described this way.
If someone calls your writing purple prose, essentially they’re calling it flowery. Meaning, they think it’s too wordy, formal or trying too hard to be poetic.
Although there are some genres and authors who think purple prose is a badge of honor as a writer, we’ll let you decide that for yourself.
In this article, we’ll dive into what purple prose is, where it comes from in history, take a look at some examples, and ultimately go over how to avoid it as a writer.
What is Purple Prose?
Purple prose is writing that is too formal, poetic, or wordy. It’s when too many adjectives, adverbs, and metaphors are used to describe things.
Generally, there is not a specific rule about what is or is not purple prose, it’s more of a, “You know it when you see it” kind of thing.
It’s also subjective sometimes and not everyone agrees if some pieces are purple prose or not.
With that in mind, it can be hard to define exactly what it is, but the novelist and poet Paul West had this to say about it:
“It takes a certain amount of sass to speak up for prose that’s rich, succulent and full of novelty. Purple is immoral, undemocratic and insincere; at best artsy, at worst the exterminating angel of depravity.”
Ultimately, writers don’t want to be too flowery and go on for too long. You’ll want to tighten up your sentences and make sure you keep your readers engaged.
Where Does the Phrase Purple Prose Come From?
The Roman poet Horace was the first to coin the phrase purple prose in his poem The Art of Poetry.
Here is the translated version:
Your opening shows great promise, and yet flashy purple patches; as when describing a sacred grove, or the altar of Diana, or a stream meandering through fields, or the river Rhine, or a rainbow; but this was not the place for them. If you can realistically render a cypress tree, would you include one when commissioned to paint a sailor in the midst of a shipwreck?
From The Art of Poetry by Horace
For context, at the time, purple dye was incredibly expensive and having any purple in your clothes was a sign of wealth. Many people who wanted to portray being wealthy would put purple fabric into their cheaper clothes to appear richer than they were, thus why it started to be thought of as flashy and gaudy.
That’s why Horace drew a line between the purple fabric in society and the purple prose in writing. People then used it to describe any kind of writing that was simply trying too hard and was turning away readers.
Purple prose is deeper than write on sentences, and instead it’s writing that’s flashy for the sake of being flashy, without giving meaning or depth to the writing.
Once again, it’s up to you as the writer to include or exclude all the details you want, but you will want to avoid including so many metaphors you lose what you’re trying to say.
Examples of Purple Prose
As you read some of the examples below, see if you can figure out why they are defined as purple prose or not. You might even want to read them out loud for more of an understanding.
Most of us have heard the line, “It’s was a dark and stormy night…” but not many people know it’s a commonly mocked piece of writing and a perfect example of purple prose.
It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents—except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness.
Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s novel Paul Clifford
Another example from Jerome K. Jerome. This one might be a little more obvious as you can see it’s a whole sentence on its own as an example. As you read through it, see if it holds your attention or if your eyes start to glaze over at a certain point in the sentences.
“The river—with the sunlight flashing from its dancing wavelets, gilding gold the grey-green beech-trunks, glinting through the dark, cool wood paths, chasing shadows o’er the shallows, flinging diamonds from the mill-wheels, throwing kisses to the lilies, wantoning with the weirs’ white waters, silvering moss-grown walls and bridges, brightening every tiny townlet, making sweet each lane and meadow, lying tangled in the rushes, peeping, laughing, from each inlet, gleaming gay on many a far sail, making soft the air with glory—is a golden fairy stream.”
Jerome K. Jerome from Three Men in a Boat
For a more modern example of purple prose, look to romance novels, particularly ones from the 70s and 80s where graphic scenes were described using metaphors and outlandish metaphors to describe things so their novels wouldn’t be so raunchy.
How to Avoid Purple Prose
Keep in mind if you’re just starting out as a writer, you’re bound to have a ton of mistakes. It’s the cost of entry to making it as a professional writer.
If you’re trying to make your writing creative and poetic, it’s better to overdo it at the start as you learn how to write creatively and say what you want to say.
With that in mind, you’re bound to create purple prose here and there, but as long as you make sure you’re going back in to edit it out and only keep in the strong parts of your sentences, you should be just fine.
As always as a writer, you should constantly be editing your work and thinking about any extra parts you want to cut out. If you let too much fluffy language in your writing, it can not only turn off readers, but it can distract them from the main point you’re trying to say at that moment.
You know how some authors write over people’s heads on purpose? Like they use language that is fancy so they can show off how smart they are? That is generally what you want to avoid as a writer, you always want to write directly to the people you want to read your book.
One way to test out if your writing is too fluffy is to have test readers who will give you an honest opinion.
There are also writing tools out there that can help show you where your writing could be stronger or weaker.
You could also read your writing out loud to see how many breaths you need to take to finish a single sentence, which can be a sign of it being far too long and wordy.
Get Your Fiction Handbook
Looking for a guide to writing fiction? One that will give you the actionable step-by-step guide to getting your fiction book out in the world? This guide has everything you need:
When you’re writing, you have different tools and components at your disposal—plot, structure, character, theme, etc. You manipulate these things to make your work the best it can be, and having a good understanding of how all of these components work means you can move them around with intention.
Characters are sort of like pawns. To know what to do with them, you need to know what they’re doing in your story—what purpose do they serve, and what are readers going to expect from them based on similar characters from other stories?
In this article, we’re going to talk about the different types of characters in a story that you’ll encounter across mediums (T.V., movies, books, etc.). Not only will this make it easier for you to analyze the media you encounter, but it’ll help you more intentionally and thoughtfully craft your own work.
Character Roles
Let’s first talk about characters by the role they play in your story. This is the function they serve in terms of the story, and these terms are used across genres and mediums (a protagonist is called a protagonist whether you’re talking about a children’s adventure book or a grisly war movie).
These roles often overlap—antagonists may start out as deuteragonists, for example, and in a series like Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan, characters who are protagonists in one installment may not get as much on-page time as they do in another.
Protagonist
The protagonist is the main character of your story. They’re the ones driving the plot and undergoing the most change, usually. The story is about them, and the story’s main arc will be tied directly into their own internal character arc. A story told from multiple points of view may have multiple protagonists—if this is the case, each character should have similar weight.
Examples: Luke Skywalker in Star Wars, Miles in Looking for Alaska by John Green
Antagonist
The antagonist directly opposes the protagonist. We see this in superhero movies all the time: the antagonist wants to destroy the world while the protagonist wants to save it. They often need to be defeated by the protagonist in order for the plot to resolve. The antagonist’s chief job is to create problems for our main characters.
Examples: Sauron in Lord of the Rings, Logan Roy in Succession, Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
Deuteragonist
A deuteragonist is the character who is secondarily important to the protagonist. This is often the protagonist’s closest friend and companion. Because of their proximity to and influence over the protagonist, they play an enormous role in the plot, and they often undergo significant change themselves—conflict between the deuteragonist and the protagonist is a common subplot meant to steer the protagonist toward the inner change needed to succeed in the climax.
Examples: Dr. Watson in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sam Gamgee in Lord of the Rings
Tertiary Characters
Tertiary characters are the third most important characters in a story. These characters don’t often see a lot of character development, or at least not particularly complicated development—they mostly exist to flesh out the world and add texture and depth to the setting, as well as to deliver one or two pieces of information to the main cast. They might be townspeople, henchmen, or miscellaneous council members.
Example: Pintel and Ragetti from Pirates of the Caribbean: the Curse of the Black Pearl
An ‘archetype’ is sort of like the blueprint. An ‘archetypal mother,’ for example, would be the picture of a mother—not necessarily the perfect mother, but the perfect example of a mother. In The Hero’s Journey, Joseph Campbell outlines eight major character archetypes which pop up in fiction.
The Hero
The hero is usually the protagonist. This is the character who has to battle their internal struggles to overcome the antagonist and save the day in the end—the reader generally roots for them and wants them to win. They tend to be aligned with moral good.
Examples: Marvel’s Captain America, Percy Jackson from The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
The Mentor
This character exists to offer advice and guidance to the hero. They don’t usually have much of an arc unto themselves, instead serving as a plot device—they show up when the hero needs a key piece of wisdom to help them on their internal journey. This character tends to be older, but that’s not necessarily a rule.
Examples: Yoda from Star Wars, Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings
The Ally
The ally is the hero’s right hand man. This is usually the deuteragonist—this person wants to help the main character achieve their goals, and their interests are tightly aligned with the hero’s. If they become misaligned, this is the source of enormous conflict, as the ally and hero tend to depend on one another.
Example: Nick Carroway from The Great Gatsby
The Herald
The herald isn’t always a character—this can be a person, but it could also be an object, like a message. The herald’s purpose is to herald, or signal, an upcoming change for the hero. This typically happens at the start of the story—a character’s living their regular life until the herald calls them to adventure.
Examples: the letter from Hogwarts in Harry Potter, the summons from Fiona’s parents in Shrek 2
The Trickster
The Trickster is there for comic relief. Sometimes this is also the protagonist’s best friend (you see this a lot in buddy-cop movies), since having a sidekick who tags along to make wisecracks is an easy way to keep the mood light. They may also provide emotional support or serve some other function, but this character is the one you think of as ‘the funny one.’
Examples: Donkey from Shrek, Jaskier from The Witcher
The Shapeshifter
While most of the main characters undergo change in some form or fashion, the shapeshifter’s change is different—they cross the line between ally and enemy. Someone who starts out as an ally and is later found out to always have been an enemy is an example—so is a redeemed villain who always had a heart of gold.
Examples: Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender, Rhea Jarrell in Succession
The Guardian
The guardian, also known as the threshold, is a character who stands between the hero and his destination. They warn the character about the danger ahead, either explicitly in the form of a verbal warning, or implicitly by their dangerous nature. The hero has to defeat, outsmart, or otherwise work around the guardian to proceed with the quest.
Examples: Cerberus from The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, The Minotaur from The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
The Shadow
The shadow character is the antagonist, or the antagonistic force. This is the threat which looms over the story and which ultimately must be defeated by the hero. They also represent an opposite world view from that of our protagonist—usually this looks like a morally good protagonist who represents evil.
Examples: Darth Vader from Star Wars, Gollum from The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
Character Tropes by Genre
Character archetypes, as you can see by the examples listed above, span over many genres and mediums. Within specific genres, though, these archetypes take the shape of character tropes.
Tropes are commonly used elements within a story—they’re building blocks to which a reader will instantly assign meaning based on their previous interactions with that trope.
To know how to create believable worlds for your character, click here.
Character Tropes in Sci/Fi Fantasy
The Wizard
The Wizard usually acts as a mentor figure. They tend to be older (sometimes centuries old or immortal), and they often have some supernatural abilities which give them transcendental knowledge which they can impart to the protagonist. They also tend to be loners and live in seclusion.
Example: Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings
The Chosen One
The Chosen One is a trope where the main character is literally destined for the plot. They’re the only person who can, for some plot-provided reason, save the day. The Chosen One will often grapple with this enormous responsibility, and their decision to take on that responsibility or abandon it will make up their inner arc.
Example: Harry Potter
The Reluctant Hero
The Reluctant Hero is one who doesn’t want to save the day. They want to go about their regular lives, but eventually, the plot demands that they take on the role of the hero.
Example: Shrek
The Dark Lord
The Dark Lord is a very powerful wizard, sorcerer, or magician-type character who also usually serves as the story’s antagonist. They tend to represent evil, and they tend to have an all-powerful aura about them—Dark Lords often have armies, henchmen, and so on which must also be reckoned with during the quest.
Example: Voldemort
Character Tropes in Romance
Secret Billionaire
The Secret Billionaire knows that they’re a billionaire, but their love interest and the story’s secondary characters don’t. This means that the love interest falls in love with them purely for their personality and not for their money, which is what the Secret Billionaire is used to, and which is why the Secret Billionaire will resist the exposure of their wealth so hard.
Girl-Next-Door
The girl-next-door is a little naive, friendly, and helpful. They’re not supermodel beautiful or insanely talented in any particular regard—their strengths come from their down-to-earth goodness, patience, and sensibility. These are common protagonists in romance novels, since they function as great self-inserts for readers.
Newbie
The newbie trope, also known as the virgin trope, is where we have a character (most often a young woman) who is completely new to the world of romance, sex, and dating in general. When handled poorly, we get characters like Anna from Fifty Shades, whose naivety feels almost supernatural in nature and who is frequently infantilized for the purpose of fetishization.
Character Tropes in Horror/Thriller
The Scholar
The scholar character is the one who does a ton of research—they might be a professor, lab assistant, or doctor—and provides the protagonist with this information at some key point in the story. In a supernatural horror, this information might be lore about the entity haunting the cast. In a realistic thriller, it might be a detective or police force sharing what they know with the protagonist.
The Amateur Sleuth
The amateur sleuth, commonly the protagonist, has no background in solving crime. They’re often an everyday person who becomes forced to investigate the mystery themselves when proper authorities aren’t an option, either because they refuse to take on the case or prove incompetent.
The Lonely Monster
The lonely monster is usually the antagonist. This character, as the name implies, lives alone, and if that loneliness is highlighted by the story, it might give them a sympathetic edge. This might be a ghost kicking around an old asylum, a monster hiding out in an abandoned warehouse—they still often need to be defeated by the heroes, but they might not feel great about it.
Considering how popular the show was, how many actors became famous from it, and how many seasons there were, there is a lot writers can learn from the writers who worked on this show
We’ll be going through the different writers in the show, dive into some of the tips from The Office writers, and talk about what writers can learn from them.
Who Were The Writers for The Office?
If you look at the writing credits for The Office on IMDB, you can see that there are over 50 writing credits for the series.
The Office was also known for having some of their actors be involved in the writing process and also vice versa.
Let’s take a look at some of the tips from the writers from The Office and talk about how you can use them to improve your own writing skills.
Writing tips from Greg Daniels
Greg Daniels has had a huge career and is one of the main producers of hit shows such as The Office, Parks and Recreation, and King of the Hill. He hasn’t done a lot of interviews, probably because he’s busy writing smash hits, but this was a good nugget from his Vox interview.
In this quote, he had just been asked how he came up with ideas for Upload.
I was walking around midtown Manhattan, past all those electronics stores next to Rockefeller Center. They were all advertising CD players, switching to digital from analog. I was trying think of a comedy sketch, so I was thinking, “What else could you digitize? What other things in life would it be ridiculous to digitize?” And I was like, well, the ultimate would be your own mind — where everybody’s digitizing and living in a hosted computer environment, or something.
Greg Daniels
The main takeaway from this quote is to draw inspiration from your day-to-day life. Take the time to explore your area and walk around without being nose-deep in your phone and scrolling.
Look at your surroundings, question things, think of new angles for different things you observe.
Most great writing (especially comedy writing) comes from simply observing life and writing about it.
Another writing from Greg:
“The show had such a different feel and I wanted it to have such a sincere feel to it. The enemy of that to me is the factory TV process which Hollywood is often guilty of — and I would definitely say I don’t admire too much — because a lot of times in this factory process, the actors are kept apart from the writers. And they distrust each other. And it leads to a certain type of writing where the writers write actor-proof lines which are very joky. Because they don’t trust the actors to deliver them without a set-up and a punchline in the same speech. To me, what was so wonderful about The Office was that behavior was what was funny.”
Greg Daniels
If you’re just writing on your own and for your own blog or book, this quote might not apply to you. However, for writers who work on a team or with other people, it’s essential to bring everyone in to the process together.
For example, if you’re working on website copy, not talking to other people on the marketing team is a problem.
Writing tips from Mindy Kaling
Mindy Kaling first had her rise to stardom through working as a writer, executive producer, director, and most notably, acting as the character Kelly Kapoor in The Office.
Her advice on looking for a mentor:
“If you have the opportunity to observe someone at work, you are getting mentoring out of them even if they are unaware or resistant. Make a list of the people you think would make the greatest mentor and try to get close.”
Mindy Kaling
Lots of writers like to seek out mentors, and you should start with the ones you admire most. Sure, it might be hard to get in touch with someone like John Grisham, but you can sometimes also learn from your favorite writers through the advice they give and the books they write.
Mindy also has a checklist for characters that she follows:
Characters are helpful and kind.
No one is a moron.
Characters are polite.
Conflict should never come from a desire to be cruel or mean.
Do not fear nuance. Comedy from avoiding conflict, not instigating it.
Characters don’t have to be maxed out to be funny.
This is a good idea for writers to have a checklist to follow when it comes to their writing. It helps keep you focused and on track.
Writing tips from Michael Schur
Michael Schur was not only a producer and writer for The Office, he also helped bring other great shows to life such as The Good Place, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Master of None, and more.
Needless to say, he knows what he’s doing when it comes to writing and bringing a story to life.
“The visual metaphor that [Greg Daniels] gave us for the show at large was like a paved over, concrete, boring looking office parking lot with one little flower peeking up through a crack in the pavement.”
Michael Schur
The lesson from this is to create a vision for your writing. If you don’t know your ultimate goal or outcome, you are going to make mistakes along the way that might take you off track.
You always want a north star for what you’re creating to bring it to life.
In this interview with Tim Ferris, which is worth a listen for anyone who wants to become a writer, he goes over his entire career and lessons he’s learned. Let’s look at another gem.
“And of the many, many rules of creation or of writing that have been taught to me over the years by a number of very smart people, the best and most trustworthy is write what’s interesting.”
B.J. Novak
Now, writing what’s interesting is hard, but that’s the cost of making it as a creative writer. If people aren’t interested in what you’re writing about, you won’t get their attention.
At the same time, that’s what all writing advice can be boiled down to.
Writing tips from B.J. Novak
B.J. Novak became famous for writing, producing, directing, and acting in The Office as the character Ryan Howard.
“We would start with what we would call a Blue Sky period, which was my favorite part of every year. For two, three, or four weeks sometimes, if we had a long time, every single day in the writers room was just, ‘What if…?’”
B.J. Novak
While it’s great to have routines and processes for writing, there has to be time where you set aside to just think, daydream, and get creative.
You need to take the time to think about your story, your writing, and start to think outside the box. How could you improve your writing and your focus?
Next Steps
Want to join a ton of other writers that can give you endless writing advice? You will want to check out The Den!
After spending weeks, months or maybe even years perfecting the words in your book, you’re probably ready to toss it online and cross your fingers that you’ll receive rave reviews.
But before you jump on the self-publishing bandwagon, take some time to learn how to make a book cover — an amazing one, at that!
When people browse books, whether physical or electronic, the cover is often the first piece of information they see. If your cover looks amateur or out of line with your book’s genre, readers will likely move on to the next option without a second thought.
How does a wordsmith cultivate the images and graphic design skills needed to turn a blank cover into a captivating collage — especially while trying to keep your self-publishing costs as low as possible? When it comes to how to make a book cover, what’s the best approach?
Whether you’re ready to call in an expert or DIY your cover, here are some inexpensive options for creating a book cover.
[sps_reusable_block post_id=43050]
How to Make a Book Cover: 9 Great Options for Self-Publishing
Tier 1: Hire a professional designer
Not thrilled about the idea of creating your own cover? These options may cost more, but can help ensure a polished final product… which could mean more book sales.
This site offers done-for-you cover design as part of its publishing packages. They work directly with professional designers and they consistently create professional-looking covers for both fiction, non-fiction, and even children’s books. The company is run by Chandler Bolt and was previously founded by Joel Friedlander, both well-known and respected names in the self-publishing world. They have been providing book design tips for years (and continue to do so under the banner of the SelfPublishing.com platform).
This site can design not only your book cover, but also your author logo, character merchandise and anything else you can dream up.
Start by creating a design contest for your project. Write a “design brief” explaining what you’re looking for, and 99 Designs will present your specifications and budget to its marketplace.
Designers then respond to your brief with their ideas. After a time period where you get to review designs, you select a winner, request any edits, and that designer earns the money you’ve budgeted for the project. You retain full copyright ownership of the final design you select.
Book covers on 99designs start at $299, and ebook covers start at $199. You can do both for $399.
One potential bonus for using a site like 99designs: If you discover a designer whose work you love, you can continue working with that designer on future products.
3. Ask for referrals
Referrals from other self-published writers, writing groups (online or in-person) and writer friends are a great way to find good designers at reasonable prices. If you’re not sure where to start, Facebook groups for writers can be a great resource.
If you already work with designers in a professional capacity, consider asking if they’re interested in working on your book cover; those trusted sources can also provide you with referrals for other designers.
Fiverr offers the chance to get a professional book cover for just $5. The site lets you review designers’ portfolios and see ratings left by other clients before committing to a designer.
Some people swear by Fiverr, while others have ended up frustrated. In one case, ebook writing team Frankie Johnnie had to work through 20 design iterations (at $5 a pop) before settling on a design that resonated.
However, the duo still recommends using Fiverr as a basic cover designer and a way to test out cover design options. “For as little as $5 bucks, you can roll the dice…” Frankie says in a tell-all on James H. Mayfield’s blog.
Tier 2: The DIY option
If you’re not too keen on hiring a professional and would rather tackle design duties yourself, here are a few resources to help you along the way.
5. Microsoft Word
Believe it or not, you can actually design an entire book cover using only Microsoft Word.
The Creative Penn offers an incredible DIY book cover design tutorial by Derek Murphy. His tutorial notes how important it is to select the right picture (“Simple is better,” he says) as well as the importance of balancing colors.
The tutorial also discusses where to find images, whether you’re taking photos yourself, sourcing stock images or using other online sources such as Etsy and DeviantArt. Then, it walks readers through the step-by-step details of designing a captivating cover.
Derek Murphy’s own site offers customizable templates so self-published writers can easily design their own book covers.
You don’t need to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for special design software to create a cover that will make people snap up copies of your book. Murphy offers a training video that teaches how to design a great book cover in 30 minutes or less.
He also offers a free, online cover creator tool, along with video tutorials to help you make the most of it.
Pixlr offers a variety of photo editing apps. “Pixlr Editor” offers opportunities to use layers, replace colors and transform objects. Another popular option is “Pixlr Express,” which offers quick fixes and personal touches with a simpler interface.
The site helps you create and touch up gorgeous images, as the “Made with Pixlr” gallery shows. While some of Pixlr’s tools are free, if you want to use the desktop version of Pixlr, you may have to pay a fee.
GIMP, a free program you can use for photo retouching, creating and composing images, stands for “GNU Image Manipulation Program.”
While many tools allow you to create and edit within your web browser, you’ll have to download this software before you get started. GIMP can be used with GNU/Linux and UNIX, as well as Windows, Mac and other systems.
This design software is super popular with non-designers because it makes it easy to create professional-looking designs. While some design elements will cost you, many of Canva’s templates and features are free.
Canva’s drag-and-drop setup makes it easy to create your simple book cover. It features millions of images (including stock photos, vectors and illustrations) as well as photo filters, free icons and shapes, and hundreds of fonts.
This is an updated version of a story that was previously published. We update our posts as often as possible to ensure they’re useful for our readers.
There are many ways to make life-changing money with your writing talent. From establishing an online blog, to finding profitable freelance work, there’s something to suit every skill set. At The Write Life we’ve aimed to support and encourage you, no matter what your objectives are.
However, one of the best ways to make money writing often seems too difficult or complicated for many writers to pursue, in spite of it being their dream project. We are talking about writing and publishing a book.
If that sounds familiar, we totally understand. To successfully self-publish a book requires so many different elements. The writing itself is just the start. You also need to find an attractive book cover, source professional editing services, and implement an effective marketing plan.
Maybe some of these aspects are outside of your skillset. You might have tried to find a company to help you in the past but ended up being put off by the complexity or costs involved.
Thankfully, there’s no need to despair!
Chandler Bolt and the team behind Self Publishing School have launched a brand new service for authors at selfpublishing.com. It combines high-quality education and coaching with a package of professional done-for-you services to help your book succeed – no matter how far along your journey you are.
What’s more, they’re using their amazing launch period to fund libraries in Africa as well as giving away amazing prizes just for writers, including an all-inclusive writers retreat to one lucky writer. Head over to selfpublishing.com/thefuture to check it out!
If you’re looking for Hanukkah writing prompts, you’ve come to the right place for some creative ideas.
Every holiday season is a good time to reflect, think about the holiday you celebrate, why it matters to you, and come up with creative prompts for writing and reflection.
Hanukkah is observed over the span of eight days and nights, starting on the 25th day of Kislev. It is not on a set traditional calendar day as it follows the Hebrew calendar. It typically falls between November and December.
If you celebrate Hanukkah, it might be a good time for you to reflect on the year, what the holiday means to you, and just simply take the time to think about your life.
You can do them with your friends and family, too, if you want to create a bond with them or a new tradition to deepen your relationships.
Why Writing Prompts Help
When it comes to doing reflection, it’s hard to just sit down and start writing.
Often, more than not, getting a little help and mental assistance with getting the creative juices flowing can help a ton.
If there are certain prompts that help you get writing, you should keep those in your own little writing folder for the future. Even the best writers out there need some help now and then.
It might also help to have a designated writing spot in your home or office. Writing on the couch in front of the TV while your favorite show is streaming in the background would make it tough to focus, even for the best writing professional.
With all that being said, grab your favorite writing tools, crack open something delicious to drink, and let’s get started.
Hanukkah Writing Prompts
Let’s dive into some Hanukkah writing prompts. You don’t need to write about all of them, they’re simply here for you to use as inspiration for your own creativity and journaling.
#1 – Why is Hanukkah important to you? You can approach this from a religious standpoint or if you want to dive into why you a
#2 – Why do you think it’s important to pass down traditions? What do you want your children to know about this holiday and the history behind it? How do you want future generations to celebrate and understand this time?
#3 – How did your family celebrate Hanukkah? What memories did you love from that time? What do you wish you could go back and enjoy again?
#4 – What do you think about when you see a menorah? What does it mean to you? What about the oil lasting eight days, how does that story make you feel? Since they can come in all kinds of different designs, take the time to write about the most beautiful one you’ve ever seen.
#5 – What is your favorite part of Hanukkah? How can you enjoy more of it? What is your least favorite part?
#6 – What would you change about celebrating Hanukkah, if anything? Would you like to celebrate it with different people or in a different place? In what ways would you love to celebrate it more?
#7 – Since the Hebrew word Chanukah translates to “dedication”, what does the word dedication mean to you? How is the word and the holiday related in your mind? How can you bring more dedication into your life? What would you like to dedicate yourself to?
#8 – When you talk about Hanukkah to your friends who don’t celebrate the holiday, how do you describe it? What do you want them to know about it? Why is it important to you?
#9 – Who are your favorite people to celebrate Hanukkah with and how can you show them you appreciate them this year? You could even use this prompt to write letters to people in your life explaining why you’re grateful for them and their presence in your life. They don’t have to be long, extensive letters. You can even just send a spontaneous thank you card.
#10 – What are your favorite Hanukkah songs? Do you like to sing them or are you not a fan of singing? Did you ever learn and instrument to play any? Would you?
#11 – What kind of gifts are you hoping for this Hanukkah? What was the best gift you’ve ever been given? Was there a gift you will never forget?
#12 – Do you decorate for Hanukkah? Is your style to go all-out or are you more minimal with your decorations? What is your favorite item to decorate with that you’ll always put up?
#13 – What does the first day of Hanukkah feel like? Does it feel different than the last day? How do you feel about it leading up to the celebration?
#14 – What are your favorite Hanukkah dishes? Do you prefer to cook them yourself or cook them with other people? Do you have a favorite restaurant to go to so you can celebrate? Who is the best cook in your whole family? What is your relationship with food when it comes to holidays in general?
#15 – What causes do you feel passionate about supporting? How can you get more involved with them in the upcoming year? Would you want your family and your friends to join you in support?
#16 – How does your faith play a part in your every day life?
#17 – How would you feel if you were there when the oil lasted 8 days instead of just the one?
#18 – What was the best Hanukkah you ever celebrated? What made it so special? Was it something you were doing, the people you were surrounded by, or something else? How can you recreate that for yourself this year?
#19 – Describe your life this time next year. What does it look like? Who are you with? What have you accomplished as you celebrate Hanukkah once again?
#20 – Do you have a favorite game you play during Hanukkah celebrations? Is there a game you wish your family played or that you want to experience?
#21 – Do you celebrate the same way every year? Would you want to mix it up in the future? Are you a person who loves to celebrate holidays in the same way each time or would you prefer to change things every year?
Sharing Your Writing
It’s up to you if you want to share your writing with the people in your life or simply keep your writing to yourself.
As mentioned earlier, it can be a way to deepen a bond with other people in your life and discuss these questions as a group.
You could even typer your answers and share them anonymously with each other, to get a real feel for people’s thoughts on the holiday. If you’re in a book club, you could bring these with you to discuss it there with people who love to dive into themes, stories, and thoughts.
There are plenty of ways to get creative for how you want to use this time to reflect on your life and deepen your relationships.
What to do next?
Did you love the prompts and the ability to start writing something that mattered?
Is a career in writing in the cards for you?
If so, you’ll definitely want to check out the next option and begin your journey as a writer!
