Hey everyone!
Welcome back to another installment of writing prompts and the drafts they inspired. It’s a working title for this segment of the blog. : )
In March of 2022 I met a wonderful writer named Tammy Evans through a writing community called Stop Writing Alone. Tammy and I were assigned to be critique partners but quickly kicked up a friendship over writing, tarot cards, and general life overlaps.
I am constantly looking for writing communities to be a part of because community is the one aspect of teaching that I miss. Well, Tammy just so happened to be the facilitator of a writing group, and for the last several months, I have inconsistently been a part of Tammy’s PUSH Group on Monday nights.
It is a small group of writers from all over the country who share our wins and…well…write together.
If you’re a writer looking for community, I highly recommend Tammy’s group. You can click here and here to read more about Tammy’s work. (She’s an extremely talented writer and writing teacher, so I urge you to read her stuff!)
Back to the long titled point of this blog.
On the first Monday of the New Year, I decided to join PUSH group for the evening (my goal is to be a little more consistent in 2023) and was very pleased with my draft.
The writing prompt for the evening was a free write based off of Jim Gauer’s poem, “Will This Thought Do?” I’ve included a link to the poem, but The Paris Review requires a subscription to read the whole thing.
Writing Prompt: Choose a line from the poem, “Will This Thought Do?” and write for six minutes about whatever the poem brings up for you. There are no rules. Just free write.
This is what I wrote.
Lines that Stood Out to Me: What a relief to be wide awake / How sweet to be fully alive for just this morning.
We can put our things aside for now. As the plane lifts off. As the clouds become the world around us. As it all gets left behind.
Sometimes life gets too heavy to carry. Sometimes my muscles ache with the weight of holding space for other people’s happiness. Sometimes I get lost.
But then there’s quiet. And in the quiet there’s truth. There’s peace. There’s my voice.
What’s the truth today?
Today was good. And tonight I am tired. Ready to settle into my bed, surrounded by soft sheets and let the mattress and pillows cradle me to sleep.
I embrace tomorrow and whatever she brings. But now, the truth is silence. Of letting something else entertain me for a while. My thoughts spin and soak in all the what ifs and what could have beens. But there’s also the end.
When time ends.
When the night ends.
That’s it for now, folks. I hope you enjoyed this piece. Please feel free to use the prompt for your own writing, and I’d love for you to share what you’re working on and how your writing journey is going.
Like I said, I would love to have a big community of writer/reader friends! So, leave a comment or a like or share this if you feel so inclined.
Wishing you days filled will all the things you love! Until next week!
Robyn Neilsen 