darren r hill

Welcome to this week’s complete creative prompt exploring water. We begin with a single creative prompt word and expand it to inspire fiction writing, journaling and a host of other creative activities. These creative prompts, are to give me, and anyone else who wants to join in, some focus to our creative work.

I am blessed in many, many ways. I have to admit, I am also privileged in all I have and where I find myself. Being in this position means I find it easy to take my blessings and privileges for granted. Keeping a gratitude journal or at least a simple list of things I am thankful for helps to remind me. One of the greatest blessings I currently enjoy is being close to the sea. In just a few minutes I can be listening to the lapping, or crashing of waves and breathing in the briny sea air. Therefore, this week’s creative prompt is:

Water — a colourless, transparent, odourless liquid that forms the seas, lakes, rivers, and rain and is the basis of the fluids of living organisms

this is a general definition, but I love the way despite having no colour or smell and lacking opacity it is so important to life

Let the prompt ‘water’ inspire you in any area of creativity that you are interested:

• writing fiction
• journaling
• art journaling
• songwriting
• photography
• painting
• composing
• blog posts
• art therapy
• anything that could use a little nudge to begin

Let’s expand the word a little further…

Fiction Writing Prompt

The Fiction Writing Prompt exploring water aims to stretch the literary muscles. No rules. No word counts. Simply write and explore.

I tried to focus my eyes. Was this yet another mirage, or had I finally found some water?

Writing Prompt Expanded

We have already seen in its definition that water is essential to life. Humans can survive for some considerable time without food, but without water, we soon lose our ability to function. Our protagonist is in such a position. It’s your challenge to explain why they find themselves in such a situation.

This prompt is all about describing how our character finds themself in this precarious position but using language that shows their faculties are struggling.

• Why are they desperately in need of water?
• What was the previous mirage they saw?
• How is the lack of water affecting their other senses, mind and body?

Being able to describe a character who is challenged is a valuable skill. Most of our writing calls upon our experience. However, it is unlikely that many of us have found ourselves in desperate need of water. One way of approaching this is to exaggerate the feelings and memories we do have. Our amplified written feelings of need should be able to resonate with our readers. Our description of desperation should be indistinguishable from the real thing, similar to the mirage in the prompt.

Have fun, but don’t forget to drink your water as you draw from the creative well.

Journal prompt

Journaling allows us to hold conversations on paper. From private diaries to creative art journals, we pour out our deepest thoughts. If you work in an art journal, you’ll probably use water a lot. It helps mix colours, merge colours and can be a base for various mediums to act interestingly.

As metaphor water can be used in many ways, and some words that relate directly are, flow, soak, saturate, refresh, erode, and even cry.

Questions to answer, thoughts to explore or images to create in your journal:

• When was the last time you cried real tears, and why?
• What shapes can you draw that remind you of water?
• On some decent paper, add a wash of water and then add drops of ink or watered-down paint to create interesting shapes?

Theory of General Creativity

I now have ‘water’ written on the board above my computer. I am confident it will inspire me on my creative journey this week. Water was one of the four ancient elements. As such, it is part of the myth and magic of Alchemy. This medieval practice, of mixing and changing the elements and base metals, has many similarities to creativity. We take, we mix, we create. Whatever creative ventures we embark on, water can play an essential part, just like it does for life as we know it.

Let ‘water’ inspire your music, photography, and painting this week.

Finally…

As always, these creative prompts are optional and entirely open to your interpretation. Use them as a starting point for a short story, something a little more grandiose, or any creative ideas and ventures.

As mentioned before, this isn’t a ‘challenge’ but the prompts can be used that way if you want. If you do create anything using them, I would love to see or hear about it. Leave a link in the comments below, or tag me #thecreativeminimalist on any social platform.

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Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest

Welcome to this week’s complete creative prompt. We begin with a single creative prompt word and expand it to inspire fiction writing, journaling, and a host of other creative activities. These creative prompts, are to give me, and anyone else who wants to join in, some focus to our creative work.

These past few weeks, I have been struggling to create. Yes, the creative minimalist has been creating minimally. We all get these creative lulls and low points when the creative well apparently runs dry. However, I am sure there is more to creativity than what we can see. At the very least there is serendipity, and depending on the way you define that word, you may view creativity through a spiritual or supernatural lens. My serendipity moment was that before my creative well ran dry, I had already chosen this week’s word. This week’s creative prompt is:

Blank — a space left to be filled

So, a prompt with a difference this week. The prompt itself is the creative struggle we often face.

Let the prompt ‘blank’ inspire you in any area of creativity that you are interested in:

• writing fiction
• journaling
• art journaling
• songwriting
• photography
• painting
• composing
• blog posts
• art therapy
• anything that could use a little nudge to begin

Let’s expand the word a little further…

Fiction Writing Prompt

The Fiction Writing Prompt aims to stretch the literary muscles. No rules. No word counts. Simply write and explore.

The blank page stared at me, challenging me to make a mark. It remained untouched.

Writing Prompt Expanded

The blank page is one of the most frightening places for a writer to find themselves. Writing on the computer is just as intimidating. Programs may offer pretty formatting, but the first words still need to be typed. So, this prompt faces the very real fear that so many of us face.

The prompt allows us to step inside the mind of a writer by being a writer. Have you noticed how many authors use writers for protagonists? Here are a few questions to get you started on that blank page.

• What is the reason for their blank page?
• Is there a deadline involved, and what is it?
• Is this the first time they have struggled, or is it a regular occurrence?

The blank page is common to all writers. The first sentence and even the first word can feel like an insurmountable barrier. Using a form of prompts, perhaps a series of questions can help. Putting down random words related to what you want to write about is another place to start. The trick is to add something, anything, to eliminate the blank page. A journey starts with the first step, and your writing begins with the first word. Write it now.

Journal prompt

Journaling allows us to hold conversations on paper. From private diaries to creative art journals, we pour out our deepest thoughts. Depending on what sort of journaling we do, we can still find the blank page daunting. Creating a ‘box’ of ideas to call upon when we are unsure what to do is a great way to keep creating and writing. The ‘box’ can be a literal box or jar with ideas and prompts written, or a virtual list on an app.

Questions to answer, thoughts to explore, or images to create in your journal:

• Make just one mark on a blank journal page. Finished? Or make another mark. Repeat.
• Write about how and when you find it difficult to write in your journal.
• Was there a time you found it easy/difficult to write? Why?

Theory of General Creativity

I now have ‘blank’ written on the board above my computer. I am hoping it will help guide me from my current barren spell. Just the act of writing blank on my board has meant the board is no longer blank. And remember what I wrote earlier, there is always a little serendipity at work in the world. Be aware and capture any serendipitous moments and watch the blank page fill up.

Let ‘blank’ inspire your music, photography, and painting this week.

Finally…

As always, these creative prompts are optional and entirely open to your interpretation. Use them as a starting point for a short story, something a little more grandiose, or any creative venture.

As mentioned before, this isn’t a ‘challenge’ but the prompts can be used that way if you want. If you do create anything using them, I would love to see or hear about it. Leave a link in the comments below, or tag me #thecreativeminimalist on any social platform.

---

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest

Welcome to this week’s complete creative prompt. We begin with a single creative prompt word and expand it to inspire fiction writing, journaling and a host of other creative activities. These creative prompts, are to give me, and anyone else who wants to join in, some focus to our creative work.

If there is anything the past year or so has shown, it is that nothing is permanent. We all know this deep down, but the pandemic has placed it firmly in our vision. Despite the technological advances and new amazing architectural structures before our eyes, it was a microscopic virus that demonstrates impermanence. Even so, we still try to use phrases like the ‘new normal’ because some of us don’t like things to be different. Therefore, this week’s creative prompt is:

Change — make/become different, alter or modify

this is just one definition, change can refer to many things, it can be a verb and a noun, but the essence of meaning remains

Let the prompt ‘change’ inspire you in any area of creativity that you are interested in:

• writing fiction
• journaling
• art journaling
• songwriting
• photography
• painting
• composing
• blog posts
• art therapy
• anything that could use a little nudge to begin

Let’s expand the word a little further with a few specific ideas…

Fiction Writing Prompt

The Fiction Writing Prompt aims to stretch the literary muscles. No rules. No word counts. Simply write and explore.

It was a subtle change, but she could tell the item had been replaced.

Writing Prompt Expanded

Some of us struggle with change. Part of the reason for this is that change brings with it the unknown. When something falls outside what we expect, or what should be, the fear can kick in. Fear of the unknown is debilitating for some. In this prompt, something has changed, but whether fear is the overriding emotion is down to you.

Here are a few questions to get you going:

• What is the item?
• Why is the item of importance?
• What is the subtle change?

Our protagonist knows something has changed, but what and why is down to you. The challenge is to convey the character’s feelings. These can be either positive or negative depending on the context of your fiction. Can your reader relate to the feelings shared by the character? Enjoy the challenge as you improve and change your writing for the better.

Journal prompt

Journaling allows us to hold conversations on paper. From private diaries to creative art journals, we pour out our deepest thoughts. Some of us loathe change, while others thrive on the uncertainty it brings. Writing about changes that happen to us is a way journaling can help. We share how we feel, our fears and our hopes. Later we can look back and see whether those thoughts became reality.

Questions to answer, thoughts to explore or images to create in your journal:

• Do you embrace or fear change, and why?
• Draw a simple shape and change it into a real or imaginary creature?
• Make a list of three, or more, things you would like to change in your life and see if you can find one action to begin that change?

Theory of General Creativity

I now have ‘change’ written on the board above my computer. I am confident it will inspire me on my creative journey this week. Several years ago, I took a selfie every day for several months. It was astonishing to see how much I changed during that short period of time. Photography is a great way to capture change. The snapshots of any process show us how much even the simplest of things change over time. Going back to the original definition above, creativity is so often about altering and modifying. Music, painting, and inventions all rely on change, alteration, and modification.

Let ‘change’ inspire your music, photography, painting and all over creative endeavours this week.

Finally…

As always, these creative prompts are optional and entirely open to your interpretation. Use them as a starting point for a short story, something a little more grandiose, or anything creative. Open the journal and write, paint or draw. Pick up the guitar or ukulele and alter a simple chord pattern you already know.

As mentioned before, this isn’t a ‘challenge’ but the prompts can be used that way if you want. If you do create anything using them, I would love to see or hear about it. Leave a link in the comments below, or tag me #thecreativeminimalist on any social platform. Embrace change, and even if we are uncertain of what might emerge, enjoy as you create.

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Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest