Prompts

Poppy's Prompts #13 | Results
Thank you so much to everyone who took part in and supported Poppy's Prompts #13! If you missed it, you can check it out here.
By Poppy 5 months ago in Writers
Trusting Your Gut in Writing Competitions
When entering writing competitions, your gut often knows the story better than you do. That's been my experience taking part in a few competitions outside of Vocal - and it's a lesson worth sharing.
By Paul Stewart5 months ago in Writers
One Bully I Encountered At An Early Age
Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter — What if? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers prompts — The Exercise: First, think about your childhood between the ages of six and twelve and try to recall someone whose memory, even now, has the power to invoke strong, often negative feelings in you. Was that person the class bully, the clown, the daredevil, the town snob, the neighborhood bore, etc? Write down details of what you remember about this person. How she looked and talked. Did you ever have any encounters with this person? Or did you just observe her from a distance? Next, if you haven't seen this person for ten years or longer, imagine what she is doing now, where she lives, etc. Be specific. If you had a long acquaintance with this person, or still know her, imagine where she will be ten years from now. The Objective: To understand how our past is material for our imaginations and how writing well can be the best revenge.
By Denise E Lindquist5 months ago in Writers
Dialogue Tags: Said Is Not Dead
“Good dialogue is invisible; bad dialogue waves its arms and screams.” Let’s talk about one of the most hotly debated topics in writing communities, especially if you hang around TikTok or writers’ forums: dialogue tags. You’ve seen it, right? The endless discourse about whether we’re allowed to use anything other than said. Spoiler: you are. But also… you don’t have to.
By Georgia5 months ago in Writers
How to Write Believable Villains in Fantasy
“Villains are just heroes of another story — with sharper knives and messier coping mechanisms.” Let’s face it: a boring villain is a fast track to a forgettable fantasy. You can have lush worldbuilding, lyrical prose, and swoony romantic tension — but if your villain is nothing more than a cardboard cutout cackling in a dark tower, your story loses its punch.
By Georgia5 months ago in Writers
The Parking Lot
I never even wanted it, ya know? You knew. I wanted space. I wanted quiet. But you snuck in I let you. I wanted space but somehow
By Amie Bea5 months ago in Writers
What Writers Can Learn from “Charmed”
What could a show about three sister witches using their magic to fight evil teach me about writing? As a professional writer who leisurely re-watches Charmed, I've noticed that the show employs interesting and inspiring writing techniques.
By Michala 5 months ago in Writers
Putting Your Heart On The Page
Author's Note: May trigger memories for others of previous childhood abuse. Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter — What if? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers prompts — The Exercise: Make a notebook entry on an early childhood event that made you cry or terrified you, or that made you weak with shame or triumpant with revenge. Then write a story about that event. Take us back to those traumatic times, relive them for us through your story in such a way so as to make your experience ours. The Objective: To learn to identify events in your life that are still capable of making you laugh and cry. If you can capture these emotions and put them on paper, chances are you will also make readers laugh and cry as well.
By Denise E Lindquist5 months ago in Writers
Creating Magic Systems:
“Magic, like any good lie, needs a little logic to make it believable.” Magic is the heartbeat of fantasy. It’s the sparkle in the air, the impossible made real. But as any fantasy writer will tell you, magic isn’t just about flashy spells and enchanted swords. It’s about rules. Or the lack of them. Or… something in between.
By Georgia5 months ago in Writers
Measuring Value
You are an employee that goes beyond the "craft to execution" and "problem-solving to initiative". You bring strategic impact along with your market vision that directly influences that company's bottom line. But your rank and net pay in the hands of your employer does not change. Not because you are not valuable to them but because they can not afford your services at the market rate nor can they re-design the upper echelon to accommodate your growth and talents without causing "waves". If you give far too much for the same old, you are the majority of the talent stuck within dormant companies that have no systems of recognition of talent based on merit.
By Narghiza Ergashova5 months ago in Writers
A Glimmer in the Gaslight. Top Story - August 2025.
This is a writing exercise and was entirely inspired by a recent Top Story from the wonderful Vocal creator Lana Lynx. Lana's story stemmed from her wondering what it would be like if dead authors, particularly dead Russian authors, posted their story ideas and WIPs on Facebook. Please check out the truly amazing and amusing results.
By Raymond G. Taylor5 months ago in Writers
Dear London
I don't like to admit it but I'm past my festival going age, I think. Too many smells, too little comfort. However, I do still like to watch Glastonbury on the TV from the comfort of my sofa and I was intrigued by a feature that I saw called "Letters Live" where celebrities read out letters by famous people and others to an audience.
By Rachel Deeming5 months ago in Writers