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4.5: Seventeen Prompts

  • Page ID
    134118
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    “Ten Minute\(^{94}\)” Writing PROMPTS\(^{95}\):

    1. Be bad: Write a bad essay. Attempt writing badly.

    2. Dear “Dead Person.” Write a letter to someone who has passed away.

    3. “Watch Your Language.” What are the words you love, or the phrases you wish would come back in fashion?

    4. Inventory: What are your favorite things? Favorite movies, musicians, stores, foods, etc.

    5. Address your people: “My fellow classmates, …”

    6. Write two sides of one story. Think “he said – she said.”

    7. Speak Your Truth: Give us 5-10 of some of your own unique beliefs.

    8. Dear Abby: Write an essay modeled on an advice column.

    9. Examine Your Past: Find an old note or journal entry (or email message) & analyze it.

    10. Show Them Some Love: Tell us who your friends are and why they are a part of your life.

    11. Blow Your Budget: You’ve come into ten million dollars – How do you spend it? Be specific!

    12. My Family: Write about the members of your family. Describe each person.

    13. New Student Questions: If there was a new student in class and you could only ask that person three questions to get to know them, what would you ask them? WHY?

    14. The Musical You: What is the soundtrack to your life? Tell us what your three favorite songs are right now and why.

    15. Body Parts: If a part of your body (or parts) could talk to you, which part would it be & what would it say?

    16. Take anything you’ve written in the last few months and do a remix = switch out half of the words with their synonyms. How does the piece change?

    17. Write a letter to your younger self. What would you tell yourself at age 10 or 15?


    \(^{94}\)Your instructor may decide that these will extend beyond “10-minute prompts” into a full-blown project.

    \(^{95}\)I found these so very long ago, and if anyone knows who created the list, please shoot me their name so I can give them credit.


    This page titled 4.5: Seventeen Prompts is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Sybil Priebe (Independent Published) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.