Source: KELLEPICS, Pixabay
It's that time again! Every month the Write Club group starts the month with a fresh writing prompt. We use that prompt to develop short stories over the course of the next 30 days, with support and feedback from our workshop group.
Additionally, we invite others to take part if they choose. In this post you can learn a little about Write Club and decide if you have an interest in participating. If not, you are still welcome to write a story for the prompt. If you would like to share it with us, simply post your short story on Hive or Medium, and share your link in the comments to this post.
What Is Write Club?
We are a small group of serious fiction writers who are committed to writing and polishing stories for publication in mainstream publishing outlets. The goal is to develop and workshop one short story every month, with the goal of preparing it for submission to the publisher of our choice. (And we have resources to help you find one.)
Our writers have a range of fiction writing experience, from workshoppers to MFAs and published writers, who are mastering the craft of fiction writing and want the accountability of a group and deadlines to keep us on track.
Our Monthly Schedule
It goes like this:
- We issue a writing prompt at the beginning of the month.
- In 10 days we write the first draft. Then we read one another's work and provide feedback.
- We have another week to refine our stories. Then we review again.
- By the end of the month, we complete a third draft.
Invitation to Short Story Writers
You are welcome to check us out. You are also welcome to use this process to improve your writing quality overall, and get stories ready to post on Steem, Hive, Medium, Narrative or other self-publishing venue.You can find more information about how to join Write Club in this article on Medium, along with a link to our Discord channel where we converse and manage all of our deadlines and reviews. You can also private message @jayna on Discord for more information.
This month's writing prompt
That brings us to the prompt! For the month of September 2020, Write Club members must write a story based on this prompt: invasion.
Now, we all know this word has many meanings. Your story could involve an invasion of aliens, an invasion of locusts or other creepy critters, an invasion of annoying relatives who have come to town for a wedding, or an invasion of privacy. We will have fun with this one!
Get your engines running
Start thinking about your story's conflict, who is experiencing it, and how they might seek to overcome what they are facing. The more your conscious and sub-conscious brain are working on developing your MC (main character), and defining the scenario that has brought us to the time and place of this story, the sooner your story will take shape.
You could write out some loglines - one-sentence story plots - and then choose the one that resonates the most with you.
Have fun!
What a great topic - seems write up my alley (pun intended). I've never joined in because the whole write/draft thing seems complicated - one too many steps for me - but perhaps I could do it just for fun. Sci fi is a bit of a love of mine.
Yes, it seems complicated maybe. But I enjoy the system. Especially giving and receiving two rounds of feedback on your story from others. It's a nice way to learn more and it has made me a better writer, even though there remains a lot to be practised and learned.
Feel welcome to join our Write Club - in whatever format suits you!
Thanks so much for the encouragement !! I do need to find the extra time..
I haven't experienced it as complicated, but I can understand why it would sound that way! I'm always amazed at how much stories improve in the process. Use the prompt just for fun if that works best for you, @riverflows. 😁
Oh, it's just me - it's because I have so much on the go, I can't ever do anything properly! At least I can admit I have a serious HIVE problem :P
Ha ha ha. There are worse ones to have!
Wow! Yes!! Thank you so much for putting this out here, it is exactly what I was looking for! Going to get into all the details of how to join - sounds amazing!!
Glad you are joining us, @amritadeva!
Yes! Looking forward to participating in another round of Write Club Challenge with you :)
It's such a fun journey! So glad we're navigating it together!
Sounds fun enough! :)
I want to try my hands in this.
Is there a minimum-maximum word count?
No, it’s really up to the writer. Have fun with the prompt!