The Twenty Eight Minute-5 Minute Freewrite: I Fear The Prompt Has Gone Missing~ Original Everything ~

in #promptisapromptisaprompt6 years ago (edited)

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~Sometimes, You Just Gotta Finish The Story~



Today's Prompt: I'm Not Really Sure




I thought about writing a free write tonight. So I went through the standard procedure, and looked up the word prompt on the Five Minute Free-write post on Steemit. And go figure. It appears that someone left the dictionary closed today, and forgot to provide us with a word.

Evidently, there IS no prompt. Just the word “Prompt”, with a big old blank space following close on its heels (after a slight, repeated hiccup on the keyboard). Nothing but white spaces, and a few more words following a short distance beyond, that do not really relate. Where IS our word? I'm flummoxed. How am I supposed to write about something, be it of wit or of serious nature, if I have no clue what that something is supposed to be ABOUT?

For one who partakes in the written word every now and then, and to be at least somewhat creative, he or she needs some sort of trigger. A starting point. An intellectual instigator. It can be a single phrase, or at the very least, a simple group of letters cleverly disguised as a word, to jump-start this whole mental state of things.

Even old Model-T cars had a crank sticking out of the front, somewhere under the radiator, to give them a good start. A swift, elbow breaking 'twank of the crank' -- to burst them into action on a cold morning in far-off Detroit. And, much like an early byway motorist, sans his precious service station road map, I feel totally LOST, without my literary crank. That ever simple, ever satisfying, ever present, yet OH so important, word prompt.

I'd even go so far as to call this feeling 'dead in the water', literar-ily (?) speaking, if that metaphor was even close to appropriate. But we're comparatively discussing an old-fashioned, four wheel, land-based conveyance here as our subject, rather than some sort of waterborne craft. Yes, I feel completely lost, and alone, without my creative jump-start of a word.

I know what you are all thinking. "Just start writing", followed by "and expect something to magically translate from fingertip to written page, then take on some semblance of interesting form out in the cyber world." But to this I say: IXNAY on the ITINGWRAY. I need a word. The beginning of an idea. At the very least, a consonant and vowel laden IMPETUS. Even something amazingly simple from the dictionary would do. Such as foghorn or crevasse or maybe even a standard phrase, like bad hamster dreams. Something, ANYTHING, to make sense of it all. I'm not asking for the entire planet on a platter, only a simple word. To latch onto, and go. Not UN-like a fat, hoary marmot, glomming onto a lost, raggedy boot in a high mountain meadow of the Olympics. A quick and dirty, seat-of-the-literary-pants kick start, into the world of creative, blue screen word-splashing.

But alas, it appears there is no prompt provided for today. Just a typo, then a blank space on the screen where [Place Appropriate Word Here] should be sitting. A singular word idea to rally around, and get us, and it, all started.

So…I shall not write about anything tonight, and move on into the late evening as it may come. And when the sun does arise once more, I will take another peek into this world of the prompt, to see if a word appears that might pique my interest of writing. Maybe I'll get lucky on this day, and there will be some grand word(ing) of prompt. We can always hope. Maybe it shall be something quite elegant to ponder forth to the written page. Or, if not, a single, very simple word. To finally get this whole writing thing jump started in the right direction. I can just about see it now:

Prompt: "Write.”

~Finto~

Five Minute Freewrite Post by @mariannewest: Five Minute Free Write



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Thanks for stopping in and viewing the Twenty Eight Minute-5 Minute Freewrite story about not having a thing to write about. If you have any thoughts about writing, word prompts, the missing of word prompts, large, buck-toothed mountainous rodents that live under the ground and find things that aught not be in a meadow, or anything else this post reminds you of, please feel free to comment away in the spaces below. I'd love to hear from you.





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And go to @ddschteinn -- There's a whole lot more...

Posted: 01/17/2018 2019! @ 00:58



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Excerpts From Late-Night Conversations With A Mechanical Cat

Fact Number 113

Stinky the Cat Classics
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@ddschteinn You have received a 100% upvote from @intro.bot because this post did not use any bidbots and you have not used bidbots in the last 30 days!

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well if you look on the bright side, or the glass half full side, you may have saved yourself some time. You see if no word took 28 minutes, I would hate to see what a full word would take...could be close to an hour! Then for bid it was a phrase, you might be up half that night for that one lol!!

Of course it could have broke the other way as well. Just perhaps you may have been inspired to write the next big seller. Oh my, let's not go down that road! Let's just go with the time was saved and all is well with the universe, ok?

No DD, no. The word was prompt! ahahah

Oh, you are such a stickler! :))

You so crack me up!! I think to have the word prompt for the prompt caused lots of wonderful story confusion!! Love yours LOL

Thanks, glad you enjoyed my creativity at a bit of your expense. Very creative idea you had to start us off with. Thanks again for putting all of this 'out there' for us. Often spurs on a spark of SOMETHING. ( :

You are so welcome :)

You are very good writer. Even though, “the prompt” has gone missing and you said, you have nothing to write about in “Freewrite story”, you still have “something” to write in this article. I think, this is considered as a lengthy article…. And I took more than 5 minutes in reading it. Really great! I always admire you on this! ;)

Oh my gosh! I Can Only Imagine what stinky was thinking when you changed the subject. I'm pretty sure he was still focused on the answer that never came.

I am so proud of you taking up the freewrite! I am pretty sure that Marianne probably thinks I'm avoiding the five minute write, but the truth is that I am sure that it would take me more than 5 minutes to get a thot down. That and life keeps me too busy at the moment. I've been saying that for a year now. One of these days I may surprise her.

Evidently, there is no prompt. There is no word. You are just supposed to open up that brilliant mind of yours and let it flow. You could even find another Christmas letter. As far as I am concerned you will never be dead in the water and yes! Just start writing! You don't need a word. And I cannot believe that you wrote about nothing! You! Of all people! I cannot believe that you would run out of words

The Shirley gave me a morning giggle and then to go on to the excerpts from the late night conversations with the mechanical cat and it had me downright rolling on the floor. I do love those little cat facts and I am glad that stinky had such a high opinion of him. LOL

Well I hope that you have a great day and let's go back over tonight and do that little prompt again. That was fun!

!tip

Stinky the Cat never let me get away with a thing. Smartest cat I've ever met. I do miss her a lot. Though she came by the name as honestly as any feline I've known. I will keep her story alive on here, whenever possible.
Did you ever do many of these freewrites? They are a lot of fun. I've done a few, true 5 minute-er's, but mostly I spend more time on them. That's why I made my own category for it, the Twenty eight minute, 5 Minute Freewrite. I cheat, and edit, and spend more time, so don't like to claim it as what it is not. Not fair to folks that actually know how to follow rules. Though it is also nice @mariannewest and others don't seem to mind me venturing out on my own tree branch. But it sure is true, one word certainly can trigger a whole mountainside on major gravitational pull on the page, that's for sure. That's why I like it. One prompt and now and then, off it goes. If you haven't done these, you should. They are a great exercise in conciseness, which some of us can use all the help we can muster up on that one. That five minutes really goes FAST!!!! But gets the creative juices flowing.

So glad I gave you some more giggles. Cat facts has been the simple gift that just keeps on giving. I do wish he hadn't quite. Made some people mad, I guess. Sigh. There goes my inspiration! Thanks for the kind words, and the tip. I really appreciate it. I enjoy so much more the appreciation after a post, than the big bucks on here. (Though I certainly wouldn't throw that out with the cracker crumbs, if it came my way...) But people actually maybe reading things makes it so much more worthwhile to sit in a chair and write for hours. I used to stay up all hours of the night for entertainment, doing it and stuffing them in the computer cobweb zone. Now some actually go out to the world at large. Kind of an amazing thought. And SO much fun. (And I DO run out of words now and then. At least those of coherancy, or however it's spelled). I did just finish today's freewrite, but need to tweak it a bit...up to the 56 minute mark ( :

Well, hope your day is shaping up to be a grand one. Though I think it's about over by now out yonder. Is it cold yet? Dumb question, I know, since your last post had more snow than Santa's lair. Well, hope it's a good, warm night. Cheers

Oh truth! It's colder than witches you know what, although it should warm up to almost 50° in a little while. Well, I just checked and it is 43 degrees so, I guess the morning Frost has worn off. We got a little snow last night in the form of flurries but it still made me have to clean out the car before I jumped in it this morning. It's almost time to go home and start chipping away at Market Friday. You know how fun that can be!

Believe it or not, I adore Marianne West and I cannot believe that I have not participated in the writing yet. Shameful, I know. Especially because she comes over and participates in Market Friday when she can. I just run out of time or I'm just slow. I'd like to think that I'm so busy I don't have time but the truth is, I think I'm just slow. It takes me forever sometimes to put a post together and it's not even that it's so amazing that you understand why. It's one of those oh my God I could have thrown this together in 2 seconds. Perhaps three but definitely no more than five. I need to get my act together.

I for one I think it's hilarious that you spend 28 minutes on a five-minute write but that is half of your charm. Marching to your own drummer. You just keep on writing and I'll just keep on reading.

And now it's time for me to bid farewell and hope that you have a most wonderful day. Don't take any wooden nickels. I can remember my grandfather saying that every time I would leave his house. Oh, my God I'm turning into my grandfather! Most people would turn into their grandmother but, not me. I have to go for the unusual. I think I'll be a man today.

!tip

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🎁 Hi @ddschteinn! You have received 0.1 STEEM tip from @dswigle!

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For not having a prompt, you did a fine job. 😁

I'm here to shoot you today's prompt 🔫
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https://steemit.com/freewrite/@mariannewest/day-454-5-minute-freewrite-thursday-prompt-stem

Thanks, these things can be confusing. And onward to the new prompt...off to do some writing. Cheers.

Dear Self: This post was written in 2019, NOT 2018... ...!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I Yi Yiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Never noticed how those are mirror images of one another. Isn't life pretty much amazing.)

NOTE TO SELF TWO: I was able to edit it, SOMEHOW, so it is now right (with a cross-out above for humor effect)

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