June 18, 2014. Prompt #48 I’ve been reading the intriguing memoir How I Became Hettie Jones. A poet, story-writer, and the first wife of Amiri Baraka, Hettie Jones offers fresh, non-glorifying insights of her Bohemian years in New York City as part of the male-dominated Beat Generation. The book’s sections have titles such as Morton Street,Continue reading “Streets and Neighborhoods”
Author Archives: Ellen Orleans
By The Sea
June 17, 2014. Prompt #47 I’ve been steadily editing a novel of mine that takes place at a beach. Even while I am typing away here in landlocked Colorado, much of my brain has relocated to a Jersey Shore beach town circa 1993. For today’s prompt, therefore, we’ll work with words associated with oceans, bays,Continue reading “By The Sea”
Self Reflection
June 14, 2014. Prompt #45 Recently, my good friend Lori visited Chicago’s famous “Cloud Gate” sculpture, affectionately known as “The Bean” by locals. Designed by Anish Kapoor, this bulging, looming, delightful public artwork reflects on levels. Its mirror finish reflects the buildings, plaza, and sky around it. It reflects the crowds of people looking at it.Continue reading “Self Reflection”
Sunday Shape Up: Oval
June 22, 2014 Prompt #51 For this week’s Sunday Shape-Up, we will carefully press a circle into an oval and give it a spin. Instructions Quick Tip: The word oval originates from the Latin ov or egg. Hence, oval means egg-shaped. For five minutes, jot down phrases and images that come to mind when youContinue reading “Sunday Shape Up: Oval”
Run Away
June 14, 2014. Prompt #45 Write about running away. Instructions Write about an actual act or a symbolic one. Write a true story, a fantasy, or a fictional account. Consider how running away might vary for a child, teenager, or adult. Further Writing Write a list of 6 things that you (orContinue reading “Run Away”
Thirteen
June 13, 2014. Prompt #44 In honor of Friday the 13th, here’s a lucky writing prompt. Instructions Write about a superstition that you believe in, don’t believe in, or are on the fence about. Write for 13 minutes. Further Writing Make up a superstition. Give it history or cultural background. Write convincingly why weContinue reading “Thirteen”
De-Construction
June 12, 2014. Prompt #43 Walking with friends along Pearl Street tonight, we came across the demolition of the Daily Camera building, a structure that housed our local newspaper for decades. (It moved east of downtown several years ago.) For today’s prompt (somewhat the philosophical opposite of yesterday’s prompt) we’llContinue reading “De-Construction”
Plant
June 11, 2014. Prompt #42 For the last six weeks I’ve been working on my flower bed, vegetable garden, and planters. Spring gardening is annual ritual that is sometimes hectic as I work to get soil turned and amended, seeds and seedlings planted, and everything watered in between bouts of rain and sometimes snow. Mostly,Continue reading “Plant”
Champs Elysees
June 10, 2014. Prompt #41 When I left work tonight, I came across a group of folk dancers in the plaza next to my office. They were learning the “Champs Elysees” line dance. The old-school music, the French lyrics, and the dusky setting combined for an unexpected summer moments: a mix of happiness and wistfulness,Continue reading “Champs Elysees”
Breaking News
June 9, 2014. Prompt #40 I just finished binge watching marathon viewing four seasons of Downtown Abbey. The very first episode opens with a close-up of a telegraph in motion, complete with taps and beeps as the operator sends a message. The telegraph not only grounds the story in history (in this case, 1912) butContinue reading “Breaking News”
Ellen Orleans 