Category Archives: Weekly Writing Prompt

Weekly Writing Prompt — March 12, 2012 Edition

March 7, 2012Weekly Writing PromptShadow Artist, Word Jazz, writer's cafe, Writing Zencasz

Good day all!

I hope this finds you digging deep into your creativity and producing lots of stories, art, experimental dishes, whatever!

Speaking of experimental dishes, today’s prompt talks about paying attention to our shadow artist. You know the things you do instead of writing or creating? For me, it’s cooking and baking. Do you know what your shadow artist is? If not, sit down and think about it. Meditate or do some stream-of-consciousness writing to figure it out. Chances are you already know what it is. I’m not talking about the laundry or chasing kids or cutting the lawn or poking around the internet. I’m talking about what you do when you’ve got the time to just create. What do you do to fulfill that need inside of you to create? What is the one thing you find yourself doing instead of writing?

Really examine it. Figure it out. Then write a story where that is the enemy. It may be a very silly story — can you imagine a life where cooking was like a drug addiction? Yes, that’s what I mean. You or your character have to avoid that particular activity on threat of jail or death or …whatever awful thing you can inflict upon the shadow artist.

Then reward yourself for writing and go play in your shadow art.

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Those that are participating in Word Jazz & the V3 Journal need to get your bios and photos to Sheri Kennedy (on the to line), today. Just something simple — two or three sentences max — and an author head-and-shoulders shot. Remember, rehearsals start March 13 at 6:30 at Carriage House and every Tuesday following that with an all-hands dress rehearsal on April 3rd. Word Jazz is April 10th at Boxley’s at 7 p.m. Make your reservations now.

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Reminders:

DayTrippers on Fridays continues it’s travelling from place to place and this week will be at the Fall City Road House in Fall City this Friday. 9:30 a.m. until about Noon-30.

Monday Midday Muse will once again commence at 11 a.m. at Toad’s in North Bend.

Tuesday (March 12), Writer’s Cafe is being taken over for Word Jazz rehearsal.

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And now your moment of Writing Zen:

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” ~Anais Nin
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What did you Write today?
~Casz

Casondra Brewster
Moderator/Founder
Sno Valley Writes!
Helping Writers Reach New Literary Peaks Since 2008
http://www.snovalleywrites.org
Check us out on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SnoValleyWrites

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — February 29, 2012 Edition (In a time warp)

March 1, 2012Weekly Writing Promptreminders, SnoValley Writes!, time travel, writer's cafe, writers salon, writingcasz

Yes, we’re a day late. My apologies, I’ve been in a time-warp of sorts. I kept thinking it was Tuesday yesterday, even though my calendar and reminders clearly said it was Wednesday.

So, that’s your prompt. It’s a trope — but its a fun trope. Write a story that has some sort of time or time travel element in it.

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I’m writing this on the fly because I’m already late for the start of a day due to some tech emergencies. So please forgive the abruptness of this.

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REMINDERS:

1. Everyone participating in Word Jazz needs to have their final copy and images (which you own or have permission to use and we won’t have any copyright issues with…) to SHERI KENNEDY. Do not send them to me. Please send them to Sheri. She is on the “to” line here for convenience.

2. Tonight is the Open Mic at Black Dog. If you want some reading experience, or at minimum want to see how others do it, I encourage you to attend. They start sign ups at 6:30 p.m. and the open-mic starts at 7 p.m. My son plans to debut his “comedic writing” tonight as well; it would be great if you came out and supported him, at minimum.

3. Friday is Day Trippers Write In, currently being held at Country Pride restaurant at Truck Town (north of exit 34 off I-90). 9:30 a.m. until 12 p.m. Hope to see you there.

4. Monday Midday Muse at Toads. Another write in from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

5. Our very own Writer’s Cafe (bring your own snacks and drinks) at Carriage Insurance House at 3rd and Bendigo in North Bend. 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

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Still looking for suggestions for local literary figures to invite to our upcoming literary salons.

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And now your moment of Writing Zen:

“In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” ~Albert Einstein

—
What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — February 22, 2012 Edition

February 22, 2012Weekly Writing Promptcasz

I hope you’re all staying dry during this rainy mid-winter break. More importantly, I hope you’re writing.

First off, there is no field trip tonight to The Black Dog. If you missed that message over the weekend — tonight’s open mic is musicians only. We’re looking to go for their “spoken word” night, and I’ll ferret out more details on that later. So look for that information later in the week or by next Wednesday. Every writer will have to read at some point in their life (as witnessed by myself this past weekend) — so it’s good practice. Why not do it when there are so many friendly faces and supportive souls in the audience? However if you like supporting local musicians, go tonight all the same and be a happy ear and joyous applause maker for those brave enough to take the stage.

This weeks’ prompt comes from one of the founding tactics in Julia Cameron’s book “The Artist’s Way.” It’s called morning pages. What are morning pages? This is what Ms. Cameron says,

“Put simply, the morning pages are three pages of longhand writing, strictly stream-of-conscousness: ‘Oh, god, another morning. I have nothing to say. I need to wash the curtains….’ They might also, more ingloriously, be called brain drain, since that is one of their main functions. There is no wrong way to do morning pages. These daily morning meanderings are not meant to be art. Or even writing…Writing is simply one of the tools. Pages are meant to be, simply, the act of moving the hand across the page and writing down whatever comes to mind. Nothing is too petty, too silly, too stupid, or too weird to be included. The morning pages are not supposed to sound smart — although sometimes they might.”

I want you to try to attempt doing morning pages every day for the next three weeks. One of our members keeps a notebook in her bathroom, so she can do them without interruption by spouse or child. You can find a method that works for you. I start the fires of the household in the morning, then I do my pages. Again, you can find something that works for you. Maybe do it before your feet even hit the floor. Do remember these morning pages, this journal, is not shared by you — nor should you review the pages until the end of the three weeks. If you have more questions about the morning pages, feel free to message me back with what they are. Or you could pick up a copy of The Artist’s Way and check it out yourself.

Also, for those who want some more tips about writing, I wholeheartedly endorse that you follow Chuck Wendig’s blog. Be advised his potty mouth makes me look like a saint. I’ve told you before it’s as if he has some sort of Writer’s version of Tourettes; but, he’s dead bang-on right about his advice. So read it here (at your own risk) and digest. And then go finish some morning pages.

Now your moment of Writing Zen:

“Real learning comes about when the competitive spirit has ceased.” ~J. Krishnamurti

—
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What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — February 15, 2012 Edition

February 15, 2012Weekly Writing Promptcasz

Writers:

I woke up ready to kill this morning. Kill one of my darlings, that is. Before you alert the authorities, I mean on the page. That’s what today’s prompt is about, too. Is killing your darlings. Either a character, too many words, the story in the wrong order, or starting from the wrong spot. People have to care about their story; they have to be transported in and stay in. If no conflict happens, if nothing changes on the outside, if no one grows on the inside, if you miss details — your reader pops out of the world you (hopefully) transported them into and they become disappointed, upset and angry. They stop reading (or listening, as the case may be).

So that’s your assignment. Edit. Rework. Kill off a character (probably easiest task of this list), kill those too many words, hack and cut and rearrange. Make it right.

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Again, I invite you all to attend my first public reading on Sunday, Feb. 19th, at 2 p.m. at the University Book Store. I’ll be reading from “Edom The Treasure Keeper,” which is apart of AT SECOND GLANCE, a short story anthology. This is the book launch and you’ll get to listen to a couple of the other writers as well. I hope many of you can make it. It would be nice to see some friendly faces in the audience. If you do plan to attend, I would say leave :15 earlier than what you think you need to and carpool as parking near the University Book Store can be a bit tricky some days.

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Don’t forget to let folks know about our Writing Contest and the accompanying Word Jazz. Attached are electronic flyers. You may also send them to our Web site for more information.

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And finally a note from one of our original members who has had her other “art” take off for her. I agreed to share this with all of you. On March 3rd I’ll be tied up with kid activities and freelance activities, but I highly encourage many of the rest of you to go and celebrate with Kora for her artistic successes. Make it a group field trip, artist date, etc.

Hi Casz!

Wow, it’s been so long! I hope everything is going well with the writers’ group! I still get all of the emails, and while I’m definitely very silent, I do follow along and keep up with everyone’s achievements.

I wanted to give you (and, if you could forward it out to the whole group, everyone) a chance to know what I’ve been up to these last couple of years and why I’ve disappeared from the writing scene recently. Essentially, Simeon’s and my dance career has really taken off. We are the Bulgarian National Champions and are World Semi-Finalists (that means top 12; technically we’re placed 9^th). We are travelling constantly. Just this spring we will be going to Moscow, Bulgaria, and England twice, all in three months! Our schedules have gotten so hectic that I’ve had no choice but to put my writing on the side for now.

That said, one very exciting development is that Simeon and I are opening our own dance studio in Redmond. It’s called Aria Ballroom and we’re having an Open House on Saturday, March 3^rd, starting at 6:00pm and a free party beginning at 8:00pm. A number of members of SnoValley Writes had come to previous showcases of ours held in Bellevue. I thought maybe those who know and remember me would like to come on out. I would really love to see everyone and catch up if so. Anyway, thought I’d let you know what I’ve been up to.

Hope your writing is going well! It sounds like the group is still alive and kicking! I think it’s great! Someday, I hope I’ll be able to get back into writing a bit more. I do miss it. Please say hello to the group for me at your next work session!

Much love,

Kora

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And now your moment of Writing Zen:

“No matter how slow the film, Spirit always stands still long enough for the photographer It has chosen.” ~Minor White

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Hope to see you at one of the Write-Ins this week!
—
What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — February 7, 2012 Edition

February 8, 2012Weekly Writing Promptcasz

Writers:

GREETINGS: I hope this finds you all healthy and enjoying life. Personally, I’m celebrating that the winds are calm today.

WORD JAZZ: You all have one week to get in your submissions for Word Jazz. Deadline is Feb. 14 at midnight. Just email them to this address. I have six submissions thus far. We need at least three more. This is your time to say, “Hey, I’m a writer!” and mean it. Make it a priority. In Your Life. At least through now until April 10. You may just make it a habit, you never know.

SNOVALLEY WRITES! 2012 WRITING CONTEST: Submissions are coming in! Thanks for advertising this on your blogs, facebooks, via email, and of course, word of mouth. Please continue to do so. Deadline is March 3. Details can be found on our contest page on our website.

WRITING WORK SESSION: Our Regular Writing Work Session is this Sunday, Feb. 12 at 3 p.m. in the North Bend Library. Please RSVP if you plan to attend. Bring your lappie, notebook and pen, and a calendar (either electronic or old-school date book).

WRITING OPPORTUNITIES: The 2012 Emerald City Writer’s Conference in October, which is sponsored by the Greater Seattle Romance Writers Association. Attached is information on their contest as well as the conference. I urge you to take advantage of this. Many of you have been published locally, now it’s time to reach for regionally.

TAKE TIME OUT TO WRITE: Don’t forget our writing meet ups — three times a week in various valley locales. Meet your fellow SnoValley Writes! members and get real-time critique, feed back and inspiration!

FRIDAY: 9:30 A.M. TO NOONISH – BLACK DOG – SNOQUALMIE

MONDAY: 11 A.M. TO 1 P.M. — TOADS — NORTH BEND

TUESDAY: 6:30 P.M. TO 9: 30 P.M. — CARRIAGE HOUSE — NORTH BEND

WRITING ZEN: “The job of the artists is always to deepen the mystery.” ~Francis Bacon.

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What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — February 1, 2012 Edition

February 1, 2012Weekly Writing Promptcasz

364 Days out of the Year the Ground Hog is Irrelevant.

That’s your prompt today. Flash fiction. No more than 1,000 words.

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13 Days until the deadline for submission for Word Jazz.

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Don’t forget that we have a writing competition going on. Tell everyone.

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And now your moment of Writing Zen:

What do Literary Agents want?

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What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — January 25, 2012 Edition

January 25, 2012Weekly Writing Promptcasz

It’s deadline time folks! Have you put together a piece to proffer for Word Jazz and our Third Edition of our journal, Views, Voices and Verses? If you’re not in Word Jazz; you’re not in V3: Three is the Magic Number. Here’s the prompt again:

All pieces should be produced from the themed prompt: Include any three of these words (we challenge you to get all of them, but no special prize for using them all): Three, Magic, Number, Valley, Anniversary, Coffee, Friends, Ashes, Determination, or Quest. Any genre. Short Story, Poem, Creative Non-Fiction, Essay or even one-act play! Go for it!

Manuscripts of no more than 1,500 words. Deadline is February 14, 2012. Email in manuscript format to snovalleywrites@gmail.com for consideration.

Also, for non-members, our 2012 Writing Contest is open. See details here: http://www.snovalleywrites.org/?page_id=265

That’s the prompt folks. Write your Word Jazz entry; promote our writing contest.

Fairly simple, eh?

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Other news:

1) If you have pieces from former weekly prompts that you feel are ready to share with the world, we’re going to begin posting those pieces on our website. Just send your piece (manuscript format please) via email and once a week we’ll feature a piece based on our prompts. So turn that homework in!

2) We are looking at following Word Jazz, to begin hosting a once-a-quarter literary salon. So I’m looking for suggestions of local authors, publishers, agents, etc. that you would like to see appear at these salons to discuss writing life themes and topics. Don’t know what a salon is? Check this video out: The Shoreditch House Literary Salon . It would be for active members only, since there will be a limited amount of seats. The first date/seats will be offered in an upcoming Regular Work Session (our Sunday meetings at the library). So if you’re not there, you won’t know. Then it will be offered to the larger virtual group, likely within a very short time frame of the event, if at all. Have questions, please feel free to ask.

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And now your moment of Writing Zen:

A video edition: Neil Gaiman on Writing Elves and Getting a Job.

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What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — January 12, 2012 Edition

January 12, 2012Weekly Writing Promptcasz

Writers:

My apologies for the delay in this Email. A boxing match between comcast and my household occurred this week, making internet access an issue. And since my weekly notes on what to share with you were caught up in the cloud…I was a kept getting this to you sooner.

I must revert to numbering the items this week to be sure that I don’t miss a news item for you.

1. Board meeting was rescheduled to Jan. 17th at 5:15 p.m. at Carriage Insurance. Feel free to attend: topics of conversation = writing contest, word jazz, annual journal

2. Don’t forget Friday’s Day Trippers will now appear at the Black Dog in Snoqualmie. Same time (9:30 a.m. until noonish), just a different location. We have another writing gathering at Toad’s in North Bend. So don’t worry we won’t stop supporting them. Come to Monday Midday Muse at Toad’s beginning at 11 a.m. until about 1 p.m. Hope to see you there.

3. PNWA contest and ABNA are upcoming. Get involved. There is also a ton of other contests, grants and fellowships available. Keep writing and Send It Out!

4. Need to know who plans are participating in Word Jazz (and thereby our annual journal). Please send me a message. Remember the writing prompt for both is: We’re looking for at least three of these words to be in the prose or poem that you submit as members of SnoValley Writes!: Three, Magic, Number, Valley, Anniversary, Coffee, Friends, Ashes, Determination, or Quest. There are no bonus points if you get all the words. But, feel free to challenge yourself. No more than 1500 words. Any genre. Short Story, Poem, Essay or even one-act play! Go for it!

5. There should be a number five, yes? Things must be evenly bundled. Ha! Nothing is ever neat and clean entirely. Just the best we can humanly do. Which leads me to your prompt for the day: “Don’t write for fifteen minutes — talk for fifteen minutes. Into a recorder (most phones come with them nowadays). Don’t just ramble: endeavor to tell a story. It can be a story you already know or one you invent on the spot.” (This prompt brought to you by the fabulous author, Chuck Wendig and his book “500 Ways to Be a Better Writer.” You can find him at terribleminds.com Note: He has writer’s turrets…you’ve been warned.)

6. Now your Writing Zen for the Day:

“The world of reality has its limits; the world of imagination is boundless.” ~Jean-Jacques Rousseau

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What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — January 4, 2012 Edition

January 4, 2012Weekly Writing Promptboard meeting, day trippers, weekly writing prompt, Word Jazz, writer's cafe, writing contestcasz

Happy New Year Writers!

What are your New Year’s Resolutions for your Writing?

Me? I’m trying to get back to basics and meet my personal word count five days a week.

A quick note before I forget, I’ll be forwarding you all another email under separate cover regarding another contest and conference. So be sure to look for that.

Busy week coming up in the SnoValley Writes! World.

Friday (1/5) — Day Trippers, 9:30 a.m., Toad’s Coffee House in North Bend — write, consume caffeine and get literary energy.

Sunday (1/8) — Regular Work Session, 3 p.m., North Bend Library Meeting Room (be sure to RSVP, so I can plan accordingly. Topic = Revision Tips & Tactics — so bring a project to ‘revise’)

Tuesday (1/10) — Writer’s Cafe, 6:30 p.m., Carriage House — Tea there to share, or bring your own coffee/soda/snacks. Write, Share, Get Inspired

Wednesday (1/11) — SnoValley Writes! Board Meeting, 7:30 p.m., Carriage House, All invited to attend (Word Jazz, Writing Contest, Next Journal — all up for discussion)

Again, I can’t stress enough how much RSVP’ing for the work sessions help. Lesson plans are tailored for number of authors attending. So, please do shoot me a quick Email to confirm your attendance.

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Today’s prompt has to do with self-improvement.

Tell me a story about you or your protagonist when a goal for self-improvement (losing weight, not being so angry, being more assertive, etc.) has gone horribly wrong. Develop your character through the trials and tribulations of trying to get better and having a different lesson entirely presented to her/him. Losing weight makes them lose their friends because they become obsessed with unreasonable eating and exercise, perhaps? They try to curb their quick temper and learn that they’ve gone to the point of letting people just walk all over them. Torture them through their imperfect humanity. Give your reader a real honest-to-goodness lesson on the intricate balances of life.

Bring this story with you on Sunday — or some other project to work on revision.

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And now your moment of Writing Zen:

“We learn to do something by doing it. There is no other way.” — John Holt, Educator

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What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron

Weekly Writing Prompt — The last for the year 2011 (Dec. 14, 2011 Edition)

December 14, 2011Weekly Writing PromptFinishing Stories, Glimmer Train, Hugo House, Views Voices & Verses, Word Jazzcasz

Holiday Greetings to all you literary types!

Here’s hoping you get lots of books, writing tech gadgets, hugs and support from your friends and family, with a promise to yourself that you will make your writing a priority for 2012.

First point of business, the board meeting for tonight has been cancelled. Work and illness make it a necessity to look towards January for the next. I’ll remind you closer to the time.

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Vicky Bastedo has stepped up to be the project manager for Word Jazz. She will be interfacing with Boxley’s to find out the date of when we’ll be having it. In the meantime you need to be writing on the theme. For those that missed it: here’s the theme:

We’re looking for at least three of these words to be in the prose or poem that you submit as members of SnoValley Writes!: Three, Magic, Number, Valley, Anniversary, Coffee, Friends, Ashes, Determination, or Quest. There are no bonus points if you get all the words. But, feel free to challenge yourself.

That will also be the prompt for our writing contest, for which we still need a project manager. This person should be able to interface with many of the other organizations in the valley, including the schools and businesses. I will help that person, but the organization needs them to take the helm.

We will be putting out another journal, too, with this. The above theme will be inclusive in that as well. So if you want a piece considered for publication — please put it in there. Deadline will likely be in February, so you dont’ have much time! More details to come.

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Hugo House and Glimmer Train have deadlines coming up. Google them for all the details. Get your work out there. There are several of us trying for the Hugo House one, so let us know if you’re going to enter the “end of the line” theme, and we’ll all save some postage and do a “carpool” packet run.

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Don’t know what to write for any of the above? Well here’s a start of a story I came across when trying to determine which stories I’d be sending out this month. It didn’t have a title, and I had only a vague memory of writing it — but I was obviously interrupted. Feel free to use this to jump off for your own story. Bonus points if you include any of the words from the writing contest/word jazz theme. If you are aiming to have it part of the journal or Word Jazz, be sure to keep it to 1500 words:

“He just sat there looking at her, poking the toast point in and out of the fried egg, making a slooshing and sucking noise with the egg yolk. He laughed inside his head. She looked terrified.”

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And now your moment of Writing Zen:

“A discovery is said to be an accident meeting a prepared mind.” ~Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

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—
What did you Write today?
~Casz

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think.” ~ Lord Byron