7/18/21

2021 Writing Exercise Series #199: First Line Bonanza 17

The 2021 Writing Series is a series of daily writing exercises for both prose writers and poets to keep their creative mind stretched and ready to go—fresh for your other writing endeavors. The writing prompts take the impetus—that initial crystal of creation—out of your hands (for the most part) and changes your writing creation into creative problem solving. Instead of being preoccupied with the question "What do I write" you are instead pondering "How do I make this work?" And in the process you are producing new writing.

This is not a standard writing session. This is pure production—to keep your brain thinking about using language to solve simple or complex problems. The worst thing you can do is sit there inactive. It's like taking a 5 minute breather in the middle of a spin class—the point is to push, to produce something, however imperfect. If you don't overthink it, you will be able to complete all of the exercises in under 30 minutes.

#199
First Line Bonanza 17

For today's writing exercise write a piece that begins with one of the following first lines.

1) The spot was given away by a swirl of flies that glittered in the mid-day sunlight.
2) There would be no apology.
3) Unlearning is much more difficult a task than acquiring knowledge.
4) A full recovery, she thought, was unlikely.
5) It would later be branded as a rebirth—from the ashes like a phoenix—but I knew better.
6) Shadows hid their more subtle gestures.

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Bonus 'constraint': You must include a paragraph/stanza in which we get shades of all primary color (maroon, teal, canary etc—but just plain blue red and yellow works too).
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If you'd like some background music to write to, try Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist Oscar Peterson's album "Bossa Nova".