Writing prompt – Patience
No Comments »4th July, 2013; Category: Fiction, Poetry, Short Fiction, Short Stories, Short Story Starters, Writing prompts
A patient mule in the medina of Fes in Morocco
On our tour of Morocco several years ago I photographed this very patient mule standing just outside a shop in the busy medina of the city of Fes.
It just stood there patiently, ignoring the milling throng all around, oblivious to the movement, the noise and the general confusion.
Writing prompt:
- Write about a time you had to be very patient.
- Write about an occasion when someone had to be very patient with you.
- Write a list of the virtues of patience.
- Write a poem titled “Patience”.
- Write a short story starting with the words: “After three hours of patient waiting…”
- Write a short story finishing with the words “It had been a day that severely tested my patience.’
Good writing.
Writing prompt – favourite foods
No Comments »2nd July, 2013; Category: Writing prompts
Our pizza lunch at GPK Chatswood, Sydney
Many people write about food on their blogs. Some have even elevated this to writing for prestigious glossy, social magazines and yet others make a living from critiquing food and restaurants and writing about it in various forms.
It is my one regret from several trips overseas that I didn’t take more photos of the wonderful meals we enjoyed, especially in Morocco and Spain. Now that I have a smart phone with a decent camera, I intend to correct that oversight of the past.
On our current trip to visit family in Sydney we celebrated my daughter-in-law’s birthday. Her choice was to go to the local Chatswood GPK pizza restaurant. GPK stands for Gourmet Pizza Kitchen, and the one we visited is one of a chain throughout various cities here in Australia.
Between the six of the adults in our party we ordered four different pizzas which we all shared. I’ve shown only two here on this post today. The two grandchildren had their very own pizza. The menu is extensive with many named after prominent cities or countries of the world. Each had a particular cultural and culinary focus appropriate to the country. For example, we liked the Moroccan pizza as well as the one called Kathmandu.
With the term gourmet attached to the name of the restaurant one quite likely pays a little extra. But these are not your common or garden pizzas delivered by a pimply teenager to your front door late on a cold winter’s night. These are far superior in every way.
The flavours are intense and a delight to the taste buds. Some featured some surprising ingredients – such as broccoli – which worked amazingly well.
My rating: 8/10
Writing prompt: write about your favourite restaurant, your favourite food, great meals or gastronomic disasters.
Further reading:
- GPK Official Website – complete with downloadable menus.
- Five hundred meals away – the blog of a former student of mine who has travelled the world, writing about the food he has enjoyed – or endured – and the cultures and people he meets – and near disasters which seem to follow him. Onya, Andrew.
Our pizza lunch at GPK restaurant, Chatswood, Sydney
Writing prompt: the colour of spices
Colourful spices for sale in Fes, Morocco
In December 2011 my wife, daughter and I travelled extensively through magical Morocco. One of many interesting experiences was wandering through the medinas of the old parts of cities like Fes. The huge variety of things for sale was overwhelming, as were the sounds, aromas and the thronging crowds everywhere.
Such vibrant and exciting places. I wrote a great deal of poetry during our visit, along with an extensive daily journal.
Writing prompt: write about the foods you love, including the colours, aromas, textures and tastes. It could be in journal form, or poetry or even as a backdrop of a fictional piece, such as a short story.
Good writing.
Writing prompt: Autumn
Autumn leaves in Bright, Victoria
On a recent caravanning holiday in the high country of Victoria, Australia, we visited the beautiful town of Bright.
The trees in the district were magnificent, showing numerous colours of autumn.
Writing prompt: write about the colours of autumn in your part of the world. Perhaps a poem describing the colours, or a short story where the leaves of autumn play a significant part of the plot.
If the stones could talk
No Comments »15th March, 2013; Category: Fiction, Short Fiction, Short Stories, Short Story Starters, Writing prompts
Roman ruins at Volubilis in Morocco
If only the stones could talk.
I was totally fascinated by the ancient Roman ruins of Volubilis in Morocco when we visited during our tour of that country. It was certainly a highlight of the tour – a holiday with many highlights. These ruins are now a declared UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Volubilis was settled in the third century BC but only reached its zenith as a commercial, cultural and administrative centre under Roman rule in the first century AD. It was occupied for at least another 700 years, so it has a long and rich history.
Many of the ruins were destroyed during an earthquake in the 18th century, and it is only in the last 20 years that excavations have revealed some of its former glory.
While wandering around the site, the writer in me couldn’t help speculate about the myriads of stories these ancient ruins could tell. At one stage over 20,000 people lived here. Each had a story to tell.
- What did they dream of?
- What struggles did they have?
- How many tragedies could be related?
- Who were the heroes – and the villains – who called this home?
Writing prompt:
- Think of some historic place you know well – or even revisit it.
- It can be a building, a monument or even a natural feature steeped in history.
- It could even be a photo of a place you have never visited – like those above and below.
- Let your mind imagine the people of the past who may have worked there, lived there or had lives changed by being there.
- Drawing on your imagination, write about those people, telling their story.
Good writing.
Roman ruins at Volubilis in Morocco