Prompted to Write

Writing Prompts for Stories, Songs, & Creative Living

I’ve seen these creative writing tips going around for a while now, and while they’re not actually composed by Edgar Allan Poe, they’re still likely to give you some good ideas if you are working on anything a little dark or crazy.

  1. Employ an unreliable narrator, preferably one who doesn’t know he is insane and has no recollection of such events as digging into a grave to rip out the teeth of his recently departed lover.
  2. Include a beautiful woman with raven locks and porcelain skin, preferably quite young, and let her die tragically of some unknown ailment.
  3. Use grandiloquent words, such as heretofore, forthwith, and nevermore. A little Latin will also enhance the text.
  4. Do not shy away from such grotesqueries as inebriation, imprisonment, insanity, and men costumed as orangutans being burned to death.
  5. When in doubt, bury someone alive.

Perfect advice for composing your own Poe-inspired poem, short story, or novel :)

The raven (Edgar Allen Poe)
Creative Commons License photo credit: kevindooley

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