Writing prompts and exercises can be the perfect way to move your writing project forward. Some of our members have shared their favourite writing prompts to spark your creativity.

List 6 monsters that you associate, in some way, with Halloween. Set aside.

Now, think back to a time in your life when you experienced fear, dread, or even intense nervous anticipation of “something”. The “something” may have been known or unknown (the reality may have been scary or not, it doesn’t matter.)

Write the scene as it happened, to the best of your memory, in first or third person. Focus on describing the emotional experience without ever naming the emotions involved. Also, do not name the “something”. Include specific details, such as setting, time, weather, people, animals, smells, other sensory details etc. Set aside.

Consider your list of monsters. Does one call to you? Alternatively, roll a die to randomly choose.

Rewrite the scene, but now the “something” is your chosen monster, the main character is not you, and the story is fiction. Feel free to change details, though it can be very effective to leave most of them.

This scene is your spooky, speculative, story seed. It can occur in the beginning, middle or end. Write around it, toward it or from it.

About KT Wagner:

KT organizes writer events, works to create literary community and is frequently spotted with knitting needles and yarn, muttering about the state of the world. KT graduated from Simon Fraser University’s Writers Studio in 2015 (Southbank 2013). A number of her short stories are published in magazines and anthologies. She’s currently working on a scifi-horror novel. Find more about KT here: https://northernlightsgothic.com/