Sylvia Plath on Creativity, Self-Doubt & Imagination - 8 Writing Prompts & More

Posted on the 15 January 2015 by Juliejordanscott @juliejordanscot

  Quote:

 ”And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” 

—Sylvia Plath

  Questions:

 What words would you use to describe someone with “outgoing guts” to write about anything at all?

What is one way self-doubt shows up in your creative life?

What is a time you overcame self-doubt and created anyway? Take ten minutes now to write about it, free writing style.

   Lists:

 Make a list of 3 - 5 enemies to your creativity

Make a list of 5 - 10 strategies to disarm the enemies to your creativity

Make a list of 3 - 10 topics/scenes you would write if you had the guts to do it?

Conventional Writing Prompt

 Right now do some writing improvisation: pick up the book closest to you. Open to a random page and copu a random sentence and use it as a writing prompt about something you are scared to write about… even if it makes zero sense at first. Your job is to make it make sense.

Prove Sylvia Plath’s assertion that “everything in life is writable about” by writing a scene straight from your life today. Extra kudos if it is either supremely mundane and you make it interesting OR if it is embarrassing and you write it, anyway.


Why be inspired by literary grannies? Read the introductory post here - 

 This series (now a part of the Ultimate Blog Challenge) is also serving as a bridge to my new blog which will be unveiled in the middle of the month. In past blog challenges I have offered prompts under the "Let Your Words Flow" name. The Inspiration from Literary Grannies serve as a subset of that series.

 I welcome your comments, your questions and your quote contributions. Please share the prompts with your writing buddies and friends!

 In fact, as you read books written by women in 2015, take note of inspiring quotes. I would love to add them to my collection and may even write a prompt from them.

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 Julie Jordan Scott is a writer, creative life coach, speaker, performance poet, Mommy and mixed-media artist  whose Writing Camps and Writing Playgrounds permanently transform people's creative lives. Watch for the announcement of new programs coming Winter 2015 and beyond.

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