Calling all creative writers! This is a column run by Nathaniel Lee to inspire readers to become writers. The column includes writing prompts, pieces by the coordinators, and occasional submissions from readers.
This month: a poem from Riley Barta and a short story from Nathaniel Lee.
Below is a set of prompts for different styles of writing beyond journalism. The idea is that you can create some kind of creative writing piece inspired by one of the prompts, but it doesn't have to be. You can submit any piece of writing you would like to share! All submissions should be school-appropriate. You can also suggest prompts to be featured in the next issue.
Here are some prompts to get you started. They can be used for anything, though some specify poetry or short stories. This month, the prompt theme is Mystery.
1. Write a story about someone finally gaining access to their family’s very old computer.
2. Write a story that hides something from the reader until the very end.
3. Write a story about someone coming across their doppelganger.
4. Write about a student reporter coming across a school secret.
5. A mysterious, unmarked letter arrives on your character's doorstep one day. Curiosity killed the cat, they do say...
If you have any prompt ideas in mind that you haven't seen on here yet or would like to see someone else respond to, then drop them in the Google Form below and I'll try to get them in the next issue! I sometimes don't see the response until after the issue is published, so I'm sorry if it takes a couple of months.
Your petals are wilted
most of the time
You gaze at the stars
and you complain for fun
You’re stuck in valleys
that tend to get trampled
Your roots aren’t deep
I know you’ll leave soon
Cash Money
Sophie Henderson had been my closest friend for as long as I could remember. I don't know exactly how she came into my life, but she'd been there through everything. It helped that we lived next door to each other, but we'd still be friends even if we'd lived on opposite sides of our town.
I call it our town, and it seems like it is sometimes. There aren't many teenagers our age in this part of the city, and my parents pretty much let me go wherever I want.
"As long as you stay safe, I'm fine if you travel around within the city," is what my dad likes to say. Sophie's parents were strict, but she always found a way around their rules.
On this particular night, I was up studying some of my dad's old law books. It wasn't for school; I'd graduated several days prior. Both of my parents were lawyers, and it had always been implied that I would do that, too. It didn't appeal to me, though. I'd never known what I wanted to do in life, but I knew it wasn't law.
Our air conditioning was broken, so I had the window open to try and alleviate the humid summer heat. Still, my clothes stuck to my skin as I sat at my desk mindlessly reading through the textbook.
"Hey!" a voice whispered from outside my window. From where I sat, I could see the silhouette of a person crouched on my roof.
"Hello?" I asked, standing and holding the textbook as a weapon. I'd dropped it on my toes many times, and I knew it was lethal.
The person sighed. "Calm down, Jack. You know I can take you in a fight."
"Sophie?" I dropped the book and it landed on my foot for the umpteenth time. After silently screaming, I went and helped her through the window into my room.
"How goes the studying?" she asked, leaning against the wall.
"Uh, pretty good?" I tried to process what had just happened. "How goes the breaking and entering?"
"Nice one. I didn't actually break anything. Your window was open, practically begging me to pop in for a chat." She picked up the book and tossed it to me. I caught it, dropped it, then caught it again. No more smashed toes tonight.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
She shrugged and sat on my bed. "Can't I just say hi to my friend?"
"At eleven o'clock at night?"
"Hey, it's your own fault for still being awake." She paused for a moment and looked around, almost like she was trying to memorize everything. "I need your car."
"My what?"
"Your car." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Can't you hear? Mine sounds like an escapee from Jurassic Park when it starts, and I can't wake my parents up."
"So, why mine?" I asked.
"You're closest. If you want, you can come with me. I just need a way to get around so I can commit a felony."
I had to stop myself from yelling. "A felony?"
"More of a misdemeanor, really."
"No, you can't use my car. If you get arrested, guess who'll have a visit from the cops?"
Sophie sighed. "Fine. I'll walk. If anything happens tonight, promise me that you'll visit Niagara Falls."
"If anything happens tonight? Like what?"
"Trust me. You'll know," she said.
"You know Niagara Falls is like forty hours away, right?"
"Just promise that you'll do it. Please."
"This is absurd," I said.
She stared straight into my eyes. "Promise me."
"Okay," I said, caving under her fierce eye contact. "I promise."
"Wonderful." She climbed back out the window, but then poked her head back in.
"Goodbye, Jack."
"Goodbye," I responded.
There was sadness in that statement.
Finality.
