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My whole writing week got wrecked by a single bad prompt

Last Tuesday, I opened a prompt list that said 'write about a character who finds a magic key in their attic.' I spent three days trying to make it work, but every idea felt like a bad movie I'd already seen. I finally gave up and just stared at a blank page for two hours. How do you even fix a prompt that feels so tired before you start?
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2 Comments
patricia385
Ugh, that prompt is a trap because it starts at the end! The key is already found, the magic is just there. So you're stuck writing the boring part. Flip it. What if the key is normal but the attic is magic? Or the character goes up there to hide a body and the key is the least weird thing they find. Start with a different problem, and let the key be a side effect.
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james_butler
Hide a body" seems like a big jump from a boring prompt.
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