Written by Emily Harstone July 17th, 2013

Writing Prompt: Genre Twist

There are writers who always write horror, those who always write romance, and those that jump around a lot from sci-fi to literature and mystery all in the space of one week.

But even for those flexible writers there are genres they avoid. I do not like to read or watch horror, so the idea of writing it is beyond me. However this writing prompt is all about getting outside of your comfort zone and trying things you normally would not try.

Think of your least favorite genre, the kind of movie your significant other would drag you to, or the type of book a friend might force you to read. Any genre that makes you uncomfortable will work.

Now your challenge is to write a flash fiction piece (up to 1000 words) or a poem in that genre. You can honor the conventions of that genre or you can ignore them. Or you can just put a twist a time honored convention. Perhaps the cowboys in your Western will ride on unicorns.

In any event have fun with this prompt. It is sure to get you out of any writing rut and thinking about new things.

 

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