Short story day on the shortest day of the year – how poetic! – is celebrated annually in honouring the thousands of stories buried within pages, and the creativity behind each mind.
This day can be celebrated by creating your own short tale, whether that be a project you’re already working on or a spark of imagination that your mind has been eager to tell.
Anyone can be creative with words; however, such words can be written easier for some than they can be for others. Some people include writing in their daily routine, whether that be creatively or expressing themselves through journaling, which contributes to a therapeutic impact towards mental health.
However, writer’s block isn’t a myth, and can in fact last longer than a couple months in both story writing and journaling (I speak from experience!) The block is viewed as a trapped door locking away our imaginations, shielding our minds from our beloved creative spark. But there are other contributions to writer’s block that aren’t always spoken about.
Motivation, and a lack of, plays a key role in our day-to-day lives. We need it to get up in the morning, brew a cuppa and start our morning routine. To study, to cook dinner and to clean up our living space.
By the time our essentials are done, our fuel can become very low, leaving the fun things, such as writing, to be left blank. But how can we become motivated with writing, something which can have several positive impacts on our mental health?
Knowing where to start, and how to form an idea, can generally cause our motivation problems, but there is always a solution to getting started with your writing!
The creative arts are brilliant attributes to our minds: try listening to the lyrics of your favourite song, or admire your favourite painting. Even watching a film, or reading a book, can inspire a great story hidden deep inside your mind.
Even if taking part in these activities doesn’t quite bring your creativity to life, there is still hope for a beginning to your story.
Writing prompts are a great way to trigger you into action with words, offering you a basic start, or topic, for your story. It can inspire short stories and novels, and even some mindfulness journaling; which can be a way to reconnect with your creativity and mind.
No matter what kind of approach you have towards writing, today is the day to discover your imaginative potential in short stories, and to celebrate your very own creativity that might just give you the power boost that you needed all week.
If you find yourself intrigued by the mystery of writing, or you have reached a creative rut, why not use some of our writing prompts to discover where it will take you on this short celebratory day?
Writing Prompts
Use one, or several, of our writing prompts to begin your short story writing today!
Creative storytelling:
- A Christmas tree sparkled bright in the centre of the square as Fairytale of New York sang through the speakers…
- Congratulations, we are delighted to offer you an unconditional offer at the University of Lincoln studying…
- Time ticked in my ears as I hurried over to the elevator and impatiently jabbed the button…
Mindfulness journaling:
- I smiled today because…
- Something happened today that really made me think about…
- I learnt something that I didn’t know much about before…
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