My kids are out for the summer, and I’m running the risk of being the tiredest, most lackluster lady I know. I basically had to pick them all up and carry them on my back over the finish line, ya know? Eh, but that’s everyone these days. I don’t know anyone who I talk to that isn’t like: tank’s empty.
But the other day I sat by a lake and saw these little turtles swimming around, and I walked away with my summer goals solidified: To see more turtles. And in that spirit, I made myself a list of writing ideas. Not prompts, really. Or even goals. Just things that feel summery to me, and will put a little sense of play into my writing for the summer.
The Summer Babe List of Writing Ideas
Write a campfire-style ghost story.
Set a story by the pool. Write the story by a pool.
Write by a lake, too.
Eat a snack from the Farmer’s Market while writing.
Write with a baseball game on the tv/radio.
Finish three books and buy myself a personal pan pizza.
Develop an eccentric collection, and never ever write about it. Talk about the collection at length, though.
Obviously make a summer writing playlist.
Write something near a boat, many boats if possible.
Write one weird little poem for every time I see fireworks, even on accident.
Write a piece of nonfiction about gas station/road trip snacks.
Read in a hammock.
Write about a BBQ/cookout but make it basically a list of recipes.
Stumble upon three crazy stories/tall tales told by a person in real life, not online.
Write a little something sitting on a log.
Write with my feet in the water.
Go on an extremely poetic walk in a warm summer rain.
Read with my back against a tree.
Write about a summer romance.
Eat night ice cream while writing.
I actually think I’ll do some of these! In the meantime, I want to recommend Let Me Tell You by Shirley Jackson. It’s a compiled anthology of unfinished stories, essays, and journal entries. The last section is about writing, and every time I get in a funk, those essays are the truest, most delightful things to ever get me back out of it.
Wherever this summer takes you, I hope you can have some fun writing in it! <3