Writing prompt: the icehouse

The "icehouse" at Newgrange, Ireland

The building in the image (left) is known as the icehouse. It is a relic, but not nearly as old as its companion structure, the passage grave known as Newgrange, in County Meath, Ireland. Without doing any research on the history of the building, free-write for ten minutes about the people who built the structure, what it was used for and why they built it beside Newgrange, which is over 5000 years old. Accuracy is not important for this exercise, you can set it at any time and give it any purpose. Enjoy.

Free-writing exercise: Inscriptions

Take a look at these images (from the New Scientist article Decoding the past: eight scripts that still can’t be read). Choose an image and free-write for ten minutes about the object, the inscriptions and/or the people who made them. Don’t be afraid to share your results.

Free-writing exercise #5

This boat has a story too ©thesunlitdesk.wordpress.com

The estuary: Free-write for 10 minutes about the events that led to this boat being wrecked in the estuary.

Free-writing exercise #4

We are everywhere . . .

We are everywhere © thesunlitdesk

Free-write for 10 minutes about the image in the photo. Feel free to post your response in the comments box or add a link to your blog if you have posted it there.

Free-writing exercise #1

One of the writing experiments I really enjoyed in a creative fiction writing course at Deakin University was free writing (also known as as stream of consciousness writing). Our tutor had given us a colour copy of the image below and we were told to free write one A4 page based on our first impressions/immediate responses. Free writing is a technique often used for warming up before a writing session (stretching the intellectual and creative muscles if you like), or breaking out of “writer’s block”.  This is a particularly good image for a free writing exercise and the responses were many and varied.

If you want to try it take a good look at the picture and start writing whatever comes into your mind. Here are a few hints if you wish to attempt the exercise.

I’ve posted my own free writing response to this image here if you’re interested. Try the exercise before you read my attempt.

The Great Wave off Kanagawa, Katsushika Hokusai