Write with Me!
That sweet spot, right after Christmas before returning to work in the new year, I find to be magical because the obligations are paused. The calendar feels stretchy, and time is back in the bank. No one is really expecting you or I to be productive, even though these days come right on the heels of one of the most activity-packed, completed-my-checklist days of the year.
How do you spend them?
Do you sleep? Stare into the fire with a cocktail in hand? Maybe you journal? Create a vision board? Deep clean your house? Or scroll through the past year’s memories on your phone?
This time invites reflection.
It’s January 1, 2026. I took the dog for hike. Cracked the spine on a brand-new five-year journal. (Thanks, sister, for the great Christmas gift!) And opened up the blog. I want you to write with me this week. Even if you don’t normally put pen to paper, or if you have fallen out of the rhythm. Will you take an hour or two and write with me?
Story telling on paper can be a really fun and helpful tool to process our internal dialogue. Jessica Lourey, author and professor of creative writing, discovered through her own journey the healing effects of fiction. And I find that my deepest thoughts become characters when I have blank paper before me.
“Reality leaves a lot to the imagination.”
John Lennon
I’ve crafted 5 writing prompts for you and I to choose from. These openers are designed to help you write fiction while processing your memories and personal experiences from 2025. Once you have written a story or two, leave me a comment letting me know how the writing exercise went for you. I plan to post one of mine by the end of the week. Challenge accepted?
When you have hair the color of mine, you expect the looks at the grocery stores and at the doctor’s office. But today I was surprised when…….
On the following Tuesday, we packed our bags and our passports planning to……
Something about the way she switched the pen from her right to left hand, back and forth. I couldn’t stop watching her scribble words faster than the pen could keep up. I wanted to read what she was so determined to write down. My own paper said………
They were coming for me. It was only a matter of hours before they would be hot on my trail. I had one defense when they found me. I would need to……
I’d been following grandma’s Christmas tradition since I was a kid. Well, this year I would be the family’s holiday host and there was no way…..