I sat in on a stranger's writing group in Des Moines last month and it broke my 3-year habit of only writing prompts I could finish in one sitting | Creative Writing Prompts

Daniel Nelson · 2026-10-08T06:45:05.520344+00:00

Back in 2021 I got into a rut where I would only write prompts I knew I could wrap up in about 20 minutes, mostly because I was posting them online for quick feedback. Then last month I was in Des Moines for a work trip and wandered into a Tuesday night writing group at a coffee shop on Ingersoll. There were 7 people there and the oldest guy, probably 70, handed out a prompt about a locked door and said we had 45 minutes to write without stopping. I panicked at first because I could not think of an ending, but by minute 30 I had 4 pages and a character I actually liked. Now I keep a notebook just for prompts I am not allowed to finish right away, and I have 11 unfinished ones sitting there. It feels weird to leave things open like that, but the stuff I am getting out of it is way better than my old 20 minute drafts. Does anyone else here write prompts without knowing where they will land, or am I late to this?

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I sat in on a stranger's writing group in Des Moines last month and it broke my 3-year habit of only writing prompts I could finish in one sitting | Creative Writing Prompts - Thought Shares