November 2021 Writing Prompts

[iam_senpai]

Did you know it's the first day of November? I sure didn't until about halfway through today! But that's fine by me because it means I can continue to share with you all some of my very favorite fall images and a few hand picked prompts to keep you lovely folks inspired through another month.

We hope you enjoy them!

And As Always--

Disclaimer: I never close old writing prompts from previous months. People can and should be encouraged to post on old month's prompts and I highly encourage players to track these posts to catch stragglers or new people writing on old prompts.

Now. With that out of the way, onto this month's prompts.

November's Writing Prompts

1. "As the nights grow cold, unfamiliar sounds carry through the mists."

2. "I wonder if they would be proud of me."

3. Your character read the directions wrong, if they read them at all. Now something's not Quite Right.

4. "...And STAY there!"

5. "Maybe we should just stay here until this blows over."



Bonus image prompt:

Comments

2 - Do you think they’d be proud of me?

[itmeanstruth]

The delightful aroma of Japanese curry lured Minoru out of bed. He rubbed his eyes, yawning as he groggily made his way into the kitchen.

“Mama’s curry? Did I forget about some special occasion?” He scratched his head. His normally unruly hair was even more unruly having just crawled out of bed.

“Grades are in, are they not?” Isamu replied, his attention still mostly on making sure the vegetables didn’t overcook. “That is certainly a special occasion in my book.”

“I honestly haven’t checked.” He shrugged. Hell, he’d been glad just to finish with the final exams. This semester felt so much harder than the first one, and was downright exhausting - to the point that even the days off spent in Ziggy’s world involved more sleeping than concert-watching or after-partying. “Wait, how do you even know that they are?”

“Because as you so often put it, I know everything about everything.” He added matter-of-factly. “including the rituals of academic schedules, and how much time it takes to grade exams and process routine paperwork.”

“I left my PINpoint on the counter again, didn’t I.”

“I happened to glance down at the notification that rang this morning.” Isamu confided. “I did not open it, of course. That would be a violation of your privacy. But I am on pins and needles waiting, so if you would be so kind as to check your email, I can serve up some curry and we can begin a well-deserved celebration.”

Minoru looked down at the PINpoint, and then back up at Isamu as he turned down the fire. “You’re sure it’s going to be worth celebrating?”

“Why would it not be?”

“My grades…” He stared at the device, still not picking it up. “Bro, those classes kicked my butt. I’m gonna be lucky to get a B in any of them.”

“You won’t know for certain until you look.” Isamu leaned against the table, still staring expectantly. There was no getting out of this one.

Minoru eventually sighed. “All right, all right.”

He opened the message and logged into the portal. It took an excruciatingly long minute to load, and even longer to read through it all silently.

Anatomy and Physiology II - C
Introduction to Kinesiology - B
Fundamentals of Disease - C
Growth and Development - C+
PTA Techniques - A-

“…Well?”

“Three C’s, a B and an A. I actually got an A.” The corners of his lips turned up a little as he said that. “Well, technically it’s an A-. But that still counts, right?”

“Of course!” Isamu nodded supportively, and immediately started plating the curry - the promised reward for Minoru’s job well done. “We will need to call Mama and Papa before it gets too late, and share with them the results of your latest semester!”

“Compared to every single one of your straight A semesters, it’s not exactly something to write home about.”

Isamu, after all, was valedictorian three times, including high school. He once got an A-, but it turned out to be a clerical error and was corrected a few weeks later. Minoru, on the other hand, struggled in the classroom. He was smart enough to pass, but never hit the same marks as his brother. This set of grades wasn’t even all that great compared to the first semester of the PTA program, where he finished with a more respectable 3 Bs and a C.

“You do not believe they would be proud of your accomplishments?” Isamu asked as he set down two bowls.

“…Do you think they’d be proud of me?”

“Minoru, considering that you have done something which I never did - successfully juggling a difficult course load with a full time job, American Ninja Warrior training and a romantic relationship, I would say that yes, they would be very proud of what you have done.“

The scent of curry, topped to the brim with winter squashes and other seasonal vegetables, made the whole apartment feel warm and inviting. The bright colors were uplifting. It almost made a hard-earned C feel very much like an A.

“Mama, especially.” Isamu smiled.

“Thanks, Bro.” Minoru smiled back, digging in.