"The magic is only in what books say, how they stitched the patches of the universe together into one garment for us.” ― Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451 Writing Prompt: She was a goddess, and her dress had the universe stitched into it. Each time she cut off a piece, she could lay down a new time, a …
Author: Oz Ghouls
Poet and certified cryptid.
The Artistic Mute
“Though we have instructions and a map buried in our hearts when we enter this world, nothing quite prepares us for the abrupt shift to the breathing realm.” ― Joy Harjo, Crazy Brave: A Memoir Writing Prompt: Most people don't remember the first four years of their life, but Natalie remembered everything. She could even remember the …
The Ghost Hunting Journalist
“He was intrigued by the power of words, not the literary words that filled the books in the library but the sharp, staccato words that went into the writing of news stories. Words that went for the jugular. Active verbs that danced and raced on the page.” Robert Cormier, I Am the Cheese Writing Prompt Jordan …
Crime Scene Investigation
"Trent imagined the boy's mother inspecting him prior to his departure for headquarters, checking his fingernails, perhaps. Checking the fingernails himself as they shook hands, Trent found that there was no evidence of their having been bitten. An indication. Everything was an indication." -Robert Cormier, The Rag and Bone Shop Writing Prompt: Charles had been …
Campfire Stories
“You have to be careful with the stories you tell. And you have to watch out for the stories that you are told.” ― Thomas King, The Truth About Stories: A Native Narrative Writing Prompt: The camping trip was going well until the teens started telling stories around the campfire. At first they didn't notice anything strange, …
The Anxious Class Clown
“He was painfully shy, which, as is often the manner of the painfully shy, he overcompensated for by being too loud at the wrong times.” —Neil Gaiman, Stardust Writing Prompt: Jack was shy. Well, shy was the wrong word for it. He was anxious. People made him nervous, and it was difficult to say why. To …
Monster Makers
"Our attitude to the monster is frequently ambivalent: although society teaches us to be morally appalled by its terrible deeds, rarely is the monster presented as wholly unsympathetic. Indeed, part of us takes delight in its actions and identifies with them."—Shohini Chaudhuri, The Monstrous-Feminine Writing Prompt: Today, we're making monsters! Monsters vary wildly from humanoid …
Let’s Talk Tropes | Cute but Psycho (Lesbians)
https://youtu.be/Qn8brQ3h0tE Transcription of the Video (Not Word for Word) Hi, I’m The Garrulous Gecko and today we’re talking about two tropes: the cute but psycho trope and the psycho lesbian trope. First and foremost let me say that the word choice for these tropes is already problematic. Words like “Psycho,” “psychopath,” and “psychotic,” tend to …
Continue reading Let’s Talk Tropes | Cute but Psycho (Lesbians)
Becoming Human
“I thought once that gods are the opposite of death, but I see now they are more dead than anything, for they are unchanging, and can hold nothing in their hands.” ― Madeline Miller, Circe Writing Prompt: He was born a god, but after centuries of parties, of changing the fate of humanity, and of never aging …
John’s Missing Wife
“The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..” ― John Milton, Paradise Lost Writing Prompt: John's mind was a wonderland of ideas and places. If he closed his eyes and focused really hard, he could go anywhere and see anything. For his entire life, he believed …
LAMP 