creative writing on current events

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From the top, write a story titled 'persuasion'..

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Creative Writing Prompts

When the idea to start a weekly newsletter with writing inspiration first came to us, we decided that we wanted to do more than provide people with topics to write about. We wanted to try and help authors form a regular writing habit and also give them a place to proudly display their work. So we started the weekly Creative Writing Prompts newsletter. Since then, Prompts has grown to a community of more than 450,000 authors, complete with its own literary magazine, Prompted .  

Here's how our contest works: every Friday, we send out a newsletter containing five creative writing prompts. Each week, the story ideas center around a different theme. Authors then have one week — until the following Friday — to submit a short story based on one of our prompts. A winner is picked each week to win $250 and is highlighted on our Reedsy Prompts page.

Interested in participating in our short story contest? Sign up here for more information! Or you can check out our full Terms of Use and our FAQ page .

Why we love creative writing prompts

If you've ever sat in front of a computer or notebook and felt the urge to start creating worlds, characters, and storylines — all the while finding yourself unable to do so — then you've met the author's age-old foe: writer's block. There's nothing more frustrating than finding the time but not the words to be creative. Enter our directory! If you're ready to kick writer's block to the curb and finally get started on your short story or novel, these unique story ideas might just be your ticket.

This list of 1800+ creative writing prompts has been created by the Reedsy team to help you develop a rock-solid writing routine. As all aspiring authors know, this is the #1 challenge — and solution! — for reaching your literary goals. Feel free to filter through different genres, which include...

Dramatic — If you want to make people laugh and cry within the same story, this might be your genre.

Funny — Whether satire or slapstick, this is an opportunity to write with your funny bone.

Romance — One of the most popular commercial genres out there. Check out these story ideas out if you love writing about love.

Fantasy — The beauty of this genre is that the possibilities are as endless as your imagination.

Dystopian – Explore the shadowy side of human nature and contemporary technology in dark speculative fiction.

Mystery — From whodunnits to cozy mysteries, it's time to bring out your inner detective.

Thriller and Suspense — There's nothing like a page-turner that elicits a gasp of surprise at the end.

High School — Encourage teens to let their imaginations run free.

Want to submit your own story ideas to help inspire fellow writers? Send them to us here.

After you find the perfect story idea

Finding inspiration is just one piece of the puzzle. Next, you need to refine your craft skills — and then display them to the world. We've worked hard to create resources that help you do just that! Check them out:

• How to Write a Short Story That Gets Published — a free, ten-day course by Laura Mae Isaacman, a full-time editor who runs a book editing company in Brooklyn.
• Best Literary Magazines of 2023 — a directory of 100+ reputable magazines that accept unsolicited submissions.
• Writing Contests in 2023 — the finest contests of 2021 for fiction and non-fiction authors of short stories, poetry, essays, and more.

Beyond creative writing prompts: how to build a writing routine

While writing prompts are a great tactic to spark your creative sessions, a writer generally needs a couple more tools in their toolbelt when it comes to developing a rock-solid writing routine . To that end, here are a few more additional tips for incorporating your craft into your everyday life.

• NNWT. Or, as book coach Kevin Johns calls it , “Non-Negotiable Writing Time.” This time should be scheduled into your routine, whether that’s once a day or once a week. Treat it as a serious commitment, and don’t schedule anything else during your NNWT unless it’s absolutely necessary.
• Set word count goals. And make them realistic! Don’t start out with lofty goals you’re unlikely to achieve. Give some thought to how many words you think you can write a week, and start there. If you find you’re hitting your weekly or daily goals easily, keep upping the stakes as your craft time becomes more ingrained in your routine.
• Talk to friends and family about the project you’re working on. Doing so means that those close to you are likely to check in about the status of your piece — which in turn keeps you more accountable.

Arm yourself against writer’s block. Writer’s block will inevitably come, no matter how much story ideas initially inspire you. So it’s best to be prepared with tips and tricks you can use to keep yourself on track before the block hits. You can find 20 solid tips here — including how to establish a relationship with your inner critic and apps that can help you defeat procrastination or lack of motivation.

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Articles on Creative writing

Displaying 1 - 20 of 46 articles.

UK’s creative industries bring in more revenue than cars, oil and gas – so why is arts education facing cuts?

Adam Behr , Newcastle University

An ode to the social realism of ‘boring’ lyrics – from The Kinks to The Streets

Glenn Fosbraey , University of Winchester

How to write a love song – three tips for beginners from a songwriting expert

‘ Cli-fi ’ might not save the world, but writing it could help with your  eco-anxiety

Rachel Hennessy , The University of Melbourne ; Alex Cothren , Flinders University , and Amy T Matthews , Flinders University

I research the therapeutic qualities of writing about art – here are three steps for trying it yourself

Patrick Wright , The Open University

Creative writing can help improve one’s health: a South African study shows how

Dawn Garisch , University of Cape Town and Steve Reid , University of Cape Town

Boxing empowered me to express my trauma – now, I help other abuse survivors do the same, combining it with creative writing

Donna Lyon , The University of Melbourne

How a poet and professor promotes racial understanding with lessons from history

Quraysh Ali Lansana , Oklahoma State University

How to understand your grief through writing

Catherine Cole , Liverpool John Moores University

Write what you know: the COVID experience is a rich resource for year 12 English exams

Janet Dutton , Macquarie University

5 ways to teach the link between grammar and imagination for better creative writing

Brett Healey , Curtin University

Writing can improve mental health – here’s how

Christina Thatcher , Cardiff Metropolitan University

In an AI world we need to teach students how to work with robot writers

Lucinda McKnight , Deakin University

To succeed in an AI world, students must learn the human traits of writing

‘Lit therapy’ in the classroom: writing about trauma can be valuable, if done right

Yannick Thoraval , RMIT University

Too many adjectives, not enough ideas: how NAPLAN forces us to teach bad writing

What my students taught me about reading: old books hold new insights for the digital generation

Kate Flaherty , Australian National University

Life sentences – what creative writing by prisoners tells us about the inside

Dr Michael X. Savvas , Flinders University

Frozen in time, the casts of Indigenous Australians who performed in ‘human zoos’ are chilling

Katherine Johnson , University of Tasmania

‘I’m in another world’: writing without rules lets kids find their voice, just like professional authors

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PhD Student, School of Education, Curtin University

Executive Dean (interim) Faculty of Arts and Design, University of Canberra

Lecturer in Creative Writing, University of Southern Queensland

Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing, University of Stirling

Associate Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Winchester

Dean of Research (Creative), University of South Australia

Honorary Associate in Creative Writing, The Open University

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Getting Creative with Current Events

Keeping your students informed about the world around them is an important part of your job. Teaching current events in your classroom provides opportunities to model for students how to develop their own perspectives and navigate complex issues. You can help your students understand what’s going on locally, nationally, and internationally while helping them become engaged citizens.

Kat St. Pierre writes in Montessori Life, “Life is a combination of beautiful, wondrous, and often complex stories. Children are incredibly perceptive to the world around them, and though some might not have the vocabulary to communicate it, they are aware of both the beauty and complexity in their environments.”

• Why Teach Current Events?

Some teachers may feel hesitant to use current events in their classrooms because they can involve difficult topics. Questions will arise for which we don’t have the answers— and that’s okay! The goal is to equip our students to successfully engage with the world outside our classroom. We need to teach them how to ask and learn from difficult questions.

Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich says, “…the truth is, whether we try to seal ourselves and our communities off from ‘negativity,’ or work to engage young people with their world in a variety of ways, our choices tell a story. Our choices tell children what we value. And regardless of point of view, it seems apparent that critical thinking, multiple literacies , effective communication, and a curiosity about ourselves and one [another] are skills that we can all agree are necessary for 21st-century students.”

Instruction with current events provides students with a wide variety of benefits. By teaching current events, students can:

• Practice understanding text from multiple perspectives.
• Build empathy and awareness for different points of view.
• Develop critical thinking skills.
• Practice asking meaningful questions .
• See a responsible adult modeling how to navigate challenging issues.
• Realize the real-world application of what they learn in the classroom.

Current events can also be a helpful teaching tool for your ESL students. There is no shortage of news articles available to use in the classroom, making it easy to find articles that align with your ESL students’ interests.

News articles provide short stories for ESL students to practice learning objectives. Students will benefit from interacting with these authentic texts.

3 Tips for Teaching Current Events

Teaching current events can be daunting. We’ve compiled a list of the following tips to help you get started.

• Use a variety of credible sources

Thanks to the internet, we have an incredible amount of information at our fingertips. A quick search online can turn up articles and podcasts about literally any topic that you can imagine. When teaching current events, use a variety of credible sources to share information, like the following sites:

• Teaching Tolerance
• National Public Radio (NPR)
• Kids InfoBits
• Time for Kids
• News for Kids
• Cultivate critical thinking skills

Current events are the perfect platform to teach your students critical thinking skills. Not only do you need to use a variety of sources, but you also need to teach your students how to sift through the information overload to find credible sources .

When teaching current events, it’s important to emphasize finding multiple points of view. Watch the TED Talk “ The Danger of a Single Story ” with your older students to show them the importance of different perspectives. Opposing Viewpoints is a great database to help students find multiple perspectives on issues.

• Integrate current events into content areas

Many times, teaching current events looks like presenting students with a news article and leading a discussion. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box! You can use current events as mentor texts to teach concepts like grammar, themes, and text connections. Social media articles are a great platform for differentiating between fact and opinion.

As you go through your history textbook throughout the year, see if you can find recurring themes. Have your students compare and contrast history with present-day issues—how far have we come and what else can be done?

Current events can be effective anticipatory sets as well. Anticipatory sets will set the stage for learning and can be the “hook” to get your students interested. The versatility of current events makes them easy to use in every subject area—from the latest scientific research to new mathematical theories.

If you’re wondering how to make news fun, don’t worry. We’ve got you covered with these creative ways to teach current events , no matter what grade level you teach.

• Elementary students

Send your students on a newspaper or magazine scavenger hunt. Working in teams, students can search for specific words from a list you provide or stick to a current events theme (find anything that mentions your state, for example).

Try using Roll and Retell to help your students decode a news story. Divide your class into groups and then have each group read a story before rolling a die to determine what question to answer about what they’ve read.

Use current events as a homework assignment . Find an article that’s of interest to your students (in a news magazine for kids, for example), and preview the article as a class. Then, send your students home with this current events graphic organizer to help them dissect the article. The next morning, choose a student to report on what he read before engaging in a class discussion on the topic. Make it extra fun by having your “news correspondent” wear a fedora or even a hat made out of newspaper while delivering the news.

• Middle school students

Take a cue from this idea from TeachHUB as a current events teaching strategy: You’ll need a world map you can post on a bulletin board and daily newspapers for your class. Have your students read the front section of the newspaper and choose an article. Plot the location on the map where the story takes place and add to the map daily, stringing the plot points together.

Let your students take an active part in creating the news by cutting out pictures from newspapers and magazines and asking your class to make up captions for the photos. After they’ve written the caption, challenge them to write an article that could accompany the photo.

Use this idea for the one-question interview from the New York Times. Have students think of a question related to the article they’re reading. Then, using the one-question interview form , have students ask their question to their classmates. This exercise not only helps students understand how to analyze data but also gets them thinking about the role interviewing plays in generating a story.

• High school students

The best way to engage teenagers is to focus on something they’re passionate about. Let your students pick an article from any section of the paper and turn it into a tweet. Ask them, “If you were limited to a Twitter post about this article, what would you share with your classmates?” This exercise will not only get them reading the news but will also help them pull out the most important facts from an article.

It’s hard to find a high schooler who doesn’t have strong opinions. Put those feelings to use by having your class write editorials. First, spend some time looking at editorials in the newspaper and discussing what makes a good editorial. Then, let them pick a topic that matters to them and try their hand at writing their own editorial.

Invite your students to listen to news podcasts (our favorites include Skimm This , The Globalist , and The Takeaway ) and then challenge them to create their own. Using a program such as Audacity (for PCs) or Garageband (for Mac and mobile devices) have your students report on happenings around the school or in their community.

Integrating current events into different content areas will help students see the real-world significance of what they are learning as they develop a greater awareness of the world around them.

Who invented Famous Amos cookies? Who made Barbie a household name? The Beginning Biography Series features engaging topics that are relevant to today’s students. You're sure to keep their attention as they practice reading informational text.

This blog was originally published on April 29, 2019. It was updated on May 26, 2023.

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How to Write a Current Events Summary

Last Updated: February 12, 2023 Fact Checked

Choosing a News Article

Preparing to write, summary section, reflection section, final touches.

This article was co-authored by Richard Perkins . Richard Perkins is a Writing Coach, Academic English Coordinator, and the Founder of PLC Learning Center. With over 24 years of education experience, he gives teachers tools to teach writing to students and works with elementary to university level students to become proficient, confident writers. Richard is a fellow at the National Writing Project. As a teacher leader and consultant at California State University Long Beach's Global Education Project, Mr. Perkins creates and presents teacher workshops that integrate the U.N.'s 17 Sustainable Development Goals in the K-12 curriculum. He holds a BA in Communications and TV from The University of Southern California and an MEd from California State University Dominguez Hills. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 263,068 times.

A current events summary is a short description of an event that has recently happened or is going to happen. Current events summaries are often assigned by junior and senior high school educators for the purpose of teaching research, writing, and editing skills. The following steps will help you create a current events summary that is accurate, informative, and readable.

• Some possible news sources might include your local newspaper or larger newspapers such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times and others.
• Check with your teacher for suggestions. He may have specific news sources to use.

• Most major newspapers have sections on their websites dedicated to certain topics. For example, the Washington Post has a section dedicated to “Tech.”
• Search online for an article on one of these topics. For example, try searching “healthcare news” to find new information.

• An article that is one to two paragraphs long is probably not going to be lengthy enough.

• Look up any words you don’t know.
• Take notes on the article or highlight passages that you think are important.

• The headline typically indicates the article’s main idea, but the article will likely include more information that is relevant to your summary.
• Choose five main points from the article that you think are important.
• Find some keywords to get the main idea across to the people. [1] X Research source

• Who: This is the person or group involved in the story. For a story on a recent arson case, you might say, “The people involved are four teenage boys who were charged with arson, a police investigation team, and the community that lost its historic baseball stadium.”
• What: This is the event or the action discussed in the story. In an arson case, it might be: “The oldest wooden baseball stadium in the country burned to the ground.”
• When: This is the date and time when the event took place: “The stadium burned down at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, June 29.”
• Where: This is where the event took place: “The baseball stadium was in the middle of the city, surrounded by residences.”
• Why: This is the cause or reason for the event: “The summer has been unusually dry and hot. The stadium had been sitting empty for five years and was not patrolled by security.”
• How: This point explains the ways in which the events took place and the connections between them: “The teenagers walked into the stadium and began playing with lighters and loose debris. Once the fire was set, they ran off.”

• Think about the story’s connection to your community, the nation, or the world, for example.

• When you recounted the article to someone else, you highlighted the most important parts of the article. These things will go in your outline. Now your job is to put them in an order that makes sense.

• Depending on your assignment, this might be three or four sentences, or it might be seven to nine sentences. Check your assignment for your length requirement.

• Even though the reflection is short (usually just a paragraph), you should still aim to make an argument , at least to some degree. Determine the main point that you want to make and think about how you will support that main point.

• Some teachers don’t allow the use of “I” (first person) in these reflections. Check with your teacher to determine if you can write in first person or not.

• Don’t just string together random thoughts about why the news story is important.

• Take a look at your verbs. If you use boring or the same verbs, your audience will get bored. See if you can make efficient choices of great action verbs.
• If you are handwriting your summary, you may need to write it out again as a clean copy after you’ve corrected any errors. For this reason, it may be preferable to type out the summary. Some teachers may require a typed paper.

• If you have a grading rubric for the assignment, review this before turning in the assignment. Make sure you have met all the requirements to ensure a good grade.

• Lee, Morgan. “California Regulators Approve Higher Electricity Rates for Most Residents.” The Los Angeles Times. The Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2015. Web. 4 July 2015.

Community Q&A

• Every teacher’s assignment is going to be a little bit different. Make sure you follow your assignment exactly. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

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• ↑ https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/resumes-cover-letters/how-to-write-summary-example
• ↑ https://k12.thoughtfullearning.com/minilesson/asking-and-answering-5-ws-and-h-questions
• ↑ http://coe.jmu.edu/learningtoolbox/5w1h.html
• ↑ www.acisd.org/getFile.cfm?serverFileName=3D7039FC7A-D973-59AD-3C95BCBCFDC1039D.pdf
• ↑ http://alt-resource.teams.leedsmet.ac.uk/how-to-write-a-reflection
• ↑ https://owlcation.com/academia/How-to-Write-a-Summary

About This Article

A current events summary is a short review of a recent news story. To write your own, start by finding an interesting story from a reputable source, like a popular newspaper or news website. Read the full article and look up any words or phrases you don’t understand. Then, read the article again and take note of the most important facts, like who was involved, where and when the story took place, why it happened, and how it happened. Use these notes to write your summary. In your first sentence or 2, give a brief summary of what happened. Then, write a few more sentences to give your readers the extra details they need to know. For more tips from our Education co-author, including how to write a reflection on your current events summary, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Creative Writing Prompts Inspired by Historical Events

by Melissa Donovan | Oct 24, 2023 | Creative Writing Prompts | 12 comments

Creative writing prompts inspired by historical events.

Today’s prompts include selections from the book 1200 Creative Writing Prompts . Enjoy!

Nonfiction writers are obviously inspired by the real world, but fiction writers and poets also take inspiration from real people and events.

Wars, scandals, scientific advances, and famous figures in history have all been represented in every form of writing.

Works of fiction that resonate best with readers contain a kind of truth, a reflection of our own real experiences. That’s why looking to the events of history for story ideas is a great way to inspire a writing session. And of course, poetry takes inspiration from everything in the universe. While personal experiences may be more popular sources of inspiration, some incredible poems and stories have been triggered by real events throughout history.

Writing Prompts

You can use these creative writing prompts to write anything you want — a poem, a short story, a blog post, or a journal entry. The idea is to find the prompt that speaks to you and then start writing.

• In a country that rants and raves about freedom, the government decides that its people should not be allowed to drink liquor. Write a story set during Prohibition in the United States.
• The Great Depression filled the space between America’s Prohibition (which was still in effect during the Depression) and World War II. The Depression affected the entire world. Well-to-do people lost everything and found themselves standing in food lines. Ordinary people went to extraordinary measures to get a meager meal. Meanwhile, someone, somewhere profited.
• World War II gave rise to what journalist Tom Brokaw called “the greatest generation.” Create a cast of compelling characters and write a story showing how circumstances forced them to become great.
• The entertainment industry boomed in the twentieth century. Technology changed entertainment from an attraction you paid to see in a theater or other public setting to something you could enjoy from the comfort of your home. Every home had a radio. Black-and-white silent films evolved into Technicolor talkies. Now we have the Internet. Write a story centered on entertainment technologies of the past.
• Spaceships, planes, and men on the moon: We started out traveling around on foot. Then some clever Neanderthal invented the wheel. Now, we soar through the skies and tear through space. Write a story about a long journey set in an era when planes, trains, and automobiles weren’t readily available.
• The 1960s gave us Civil Rights, Woodstock, and the space race. What happens when a nation’s people are divided? What happens when minorities of people are oppressed? What happens when ordinary kids decide they don’t want to grow up and become just like their parents? Mix in the fact that there’s a war nobody understands and most people don’t believe in. Add drugs, flowers, and peace signs, and you’ve got the sixties. Write a story set during this iconic decade.
• Write a story that is set around the assassination of an important, benevolent, historical figure: for example, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, JFK, or John Lennon.
• Revolution could be defined as a war between a state and its people. Revolution often occurs when people are oppressed to the point of mass suffering. Choose one such revolution from history and write a story about the people who launched it.
• Throughout history, people have emigrated across land and ocean. Choose a time period of heavy human migration. Then choose a starting place and a destination and write the story of a character or group of characters who take the voyage. Focus on the journey, not the place of origin or the destination.
• The 1950s are often painted as a simple and idealistic time in American history. One income could support an entire family. Jobs were plentiful. Moms stayed home with their kids. Divorce was scandalous. Write about a protagonist who didn’t fit the mold, whose life was difficult because of the cultural and societal conventions of the time.

Good luck with these creative writing prompts! Have fun and don’t forget to come back and tell us how they worked for you.

Got any writing prompts of your own to share or add to this list? Leave a comment.

12 Comments

Great ideas for prompts. I’ll be stealing these for my Creative Writing class. Here’s one I came up with for a poetry class I’m teaching this summer. Feel free to try it and give it a more thorough explanation here, if you like it. essentially, the writer goes through his or her twitter feed or Facebook status updates and writes a list of the interesting verbs and nouns, then puts them together in interesting ways to form found poetry or story ideas. Here’s the list I came up with:

http://unapologetic-conjecture.blogspot.com/2011/06/fun-with-words-from-twitter.html

Hi Benjamin. I like the idea of getting word lists from Twitter and using them to prompt a writing session. Thanks for sharing!

Almost every time when I read scientific news I get ideas for my book set in far future. Or when I look at space pictures from Hubble. Sometimes I simply can’t enjoy reading the articles itself – ideas, ideas are coming! 🙂

I know the feeling! I was researching outer space just this weekend. Sometimes, I get so many ideas, it takes me a few days to work out which ones I should use!

I found this very interesting. Woodstock caught my eye because although I was not there the music is from my generation. My mind is overflowing with possibilities………….

Ooh, cool. Woodstock was before my time, but I’m fascinated by the Woodstock culture. There are definitely stories to be told there! Good luck with yours!

And isn’t it convenient that history just repeats itself? 😉

I suppose it could include events in one’s own life? Pretty potent events inspired my entry into fiction.

Of course. Some of the best inspiration comes from real-life experiences.

Speaking of cultural movements, does it seem to anyone else that America has entered a sort of post-Romantic era?

This is from Britannica : “Introspection was inevitable in the literature of an immediately Post-Romantic period, and the age itself was as prone to self-analysis as were its individual authors.”

I don’t think I’d use that description to describe what is happening in America right now. I would call this a divisive era. Dark, dystopian works seem to be popular juxtaposed against commercial art that could be construed as shallow or meaningless ( Hunger Games v. Fifty Shades ). In fact, one might say that there is a struggle between materialism and meaning. We could also call it the post-technology age, where we are challenged to adjust to a new system in which we rely heavily on technology and it has cost lots of jobs.

What a great question, Jesse. It’s given me much to think about. I do believe we are on the cusp of some new era. We live in fascinating times!

Great ideas. Many thanks. I’m filing this.

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Fall 2023 Events

09/27 @ 7pm — Poet, Novelist, and Playwright Quan Barry , reading from her new poetry collection Auction in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Rooms (201 W Mifflin St, rms 301 & 302). This event is sponsored by The Wisconsin Book Festival and the UW-Madison Program in Creative Writing. ( Details Here )

09/28 @ 7pm — Novelist and Short-Story Writer Joyce Carol Oates , reading from her new story collection Zero-Sum , in conversation with Chloe Benjamin in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Madison Room (201 W Mifflin St). This event is sponsored by The Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

09/30 @ 7pm — Poets Steven Espada Dawson, Courtney LeBlanc, Alison Thumel, & Joshua Gottlieb-Miller , at the North St. Cabaret (610 North St). This event is sponsored by the Monsters of Poetry Reading Series. ( Details Here )

10/05 @ 7pm — Poets J.L. Conrad & Heather Swan , reading from their new poetry collections Recovery and dandelion at Garver Canvas in the Garver Feed Mill (3241 Garver Green, near Olbrich Gardens). ( Details Here )

10/19 @ 7pm — Novelist Nghi Vo , reading from Mammoths at the Gates in the Madison Public Library’s Lower-Level Program Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/20 @ 4:30pm — Author Christopher Chambers , reading from his new short story collection Kind of Blue in the Madison Public Library’s Lower-Level Program Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/20 @ 6pm — Author Leila Aboulela , reading from her new novel River Spirit in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/20 @ 9pm — Poets Leslie Sainz and Alisha Dietzman , reading from their debut poetry collections Have You Been Long Enough at Table and Sweet Movie in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the UW-Madison Program in Creative Writing and the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/21 @ noon — Beth Nguyen , reading from her new memoir Owner of a Lonely Heart in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the UW-Madison Program in Creative Writing and the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/21 @ 1:30pm — Poet José Olivarez , reading from his new poetry collection Promises of Gold in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/21 @ 3pm — Author Michelle Wildgen , reading from her new novel Wine People in the Madison Public Library’s Lower-Level Program Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/21 @ 7:30pm — Author Jamel Brinkley , reading from his new short story collection Witness in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival and the UW-Madison Program in Creative Writing. ( Details Here )

10/22 @ noon — Author Nathan Hill , reading from his debut novel Wellness in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival. ( Details Here )

10/22 @ noon — Poet Adrienne Chung , reading from her debut poetry collection Organs of Little Importance in the Madison Public Library’s Lower-Level Program Room (201 W Mifflin). This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Book Festival and the UW-Madison Program in Creative Writing. ( Details Here )

10/25 @ 6pm — Poets Jesse Lee Kercheval and Jeannine Marie Pitas , reading from their translation of Uruguyan poet Silvia Guerra, A Sea at Dawn , at Mystery to Me bookstore (1863 Monroe St). ( Details Here )

11/17 @ 6pm — Author Sigrid Nunez , reading from her latest novel, The Vulnerables , in the Madison Public Library’s Third-Floor Community Rooms (201 W Mifflin). ( Details Here )

11/18 @ 7pm — The Wisconsin Writers Award Kickoff , featuring Heather Swan, Alison Townsend, Maggie Ginsberg, Ingrid Andersson, Laura Anne Bird, and Jennifer Morales, at the Arts and Literature Laboratory (111 S Livingston). ( Details Here )

Many of our events are made possible through our ongoing partnership with the Wisconsin Book Festival

Bookstore Partners

We encourage people interested in purchasing books featured at the readings to place their orders at any of these local, independent partner bookstores around the state of Wisconsin.

A Room of One’s Own, Madison 608.257.7888 |  [email protected] Website |  Instagram

The Book Store, Appleton 920.734.8908 |  [email protected] Website  |  Facebook

Honest Dog Books, Bayfield 715.779.5223 |  [email protected] Website  |  Twitter  |  Instagram

Dotters Books, Eau Claire 715.829.0468 |  [email protected] Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram

Woodland Pattern, Milwaukee 414.263.5001 |  [email protected] Website  |  Facebook  |  Instagram

Fox Den Books, River Falls 715.425.6180 |  [email protected] Website

Mind Chimes Bookshop, Three Lakes 715.546.4222. |  [email protected] Website

Arcadia Books, Spring Green 608.588.7638 |  [email protected] Website

Driftless Books & Music, Viroqua 608.638.2665 |  [email protected] Website  |  Facebook

More Madison-area venues for live Literary Events

• A Room of One's Own Bookstore
• Mystery to Me Bookstore
• Watershed Reading Series @ Arts + Literature Laboratory
• Monsters of Poetry

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Winners of the O. Henry Prize for Short Fiction 2024

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The ZHR Writing Prize for Women/ How To Submit (Pay: Rs.100,000)

The ZHR Writing Prize for Women is thrilled to announce the opening of entries for its esteemed competition, starting from April 1st, 2024, and concluding on June 30th. This article outlines the submission guidelines, eligibility criteria, and other essential information for prospective participants.     Submission Guidelines For The ZHR Writing Prize for Women  ...

Masterclass on The Building Blocks of a Novel/ How to Apply

Are you an aspiring novelist? Then save your spot for this masterclass on novel writing. Jacana Media is hosting a series of writing masterclasses, one of which is the building blocks of a novel. This will be facilitated by the 2024 Drue Literature Prize winner, Mubanga Kalimamukwento.      What will you learn? This masterclass...

The Happy Noisemaker Prize for Storytelling Winner

On April 24, 2024, five months after the shortlist was revealed, the top three winners of the Happy Noisemakers Prize for Storytelling were announced.    The prize is said to be ‘a launchpad to amplify bright new voices, who find new ways to make sense of uniquely African realities, while contributing to the diversification of...

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Saturday, May 4, 2024

• Illini Union 210

MFA Public Reading

Join us in celebrating the work of the MFA in Creative Writing's class of 2024.

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Thursday, October 3, 2024

Gwendolyn Brooks Social Justice Initiative presents: Lillian-Yvonne Bertram

Join us for the second installment of the Gwendolyn Brooks Social Justice Initiative. This year's featured guest is Lillian-Yvonne Bertram, who will give a public reading Thursday, Oct. 3 2024 at 5:30PM.

Thursday, October 17, 2024

Carr visiting author series: kathy fagan.

A poetry reading by Kathy Fagan, made possible by the Robert J. and Katherin Carr visiting author series.

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Thursday, November 14, 2024

Carr visiting author series: devon walker-figueroa.

A poetry reading by Devon Walker-Figueroa, made possible by the Robert J. and Katherin Carr visiting author series.

Thursday, March 6, 2025

Kaplan family writer in residence: jonas hassen khemiri.

A reading by Jonas Hassen Khemiri, made possible by the Kaplan Family Writer in Residence Series.

Creative Aging: Memoir Writing at 58th Street Library

• Wednesday, May 1, 2024, 2 - 4 PM
• Wednesday, May 8, 2024, 2 - 4 PM
• Wednesday, May 15, 2024, 2 - 4 PM

Continue where we left off at the end of our Memoir Writing workshops for adults 50 and older.

This program will be held in person at 58th Street Library and online.

Teaching artist Frank Ingrasciotta will continue to guide participants through the art of writing over 5 extra sessions.

Storytelling is our most ancient art form and everyone has a story in us that wants to be told. When powerful storytelling resonates, it creates shared experiences of commonality that bonds us as a community. In this eight-session memoir writing class, we will examine various aspects of storytelling. Through writing exercises, we will explore the tools of your personal expression that bring writing to life.

Materials will be provided for this program. 

Attendance at all sessions is recommended as this is a series of classes and those who miss the first few may be lost. Space is limited and priority will be given to those who attended the first 8 sessions last year.  

Registration is mandatory.  Register for April and May events above with your email address. 

About the Artist

Frank Ingrasciotta (Actor/Playwright/Director/Educator) is the writer/performer of the award winning Off-Broadway solo play Blood Type: RAGU, performing over 1,000 shows nationally and internationally. As an actor, Frank has appeared in numerous stage productions, daytime dramas, and episodic TV shows. He has also directed many theatrical productions for numerous theatre companies. As an arts educator, he conducts workshops in acting, and creative writing with diverse populations and students of all ages. He holds a Theatre Arts in Education degree from SUNY Empire State College.

• Class Format: Hands on
• Skill prerequisites: No prior experience required. This program is perfect for all skill levels.
• Audience: Adults, 50+

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Retirement celebration May 7 for Distinguished Service Professor Leigh Wilson

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A retirement celebration for Distinguished Service Professor Leigh Wilson will take place from 4 to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 7, on the third floor of Poucher Hall in the creative writing wing.

The farewell coffee invites all those who have worked and/or connected with Wilson during her 40 years of service with SUNY Oswego.  Recognized in 2020 with a Distinguished Service Professorship , Wilson is the current chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing, with a record spanning leadership, service and creativity.

In her time at Oswego,  Wilson also has directed the college’s creative writing program,  campus-wide Grand Challenge’s Fresh Water for All initiative,  the  Interdisciplinary Programs and Activities Center and the Digital Oz storytelling project.

Wilson also is an award-winning writer who has taught and mentored countless successful writers and creators over those four decades.

Light refreshments will be served and the farewell event, and a ll are welcome to stop by to express gratitude and wish Wilson luck with her future endeavors.

-- Submitted by the English and Creative Writing Department

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177 Questions to Inspire Writing, Discussion, Debate and Reflection

Here are all of our Student Opinion questions from the 2019-20 school year. A New York Times article, interactive feature or video is the jumping-off point for each question.

By The Learning Network

Each school day, we publish a new Student Opinion question. The questions explore everything from family, school and friendships to race, gender and social media. Not surprisingly, this past year, many of our Student Opinion prompts also touched on how the coronavirus pandemic affected nearly all aspects of our lives.

During the 2019-20 school year, we asked 177 questions, and you can find them all below or here as a PDF . The questions are divided into two categories — those that provide opportunities for debate and persuasive writing, and those that lend themselves to creative, personal or reflective writing.

A New York Times article, interactive feature or video is the jumping-off point for each question, and students can view each linked Times article without a digital subscription.

These questions are used by some teachers as a way to spark class discussion and debate, while other teachers use them as an entry point for practicing narrative or persuasive writing. Our Student Opinion questions offer an authentic audience for student voices as well as a way to encourage students to engage with current events and peers from around the world.

We also have a free, on-demand webinar that offers other ideas on how to use our writing prompts in the classroom for everyday low-stakes writing practice across the curriculum.

Questions for Debate and Persuasive Writing

1. Should Students Get Mental Health Days Off From School? 2. Do Video Games Deserve the Bad Rap They Often Get? 3. Should College Be Free? 4. Where Should We Draw the Line Between Community Health and Safety and Individual Liberty and Privacy? 5. Does the United States Owe Reparations to the Descendants of Enslaved People? 6. What Topics Do You Wish You Could Learn About in School? 7. Should Parents Track Their Children? 8. When Do You Become an Adult? 9. Is the Mona Lisa Bad for Art? 10. Would You Return a Lost Wallet? (What if It Had Lots of Money in It?) 11. Do You Believe Aliens Exist? 12. Is Animal Testing Ever Justified? 13. Should Gifted and Talented Education Be Eliminated? 14. Do Films Like ‘Joker’ Endorse (or Even Promote) Violence? 15. Why Is It Important for People With Different Political Beliefs to Talk to Each Other? 16. What Rules, if Any, Should There Be About Phone Use During Live Performances? 17. Should Stay-at-Home Parents Be Paid? 18. Should We Feel Guilty When We Travel? 19. Are Some Youth Sports Too Intense? 20. Can Social Media Be a Tool for Learning and Growth in Schools? 21. Should Students Be Required to Take the SAT and ACT to Apply to College? 22. Should Your School Day Start Later? 23. Should Facebook Fact-Check Political Speech? 24. Should Blowouts Be Allowed in Youth Sports? 25. Should the Week Be Four Days Instead of Five? 26. Should Sports Journalism ‘Stick To Sports’? 27. Should Students Be Punished for Not Having Lunch Money? 28. Should Schools Test Their Students for Nicotine and Drug Use? 29. Is Racial and Economic Diversity in Schools Important? 30. Should Texting While Driving Be Treated Like Drunken Driving? 31. Why Do Bystanders Sometimes Fail to Help When They See Someone in Danger? 32. Are Comic-Book Movies Ruining Film? 33. How Do You Think American Education Could Be Improved? 34. Should All Schools Teach Cursive? 35. What Suggestions Do You Have for Improving Lunch at Your School? 36. Should Musicians Be Allowed to Copy or Borrow From Other Artists? 37. What Do You Think About Prince Harry and Meghan ‘Stepping Back’? 38. What Role Should Textbooks Play in Education? 39. Should Public Transit Be Free? 40. How Should We Punish Sports Cheaters? 41. Is There a ‘Right Way’ to Be a Tourist? 42. Do the Grammy Awards Represent the Best in Music Today? 43. Do You Think the World Is Getting Closer to Securing the Promise of ‘Never Again’? 44. Should the Adults in Your Life Be Worried by How Much You Use You Use Your Phone? 45. Is It Offensive for Sports Teams and Their Fans to Use Native American Names, Imagery and Gestures? 46. Should Facial Recognition Technology Be Used in Schools? 47. In the Age of Digital Streaming, Are Movie Theaters Still Relevant? 48. Do Memes Make the Internet a Better Place? 49. Is Childhood Today Over-Supervised? 50. How Do You Decide What News to Believe, What to Question and What to Dismiss? 51. Should Plastic Bags Be Banned Everywhere? 52. Do You Think Online Conspiracy Theories Can Be Dangerous? 53. What Should #MeToo Mean for Teenage Boys? 54. Is It Immoral to Increase the Price of Goods During a Crisis? 55. Should Public Preschool Be a Right for All Children? 56. What Are Your Reactions to the Impeachment Inquiry of President Trump? 57. Is the Impeachment Inquiry a Teachable Moment? Or Should Politics Stay Out of the Classroom? 58. What Is Your Reaction to the Results of the Iowa Caucuses? 59. How Do You Think the Primaries and 2020 Presidential Election Should Proceed? 60. What Role Should Celebrities Have During the Coronavirus Crisis? 61. Should Schools Change How They Grade Students During the Pandemic? 62. Should We All Be Able to Vote by Mail? 63. Is It OK to Laugh During Dark Times? 64. When the Pandemic Ends, Will School Change Forever? 65. What Makes a Great Leader? 66. Should Students Be Monitored When Taking Online Tests? 67. Should National Service Be Required for All Young Americans?

Questions for Creative and Personal Writing

68. How Is What You Are Studying in School Relevant to Your Life and the Larger World? 69. How Much Racism Do You Face in Your Daily Life? 70. Do You Ever Laugh at the Misfortune of Others? 71. How Much Has Your ZIP Code Determined Your Opportunities? 72. What Weaknesses and Strengths About Our World Are Being Exposed By This Pandemic? 73. What Have You Learned About Yourself During This Lockdown? 74. What’s the Most Memorable Thing That Happened to You This Summer? 75. Does Your Life Ever Feel Too Busy? 76. How Do You Feel About Active-Shooter Drills in Schools? 77. When Have You Either Forgiven Someone or Been Forgiven Yourself? 78. How Do You Deal With Self-Doubt? 79. What Are Your Hometown’s Shortcomings? 80. Have You Ever Had a Significant Friendship End? 81. Are You Going to a Youth Climate Strike? 82. How Well Do Your Parents Deal With Sibling Conflicts? 83. How Similar Are Your Political Views to Those of Your Parents? 84. Have You Ever Read a Book You Weren’t Supposed to Read? 85. What Do You Eat for Dinner on a Typical Weeknight? 86. What’s Your Favorite Punctuation Mark? 87. Do You Get an Allowance? 88. Have You Ever Encountered Racist or Extremist Content Online? 89. What Do You Think of the Field of Democratic Presidential Candidates? 90. What Is Your Favorite Rivalry? 91. Who Do You Turn To in a Crisis? 92. Are You a Worrier? 93. What Grievances Do You Have With Your Local Community? 94. What’s Your Favorite Halloween Costume, Past or Present? 95. How Good Are You at Spending Time Alone? 96. What Could You Read, Listen to or Watch to Stretch Your Cultural Imagination? 97. Do You Read Reviews? 98. Do You Want to Get Married Someday? 99. Do You Seek Out New Experiences? Or Stick With the Things You Know and Love? 100. How Well Do You Read Other People? 101. What Does Thanksgiving Mean to You? 102. Do You Have Any Close Friends? 103. Have You Ever Tried to Make Money Online? 104. Do You Feel Safer When You Know You’re Being Watched? 105. What Are Your Experiences With Meditation? 106. How Will You Remember the 2010s? 107. Do You See Yourself in the Books You Read? 108. What Were the Best and Worst Things About 2019 for You? 109. Are You Good at Giving Gifts? 110. What Is Your Choice for Word of the Year? 111. How Have You Coped With the Death of an Idol? 112. Who Are the Ordinary Heroes of 2019? 113. What Are Your Predictions for the New Year and the New Decade? 114. What Era Do You Wish You Had Grown Up In? 115. Would You Want to Live and Breathe Creating Content for Social Media? 116. Do You Complain Too Much, Too Little or Just the Right Amount? 117. How Would You Rate Your Listening Skills and Those of the People Around You? 118. Would You Consider Serving in the U.S. Armed Forces? 119. Have You Ever Quit Something? 120. What Are You Doing to Change Your School? 121. What Does Kobe Bryant’s Death Mean to You? 122. Did You Watch the Super Bowl? What Did You Think? 123. How Have You Learned About Slavery? 124. Would You Ever Consider Becoming Vegetarian? 125. Do You Turn to Your Parents for Advice? 126. What Role Have Coaches Played in Your Life? 127. How Would You Design Your Ideal Museum? 128. Are You Able to Be Your Whole Self at School? 129. Do You Have More Good Habits Than Bad? 130. We Document Life’s Milestones. How Should We Document Death? 131. How Concerned Are You About the Coronavirus Outbreak? 132. Are You a Good Person? 133. Would You Allow an Ex-Prisoner to Live With You? 134. How Would Your Life Be Different if You Didn’t Have Wi-Fi and Cellular Service? 135. Stress, Worry and Anxiety Are All Different. How Do You Cope With Each? 136. Is the Diversity of Your School Accurately Reflected in Its Promotional Materials? 137. What Is Your Reaction to the Latest News About the Coronavirus Outbreak? 138. What Role Does Poetry Play in Your Life? 139. How Can We Help One Another During the Coronavirus Outbreak? 140. What Songs Matter to You Now? 141. How Is the Coronavirus Outbreak Affecting Your Life? 142. What Are You Reading, Watching, Listening To, Playing and Cooking? A Place for Recommendations 143. How Are You Staying Healthy and Fit? 144. What Questions Do You Have About the Coronavirus? 145. Has Your School Switched to Remote Learning? How Is It Going So Far? 146. How Do Animals Provide Comfort in Your Life? 147. Is the Coronavirus Pandemic Bringing Your Extended Family Closer Together? 148. What Are Some Ways to “Travel” Without Traveling During the Pandemic? 149 Holidays and Birthdays Are Moments to Come Together. How Are You Adapting During the Pandemic? 150. How Has the Coronavirus Changed How You Use the Internet? 151. How Are You Getting Your Sports Watching Fix? 152. What Acts of Kindness Have You Heard About or Participated In During Coronavirus? 153. When Has Starting Over Worked for You? 154. Is Your Family Experiencing Greater Conflict During a Time of Self-Quarantine? 155. How Are You Feeling About Missing Prom? 156. How Can You Tell a Story About Your Life Right Now Through a Few Simple Numbers? 157. What Does Your Accent Say About Who You Are? 158. How Do You Greet Your Friends and Family? 159. What Are Your Favorite Games? 160. What Do You Miss Most About Your Life Before the Pandemic? 161. What Are Your Hopes for Summer 2020? What Are Your Worries? 162. How Do You Connect With Your Parents? 163. Are You an Optimist or a Pessimist? 164. What Do the Objects in Your Home Say About You? 165. What’s the First Thing You Plan to Do After Quarantine? 166. Do You Enjoy Going On a Walk — Especially Now? 167. What’s the Best Book You Ever Read for School? 168. What’s the Craziest Thing You Did as a Kid? 169. How Is Your Family Dividing Responsibilities During the Quarantine 170. How Has Social Distancing Changed Dating for Teenagers? 171. Do You Believe in Ghosts? 172. What Issues in the 2020 Presidential Race Are Most Important to You? 173. Do You Prefer to Dwell in the Past, Live in the Present or Dream of the Future? 174. Does the Future of Robots Get You Excited, or Fill You With Dread? 175. How Do You Practice Self-Care? 176. How Will We Remember the Coronavirus Pandemic? 177. What Is Your Reaction to the Days of Protest That Have Followed the Death of George Floyd?

Want more writing prompts?

You can find even more Student Opinion questions in our 550 Prompts for Narrative and Personal Writing and 130 New Prompts for Argumentative Writing . We also publish daily Picture Prompts , which are image-centered posts that provide space for many different kinds of writing. You can find all of our writing prompts, added as they publish, here .

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• Specifically, the final rule provides that it is an unfair method of competition—and therefore a violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act—for employers to enter into noncompetes with workers after the effective date.
• Fewer than 1% of workers are estimated to be senior executives under the final rule.
• Specifically, the final rule defines the term “senior executive” to refer to workers earning more than $151,164 annually who are in a “policy-making position.”
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• This reflects an estimated increase of about 3,000 to 5,000 new patents in the first year noncompetes are banned, rising to about 30,000-53,000 in the tenth year.
• This represents an estimated increase of 11-19% annually over a ten-year period.
• The average worker’s earnings will rise an estimated extra $524 per year. 

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