Debate: Should a writing prompt give you everything or leave you hanging?

Last week in a workshop, someone pitched a prompt that spelled out every detail: a detective in 1920s Chicago loses his badge on a Tuesday. Another guy said it was too cramped, no room to breathe. I've seen prompts that just say 'write about a locked door' and those feel like a dare. But the detailed ones grab you by the collar and point you somewhere specific. Which side do you land on when you're starting a story: do you want the rails or the empty field?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_shane1mo ago

What is it with writers and their fear of a little direction? A prompt that leaves you hanging feels like a cop out to me, like the person who wrote it couldn't be bothered to do the work. A good detailed prompt acts like a starter engine for your imagination, not a cage. Without specific details, you're just staring at a blank page wondering where to even start, which is a waste of time. Give me the rails every time, at least then I know where the track is going.

kevin_wells461mo ago

Nah but see for me a detailed prompt is like getting handed a map with the route already highlighted and someone's like "here's the keys, don't crash." I freeze up when it's too open ended, I just start typing "the man walked into the room" over and over like some kind of broken NPC. Last time someone gave me a vague prompt I spent 45 minutes deciding if the door should be wooden or metal, which is honestly embarrassing for a grown adult. Like my brain needs specific details or else it just short circuits and I end up writing about what the character ate for breakfast instead of the actual story.