Creative Club #7

Your fortnightly writing prompt, and some thoughts on stealing and transforming.

Photo by Anshu A on Unsplash

Back in June, I wrote about being influenced by other writers, and the right and wrong ways to do it. It was on my mind – and still is – because as part of my MA dissertation, I have to write an essay reflecting on my own influences. In the comments, Rachael Hassam kindly shared a TEDtalk on this matter from Austin Kleon:

Being fiercely efficient, I left it in an open tab on my laptop to remind me to watch it, and that’s where it has stayed until this morning, over two months later, when I finally did.

It’s worth a watch (thank you Rachael!). Kleon’s argument (and the argument of many others before him, some of whom he quotes) is that art is all about stealing ideas and transforming them into something new. We’re not always stealing consciously – things wheedle their way into our subconscious minds and come out in different forms – but maybe it’s better if we are a bit more conscious. I’ve been rereading Sally Rooney, Colm Toíbín, David Nicholls and various others to try and work out what I might have accidentally pocketed.

Anyway, we’re here today for a Creative Club prompt, but if it interests you, when you share your written piece today (or even if you don’t), I’d love you to also tell me the writers whose style you think may have influenced your own. It’s a good thought experiment, at the very least.

As for the prompt, it’s the usual drill – use it as a jumping-off point and write whatever comes out today, then share it in the comments, up to around 300 words. I hope it triggers something exciting for you.

Today’s prompt is: