Kelly A. Harmon

Writing Prompt – Man Made Storms and Storm Chasing

Kelly — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:37:30 +0000

On this date in 1934 a huge dust storm sent 350 million tons of silt and topsoil catapulting eastward from the Great Northern Plains, some of it reaching as far as New York and Atlanta.

The reason?

When the plains states were settled in the mid-1800s, the land was covered by prairie grass which kept the ground moist and kept soil from blowing away during hot, dry times. When farmers began plowing the grass under to plant crops, the soil dried and had nothing to keep it from blowing away.

Worse, the U.S. involvement in World War I in 1917 created a huge demand for wheat, and farmers plowed under more and more grassland, thanks also to a new invention: the tractor. Farmers continued to plow after the war, as even more powerful tractors came on the market. (In the 1920s, wheat production increased by 300%, glutting the market by 1931.)

In the early 1930s, a severe drought caused crops to die, and wind to carry the dust from the fields. Storms increased yearly until 1934 when the number of them decreased, but the severity increased, causing the worst dust storm in history on May 11. The New York Times reported, dust “lodged itself in the eyes and throats of weeping and coughing New Yorkers,” and even ships some 300 miles offshore saw dust collect on their decks.*

Here’s Your Prompt:

Write a poem, essay or journal entry about being unexpectedly caught in a storm.
Write about being caught in a dust storm, wind storm or any kind of storm other than rain or sleet or hail. Was it a small storm, or a large one (affecting your town or the entire state)? Did you need to seek shelter? If so, where?
Write about:
- biting the dust
- dusting it up, or dusting it off
- gathering dust
- when the dust settles
- dry as dust
- dust bunnies
Theorize about how something we’re doing today could unintentionally cause a catastrophe such as the dust storm of 1934. What would we need to do to prevent it? How could we fix the problem if we don’t?
Would you ever consider being a storm chaser? Why or why not? What do you think the risks would be? What do you think the rewards would be?
Scientists risk their lives chasing tornadoes in hopes of learning about them. What do you think these scientists are trying to find out? What do you think the benefits will be for society if scientists find these answers?
I’ve seen the dust so black that I couldn’t see a thing,
I’ve seen the dust so black that I couldn’t see a thing,
And the wind so cold, boy, it nearly cut your water off.

I seen the wind so high that it blowed my fences down,
I’ve seen the wind so high that it blowed my fences down,
Buried my tractor six feet underground.

Well, it turned my farm into a pile of sand,
Yes, it turned my farm into a pile of sand,
I had to hit that road with a bottle in my hand.

~ From the Dust Bowl Blues, Woody Guthrie
“Charge it to the dust and let the rain settle it.”
Write about any other natural disaster, such as a tornado, a landslide or avalanche, a tsunami, or an earthquake.
Write about a storm that personally affected you in some way. What kind of storm was it? How did you get caught in it? What were the consequences?
Write a story where a storm is the inciting incident. (The inciting incident is the action or event that sets in motion the central conflict of the story.) Or, write a story in which a storm plays a major role.
Write about:
- the calm before a storm
- the eye of the storm, or being in the eye of the storm
- weathering the storm
- stormy weather
- any port in a storm
- a storm is brewing
- storming out of a room
- taking something by storm
We are the voices of the wandering wind,
Which moan for rest and rest can never find;
Lo! as the wind is, so is mortal life,
A moan, a sigh, a sob, a storm, a strife.

~ The Deva’s Song, Sir Edwin Arnold

Good Luck!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Quote from History.com’s May 11 entry.

Image Credit: A dust storm strikes Powers County, Colorado, in April 1935. Image: Library of Congress, FSA-OWI Collection, Repro. Num. LC-USF343-001617-ZE DLC.

Back from Retreat – A Few Takeaways

Kelly — Thu, 10 May 2012 19:19:40 +0000

Before I left for my writer’s retreat I set some pretty ambitious goals. When I got there, I wrote them down on a wall poster and hung it in the room where I did most of my writing.

(You’re seeing an early version of it here in the pic to the left. By the end of the retreat, I’d finished many more items than indicated in the photo.)

When I completed a task, I made an “X” in the box to the left of the task and moved on.

Other members of the group also wrote their goals on the easel pad and hung it, and as we worked, we were surrounded by these wall posters of what we wanted to accomplish. (It was gratifying to see that I wasn’t the only one who’d listed projects that should have been done months — if not years — ago.)

It was interesting to see the different styles by which we all worked. My list had no priority order, and I chose the easiest/quickest items to complete first and cross of my list. For me, it was motivating to see items checked off, and I built momentum as we went along.

Another member prioritized his list, then started from the top, working on each item in 30 minute intervals. Once 30 minutes passed, he added a tick mark to the item and moved on to the next: his method for avoiding writer’s block or getting discouraged by the length of time one item might take.

Another member just started from the top of her list and worked her way down.

When we rented the cabin earlier this year, we’d planned to work on card tables in our own rooms, but the “great room” of the cabin was so spacious (and contained a fire place!) that we decided to work together at the large dining table.

I wasn’t certain how that was going to work at first, and it felt a little bit like being stuck in “study hall” in high school, but it worked splendidly. We were quiet and industrious, with the occasional question tossed out to the group. I liked it better — and got more work done — than our previous retreat (though I enjoyed that retreat very much, too).

During the previous retreat, we lived and worked in separate rooms, dormitory style, and only saw each other for meals (at which time we weren’t allowed speak to each other).

I found this retreat much more enjoyable, even if we tended to spend too much time (IMO) socializing at meals. As a group, we’ve already decided to rent again at this location next year.

I find the benefits of “communal” retreating to be:

Having the camaraderie of like-minded, motivated people who are on hand immediately to bounce an idea off of or ask for a quick critique
The “immediate” presence of other writers encouraged me to write, even when I didn’t feel like it.
By the same token, the presence of other writers discouraged web surfing, excessive solitaire playing and general cat waxing. (In fact, I didn’t goof off AT ALL…and didn’t feel deprived, either.)

Another thing I learned: Don’t take too much stuff.

All of us over packed, including on food. “Starving Writer” would certainly have been a misnomer for us.

Beyond food, we brought a printer, extra cartridges and reams of paper which we never touched, as well as office supplies, some writing prompt books, and other things we never used. I brought two novels to read. Although I read voraciously at home, I found when I tumbled into bed after writing all day I was too tired to read more than a page or two. I’ll leave those at home next time.

We did coordinate supplies: a “you bring this and I’ll bring that” kind of coordinating, but I think we’ll do more of that next time.

On the last day, I packed up my goals poster and brought it home. It’s now hanging on the wall over my desk. There’s nothing like staring at a list of “unfinished projects” to keep you moving. When I’m done with it, I’ll likely grab a new easel sheet and start another. And although I’ve got a ton more things to do than what’s on the list, I like the “finite” feel of the limited size of the wall poster.

Along with the poster, I’ve got an electronic “to do” list of things I need to accomplish now that I’ve returned. Many items on that list take the form of: “Send suchandsuch project to suchandsuch venue.” I’ve done a few of those tasks already, but I’ve more to do: all related to manuscripts completed on retreat (which might not have gotten done if I hadn’t gone away).

All in all: A huge success. It was a blast, and I’m ready to go again.

Writing Prompt – Home Sweet Home

Kelly — Fri, 04 May 2012 23:49:49 +0000

I spent a few days last week and this on a writing retreat with my face-to-face critique group. We traveled out of state, to Cacapon State Park in West Virginia, and hunkered down for a few cold and rainy days in the mountains.

The cabin was beautiful with hardwood floors and paneling, a stone fireplace, and set in the rustic location of the woods.

It was modern enough to have a full kitchen – with microwave – as well as forced air heat (and cooling) if we needed it.

It was everything you could want in a home, and yet, it wasn’t home.

There’s nothing better to me, than arriving home after being away. (And I don’t care if it’s a vacation I’ve gone on, or a visit “home” to my folks’ house, or just being at work for a full day…I enjoy coming home.)

Home is safe.

It’s more comfortable than any other place. It’s got my things laid out just the way I like them.

It’s mine.

Here’s Your Prompt:

Write about coming home.
Write about the old neighborhood.
Write about something quirky in your house which drives you nuts, but you wouldn’t change.
Write an essay: though I live ____________, my real home – my heart of homes – is ______________.
Write a story where your character is homesick and can’t return home for a long while (if ever). How does he cope?
If you journal, write about a time you were homesick. How did you feel? When were you able to go home? What did you do to alleviate the desire for home while you were gone?
Write about:
- something in the closet (or the basement)
- knocking down walls (figuratively or literally)
- a room of your own
Write about running away from home.
Write about:
- moving out
- moving into your own apartment for the first time
- buying a new home
- losing your home
Write about a world in which there are no homes left. How do people live? What if there were no space on top of the earth, so new apartment complexes are built down? What if the moon were able to be colonized and governments were offering homesteads to folks to move there?

Good luck!

Ten Reasons Why You Should Go on a Writing Retreat

Kelly — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 18:40:55 +0000

To start a new project.
To complete a project.
To recharge your writing batteries or find your Muse.
To relax or rest. To catch up on your reading. To gain a fresh perspective.
To reward yourself for what you’ve accomplished so far.
To be alone to write.
Or, to be among fellow writers with whom you can discuss ideas, get feedback, or bask in the support of like-minded people.
To evaluate your skill, your projects or your deadlines.
To organize your manuscript(s) and prioritize.
To write in a focused space without the interruptions of your daily life.

Writing Prompt – Poetry

Kelly — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 12:00:23 +0000

April is National Poetry Month. How did we get to the end of it without having a single poetry prompt?

I like poetry, but I’m not a good judge of what makes a poem good. I prefer the Dr. Seuss rhyming kind to free verse — and I think anything “… bouncy, flouncy, trouncy, pouncy,” is, of course, “…fun, fun, fun, fun, FUN!!!” *

I like Shakespeare’s sonnets, e. e. cumming’s clever words (more for how they’re laid out on the paper than anything else), Shel Silverstein, and Dante. I like dark and angsty, abhor maudlin and sentimental, and enjoy a really good sci-fi poem which makes me think.

My favorite poem is Invictus, by William Ernest Henley, introduced to me by my best friend in high school. (Hi, Charlie!)

I’d much rather a friend introduce me to a poet than to find him on my own: it’s both a ringing endorsement and a shared memory…

How do you like to find your poetry?

Here’s Your Prompt:

Write a poem about:
- a family secret
- an old love
- a weird fact or obscure trivia you know
- a cherished memory
- your favorite food
Write a poem at least 50 words long using only one-syllable words. Mix it up and try using only two-syllable words or three-syllable words.
Randomly pull 10-15 books off your shelf and write down the titles. Use as many as you can in a poem.
Write a structured poem using a structure you’ve never tried before: haiku, sonnet, sestina, villanelle, etc. Here’s a link to 12 kinds of structured poems and how to write them.
Write a poem in which the form contradicts the content.
Write a poem that starts with a one word title, has two words in the first line, three in the next, and continues by adding one word per line.
Poetry through reduction: take a piece of junk mail and cross out some of the words to create a poem. Start by eradicating some words, see how it reads, then whittle them down more and more until you have a lean, focused poem. Do the same with a page of text from your favorite author, a newspaper article or a magazine essay.
Write a poem based on a famous work of art, a photograph or snapshot, or the view from your window.
Journalers and essayists: What is your favorite poem? Why? Or, turn it around: what is your least favorite poem and why? Or, write about types of poetry? What is your favorite type? Least favorite? Cite examples to back up your statements, or write snippets of your own to do so.

If these aren’t enough, here are a few other prompts I’ve written which touch on poetry:

Good luck!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
^* Words from the Disney Tigger song.

Writing Prompt – Lions and Tigers and Bears (Oh, My!)

Kelly — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 11:39:02 +0000

I’m heading out today for some research at the Baltimore Zoo.

I LOVE the zoo. It’s been a long time since I’ve been, and I’m really looking forward to it.

My favorite: the snakes. But I also like the primates, too. And the giraffes, and the hippos. The lions, the tigers…

Oh, who am I kidding? I love it all, but especially, the snakes.

I’m sure you can imagine where today’s prompt is going? You guessed it: it’s about zoos and animals.

Here’s Your Prompt:

Imagine visiting a far off planet. [Class M, if you will.] and you find the most unusual animals. Write about which one is your favorite and why. How do you have to care for this animal? How does it live? What does it eat? Could you bring it back to earth? How would you manage that?
Me, Tarzan. You, Jane. (I really mean that the other way around. But if I’d written it that way, it wouldn’t have been half as effective!)

Imagine you — or a character in one of your stories — has been raised by animals. Describe life with these animals from early infancy on. Caveat: you can’t choose apes. Bonus points if you don’t choose wolves.]
If you’re journaling, write about the best (or worst) time you ever had at a zoo.
Another journaling prompt: write about an encounter with an animal that really sticks in your memory: have you ever been bitten by a dog? How about peed on by a toad? Tell us what happened.
If you’ve never had an encounter with an animal…pretend. What would it be like to be a veterinarian? A lion tamer in a circus? A scuba diver who investigates invertebrates?
Write about your encounter with an imaginary animal, such as a unicorn, a dragon, a werewolf or the phoenix.
Imagine you are the one locked up in a zoo. Someone cares for all your needs. People stare at you all day. How do you feel? What’s the best part? The worst? In an animal zoo, the animals are given toys and their special habitat to make it more palitable to them. What does the zoo provide for you?
What if you could understand the language of the animals? What would they say to you from behind their bars at the zoo? Do they like being there? Do they want to return to their natural habitats? What do they like or dislike about being in the zoo?
What if all the animals in the world were locked up in zoos? Keeping pets is forbidden. Only farm animals are “free.”
What if only all the “frightening” animals are collected and locked up? Which animals would those be? Why?
Pretend you are Dr. Seuss’ character Gerald McGrew. Like him, what would you do, if you ran the zoo?

Good Luck!

New Podcast Available – Hear Me Read

Kelly — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 22:35:31 +0000

The new Broad Universe podcast is available, this one focusing on “changelings and transformations.”

BroadPod “Rapid Fire Readings” feature five or six authors reading for five or six minutes each from their work.

Authors included in this month’s podcast are Carol Berg, E.F. Watkins, Daniele Ackley-McPhail and Anne Wilkes, and of course, me. I’ll be reading from Selk Skin Deep.

Selk Skin Deep was published in Bad Ass Fairies 3: In All Their Glory (an anthology of stories about fairies, which harkens back to their roots. You’ll find no Tinkerbelles in the bunch).

Selk Skin Deep was inspired by the true-live tragedy of the explosion on board the U.S.S. Forrestal, an aircraft carrier which exploded off the coast of Vietnam in 1967. My story is about Cade Owen, who joined the U.S. Navy trying to alleviate the boredom from his nearly immortal life. Cade is a selkie – a shape shifter who is both man and seal. In Selk Skin Deep he learns about sacrifice, and what it means to be human. It’s my tribute to U.S. Service Men and Women.

Listen to the Broad Universe Podcast here.

If you’re not into podcasts, I’ve made the first five pages of the story available via PDF. Here’s a link to the Selk Skin Deep excerpt.

Writing Prompt – By Any Other Name…

Kelly — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 16:18:49 +0000

Names are important.

They provide identity, reveal the culture or interest or nature of the namer.

They’re a source of embarrassment. Or pride.

They can cause all kinds of conflict.

I went to school with a woman whose grandmother had strict policies for naming the kids in the family. When her daughter was pregnant, she demanded the child be given an ethnic name.

Many arguments ensued, with my friend’s mom steadfast against the idea, but the grandmother eventually got her way. Little wonder that our professors were often surprised when Heidi’s name was called from the roster and a black woman responded to the question.

Well, the grandmother never stated what kind of ethnic name she wanted.

In my latest manuscript, both main characters are saddled with untenable names. The girl is named with a religious moniker — thanks to the nuns at the Catholic hospital where she was born, and the male lead is given a “family” name.

(I can hear a lot of folks groaning now.)

My first beau had such a name, and it caused him all kinds of embarrassment. Luckily for my character, like my boyfriend, his embarrassment is a middle name…

Here’s Your Prompt:

You have moved to a new county, and the laws state you must change your first name if you want to reside there permanently. What do you change your name to? How does this new name reflect who you are?
Write about name-calling.
Someone is saying your name…
Some to the fascination of a name surrender judgment hoodwinked. ~ William Cowper
He was also known as…
My grandmother called me by this name.
Write a story about a culture who believes names are all-powerful. Children are not named at birth, and choose their own when they are ready. They never reveal these secret names. How do people refer to each other? How do they choose the ‘names’ they go by in every day life?
A name is a kind of face whereby one is known. ~ Thomas Fuller
Open a phone book at random and drop your finger down on a name. Write about that person or business. What does the name inspire?
I do beseech you, (Chiefly, that I might set it in my prayers,) What is your name? ~ William Shakespeare, the Tempest. Act III, Scene 1.
Write the essay (or a journal entry, or a letter to your children…), “I was named this because…”

Good Luck!

Gearing Up for a Writer’s Retreat

Kelly — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 01:25:59 +0000

My face-to-face critique group and I are headed into the mountains for a four-day writer’s retreat at the end of the month. We’ve rented an 8-person cabin in a West Virginia state park and hope to get tons of writing done.

My list of writerly “to dos” is growing as the days go by.

Initially, my goal was to write 3,000 or more (no less!) words per day for each day we’re there. It doesn’t sound like much, but we can’t check in until four and must leave by ten, so it’s not really four full days. Maybe I should break the word count down hourly…

But now I’m toying with adding some “housekeeping” and “task” stuff to the list, like re-formatting some stories — whose rights have reverted back to me –for publishing on Amazon, Nook and Smashwords. Or updating the bibliography on my Web site. I could kill a full day doing that.

This retreat is different than our last. For one, we won’t be staying in a monastery.

This means (first and foremost) that we’ll be able to talk to each other. It’s tough for a bunch of writer friends not to discuss their work, but we managed. This time we’ll be able to chatter all we want. So I’m hoping not only for some writing time, but some critique time.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to go away and bring back some polished writing?

I’ve starting packing my boxes to take with me, and making lists of things not to forget.

For writing, I’m taking both my novel work in progress and two short stories I’ve started. I’d like to finish the shorts and grow the novel by a third, but I’ll be happy if I can add 12k of words total.

Before I go, I’ll clean off the desk and empty out the mailbox. I’m sure there’s at least a dozen things I’ll add to the list.

If you’re interested in how I’ll go about preparing for a writer’s retreat (and ranking how I’ll choose items to work on), read this post I made before the last retreat. (There’s no sense re-inventing the wheel.)

Anybody else out there take trips with their critique group? I’d love to hear how you pull it all together. Do you schedule the time or just wing it? Do you do free-writing exercises, or only work on stuff you hope to market? Inquiring minds want to know!

Happy Easter!

Kelly — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 14:26:34 +0000

Happy Easter!

We spent the day yesterday doing ‘Eastery’ things, including dying eggs and watching an Easter Egg hunt.

My sis made a fabulous coconut cake and we’ve already busted into it this morning. (I’ve also been into the potato salad. Shh, don’t tell Mom.)

We had Easter Dinner last night, so this morning we’re having a huge breakfast before everyone gets on the road to drive home.

Hope everyone has a terrific day!