The Divorce Blog Goes Viral
Describe the journey of a woman who, after a public divorce, moves to a new city to restart her life. Along the way, she starts a blog that unintentionally becomes viral, challenging her to maintain her anonymity and new-found fame while healing from her past.
Suggested length: A short story: 1,500 to 5,000 words, or flash fiction under 1,000
Start the clock
Pick a sprint, press start and keep going until it stops. Momentum beats polish on a first draft.
Make it yours
Three ways to take this prompt somewhere nobody else will.
- Give your main character a job you know well, and use its details.
- Let a minor character change the ending.
- Set it all in one day.
Writing contemporary fiction
People like us, now, in trouble we recognize.
Contemporary fiction is set in the present day and deals with life as it's actually lived: families, marriages, friendships, work, loss. It sits between literary and commercial fiction, often shelved as book club or upmarket fiction.
What readers expect
- A present-day, realistic setting
- Relatable, flawed characters
- Emotional stakes over action
- Issues readers face themselves
A tip before you start
Today is your setting, so use it: the group chat, the parking ticket, the brand of cereal. Specifics make it feel true.
More Women's Fiction prompts
- Three Women and the VineyardTell the tale of three generations of women from the same family who come together to save the family vineyard during a particularly challenging…
- The Bookstore by the SeaWrite a story about a woman who opens a bookstore in a small coastal town, only to discover that each book she sells seems to change the lives of her…
- Letters in the Bookshop AtticA successful 50-year-old woman leaves her high-powered career as a lawyer to open an independent bookstore in a quaint New England town. As she…
- Finding Her Birth FamilyAt 45, a woman finds out she is adopted after the death of her supposed biological mother. Seeking clarity and connections, she sets out on a journey…
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