18th Century writing prompt
Letters Across the Sea
Imagine the lives of two siblings separated during the slave trade. One is taken to a sugar plantation in the West Indies, and the other ends up as a house slave in Virginia. Describe their struggles, hopes, and the indomitable spirit that leads them to secretly correspond through letters, shaping each other’s fates from afar.
Suggested length: A short story: 1,500 to 5,000 words, or flash fiction under 1,000
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Three ways to take this prompt somewhere nobody else will.
- 1Let your character believe something about their world that turned out to be wrong.
- 2Give the hero a rule of the era they have to break.
- 3Choose one real detail of the period, like a price, a law or a song, and build a scene around it.
More 18th century prompts
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- The Servant's Royal CorrespondenceSet in the ornate court of Louis XVI, your story revolves around a young servant girl who secretly learns to read and write. When she uncovers correspondence that hints at the downfall of the monarchy, she must decide whether to stay silent or risk everything to intervene.
- The Printer's Secret DocumentIn colonial America, just before the start of the Revolutionary War, your main character is a young printer's apprentice who stumbles upon a secret document that could change the course of the conflict. Explore their dilemma and the repercussions of their actions.
- The Pirate in DisguiseImagine a tale aboard a pirate ship in the Caribbean Sea in the early 1700s. One of the pirates is actually a nobleman in disguise, seeking revenge on an old rival who destroyed his family. Detail his struggle between his yearning for vengeance and the camaraderie he develops with the crew.
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