That $40 writing prompt journal from Etsy ended up being a total bust

I spent $40 on a fancy prompted journal from Etsy last month, thought it would kickstart my creative writing habits... It had these prompts like 'describe a door' or 'write about a storm' but nothing weird or fun. I sat down with it for a week straight and just stared at the pages, felt like homework. My friend grabbed a $5 notebook from the dollar store and writes prompts drunk at 2am, her stories are way better than anything I got from that journal. The binding actually fell apart after two weeks, so I couldn't even pass it on. Has anyone else tried those expensive prompt books and just felt burned? I'm thinking of making my own prompt list from random reddit threads next time.

2 comments

2 Comments

charles_kim3d ago

Right there with you, those fancy prompts feel like getting an assignment from a teacher. Making your own list from random reddit threads sounds way more fun and way cheaper.

troy_gibson435h ago

You ever tried grabbing a random word generator app on your phone and just going with whatever pops up first? That's where I've had way more luck than those overpriced journals. The whole point of writing prompts is to shake your brain loose, not make you feel like you're back in high school English class. A cheap spiral notebook and a weird word from a free app sounds a lot closer to your friend's drunk 2am writing vibe. You'd probably end up with something way more interesting than "describe a door" anyway.