One of the most common questions I received on NYNS 2014 was "What is a prompt?" Well, you're in luck because I have an answer for you.

*don't mind me as I shamelessly copy and paste the answer I came up with a year ago*

Quotation Prompts: Choose one of the given quotation prompts and make use of it somewhere in the story. It may be in dialogue, in thoughts, or anywhere else you can think of.

Song Prompt: Song prompts can be used in two ways: 1) A line may be taken out from the lyrics and used in the story (as a quotation prompt would be used). 2) Take the meaning behind the song and base a portion of the story off of it.

Picture Prompt: Choose one of the given photo prompts and make use of it somewhere in the story. This could mean that the actual scene depicted in the photo is incorporated into story, used as a metaphor, or whatever else you can think of.

Small alterations can be made to the prompts. For example, a "he" can be turned into a "she" and words can be added or taken out to better fit the character who is speaking (or thinking) them. If it's an image with a boy and a girl in it, but you're writing a boyxboy or girlxgirl, you can pretend that the girl is a boy or vice versa. However, it is not allowed to entirely alter the meaning of the prompt. The bottom line is that I should be able to recognize the prompt while reading your story.

If you have suggestions for prompts of any type, please leave some suggestions in the comments below.

Quotation Prompts:

1. Time is a great teacher; the misfortune is that it kills it's students.

2. Black is artistic, not sad. Bright colors are what depress me. How do you picture a poet? In a bright yellow jacket? Probably not.

3. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects something you love or hate about yourself.

4. Even a falling star still shines.

5. Your first love isn't always the first person you kiss, or the first person you date. Your first love is the person you will always compare everyone else to. The person you will never get over, even when you've convinced yourself you've moved on.

6. Fake happiness is the worst sadness.

7. He shuts everyone else out too, so don't take it too personally.

8. To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people just exist.

9. We all get addicted to something that takes away the pain.

10. It hurts to have someone in your heart that you can't have in your arms.

11. My biggest fault was how I kept forgiving him, even though he didn't deserve it.

12. We refuse to see how bad something is until it destroys us.

13. I think you like to complicate things when it's really quite simple; find what it is that makes you happy and you're set.

14. People wait all week for Friday, all year for summer, and all life for happiness.

15. I can't stop smiling. I blame you.

16. Once you've disappeared enough times, people stop noticing whether or not you're gone.

17. Life isn't about the happy ending; it's about the story.

18. The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything.

19. It's not that I push people away, I just don't care enough to hold on.

20. I'm going to smile and make you think I'm happy.

21. I'm going to laugh, so you'll never see me cry.

22. I hope you always find a reason to smile.

23. Speaking with her made me realize that a conversation is so much more than words: a conversation is eyes, smiles, and the silences between the words.

24. Sometimes you have to give up on people. Not because you don't care, but because they don't.

25. It's okay to not be okay, because every bright star lives in darkness.

26. I'm just tired, okay? Leave me alone.

27. Being normal is like a paved road - it's comfortable to walk, but no flowers grow on it.

28. It's weird how in a matter of seconds, you could just be a memory.

29. Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.

30. I swear, sometimes it's like you want me to hate you.

31. It hurt because it mattered.

Photo Prompts:

1. 

For Photo Prompt #1, the text (Quotation Prompt #28) and the picture are considered individual prompts. This means that if both are used, imma count it as as two prompts.

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9. 

If it's hard to see, Photo Prompt #9 depicts a postcard collection on someone's wall.

10. 

Song Prompts:

Song prompts are not yet definite; I'm still deciding which ones will be best. As mentioned before, I'm open to new suggestions. The more variety, the better ;)