The prompts for my favorite contest dropped last night. I’m usually excited. Not cynical. Not resistant.
But this week? I feel flat. Tired.
Maybe it’s my knee. Could be the rough week of PT. Or maybe it’s the slow grind of recovery that pinches the juices to my brain.
And I’m so busy, with work (squeezing most of the forty hours into the last 2 days and weekend), two appointments, two writing workshops, a tête-à-tête to wrap up a publication, and… and… aann…. waaa…waah… wah…
A familiar unraveling.
My brain does a version of this battle every time a prompt drops, whether I’m the facilitator dropping it for a writing session or whether I’m just one of the writers receiving it.
I’m not ready.
My mind is a black hole this morning, there’s nothing.
I don’t have anything to say.
I’m going to write the worst junk in America.
And every time it’s a lie.
My mind—overfed and a little histrionic—loves to perform this ritual of resistance. But when I show up to the page, something else happens.
Surprisingly
I’m surprised.
Surprised at the words that flow from my pen to the page.
Delightfully surprised by the words that others share.
Surprised that the same people who privately fretted I can’t do this are now reading something raw, vivid, and true.
This happens in every space I write in—even the harder ones. The groups shaped around grief, sexual violence, caregiving. Even there, especially there, we stand at the edge of I can’t and jump anyway.
Magically (I like to say) the words emerge.
Not always polished. Not always pretty. But Real. Alive. Moving. True.
Even in the “hard” groups, we discover truth, surprises, and catharsis. And the process doesn’t push us towards a cynicism born of our circumstance or situations. When we emerge from the page, we are not cynical. The words have drawn us away—forward—toward growth and compassion.
That’s the practice.
That’s the magic.
Virtual InkWell WordShop
Maybe you want to experience this magic?
I offer in-person meetups and workshops locally. Next week, I’m offering a virtual session:
InkWell WordShop — May 2, 12-2PM
The prompts in this workshop are crafted around Natalie Goldberg’s invitation: Go for the Jugular.
Not Quite Write
In the meantime, I’m teetering on the edge of the Not Quite Write prompts—uncertain, suspicious, resistant.
But I know how this goes.
Later tonight, or maybe tomorrow—sometime before the timer buzzes at 9am my time on Sunday—I’ll push off that edge. I’ll ignore the voices pretending to protect me.
And I’ll write.
©Pennie Nichols. All Rights Reserved. 2026
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