Practice, practice, practice...revised

Hi Fellow Writers/Bloggers~

We know, as writers, that we need to practice writing to improve our writing skills. We know this. But sometimes trying to find something to write about can be challenging. Because I've learned how to use various triggers to help start a story, finding a subject to write about isn't a problem. I might have a problem once I've been writing for ten years, but since I'm such a newbie, my problem is lack of time and talent more so than from lack of ideas.

I wanted to pass along some of my ideas to come up with triggers to start my stories. Keep in mind that some stories are just for practice. I post stories for critters to critique knowing that it isn't good enough to be published. Why? The learning experience. I learn from others who will take an unbiased look at my work and head me in the right direction. Not to get off subject, these writing groups, as I've written before, have flash challenges that help to get you writing in no time. There are also many books that explore various trigger starts-I have two for reference if I want a challenge.

I've found something else very useful though. My own memories/experiences. I highly recommend making a list of all of your favorite/impressionable memories/experiences whether from childhood or adulthood. From these memories, you can list keywords/sentences to describe/summarize your emotions. All of these will give you enough raw emotions for many stories to come.

Examples:
Cross Country camp: The accident (tears, heart racing, fear, friends, sirens/bright lights), pain, running on muddy trails, fun times-eating pizza, loyalty/teammates...
Grandma & Grandpa's House in Hopkins: Smells of the kitchen from Grandma's baking/cooking, Bible School learning about God, fun on Grandma's bike, spooky attic door, books and more books to look through, dollhouse, love, first kiss...
Campground-Campfires, square dances-fluffy colored skirts, wheelbarrow races on fun-day, campstore (candy galore)...
Apple orchard-scraps (squishy apples), burning leaves, ladders, bins, crates, mice, hot sun, sweat...

You get the idea. All of these can be used as story triggers/starts!! And this is with only four events/memories!

Happy Writing!! Enjoy the journey!!

ps-after reading Diane's comments I realized that I'd neglected to fine-tune this!

When tapping into your memories/experiences, the nice thing is that it doesn't need to be non-fiction! A great work of fiction can be started by one of our own experiences and an inspiring theme can easily be established!

I first started writing all non-fiction based on my experiences, but failed at first to see how these could be used as triggers for works of fiction whether short stories, flash-fiction and yes, even novels!
This makes for a more power-packed, emotional piece!