Postcard Prompts

Birthday Special!

Sign up for six months of postcard prompts and get two months free!

If you're anything like me, your mail pile is rarely anything more than a disappointing waste of paper reminding you of the money you owe, those 1000-thread-count sheets you wish you could mail order, and the low-interest credit cards you should probably be transferring your balances to. And yet, if you're anything like me, you still look forward to the mail daily, hoping there will be a personal note waiting just for you.

Well, Ibex Studios can make your wish come true on a regular basis when you sign up for our Postcard Prompts. Our twice-monthly cards are packed with writing exercises intended to unleash your creativity, lead you into your stories, and keep you writing until the next one comes along. Here's how it works:

• Contact us with your name and address, and tell us that you'd like to receive Postcard Prompts. We'll send you the first one for free. If you're hooked, subscribe for a month ($6), six months ($30), or a year ($50).
• Every other week, you will receive a handwritten prompt in the mail on unique postcards that are handed-down, made of recycled materials, and/or feature the work of independent artists.
• If you would like your artwork featured on our postcards and website for a month, please contact us. We'd love to promote your work while spreading good writing cheer.
• If a postcard inspires a piece of writing you'd like to develop further, we'd be thrilled to help you out with our wordsmithing services.
• Here's an example of a postcard prompt and some of the things writers have said about them:

"I savored the postcard prompts every week. Great encouragements to keep the writing flow open and moving!"

"I am totally in love with postcard prompts!"

Tips for Writing from Prompts:
Have fun with them. Use them to get your brain loosened up, to uncover stories you didn't know you had, and to write without the pressures a blank page can bring. You can, of course, do anything you want with these prompts, but, influenced by the teachings of Natalie Goldberg, Anne Lamott, and Derrick Jensen, we encourage you to:

• Time yourself in five, ten, or fifteen minute increments. Ironically, the time constraint takes some pressure off. Try it!
• Write your first thoughts. Don't stop to think, just let it flow out your fingertips. Surprise yourself. Even if your conscious mind and ever-present inner editor think you're being silly, some other part of you knows better. Give that part a voice, for once.
• Don't stop writing. Even if you have no idea what to say, just keep on writing. Write the prompt over and over and over again until something spills out, because something will. Trust me.
• Don't worry about spelling, punctuation, and grammar. That can all be fixed later. Ideas move much faster than our grammar queens. Go with the inspiration.
• Let yourself write lame, boring, stupid, or self-indulgent first drafts. It's the best way to eliminate the judgmental editor inside. Really.
• Remember, the point of writing from prompts is to access your stories, not to answer the prompts like a diligent schoolchild. So if your writing veers you far from the original prompt, let it!