Hello! Intro to My Blog and 1st Prompt

Hello! My name is Musette White, and I am one of the editors for The River this semester (Fall 2024)! 

For my blog posts, I will be responding to writing prompts that I found in the book 300 Writing Prompts published by Piccadilly from the point of view or about one of my characters so that I can flesh them out and get to know them better. Sometimes they will be written as a scene, as if the character is talking, or possibly as me explaining what happened (though this one is a lot less likely). 

I will always include the writing prompt and the age of the character when the scene takes place, along with any trigger warnings if needed. 

I may also occasionally include little blurbs before or after the prompt talking about my experience responding to the prompt to give you guys an idea of the process I went through, things I struggled with, or thoughts I had while writing that I want to share, also possible reminders of upcoming publications and other announcements from The River. 

Also, to make it easier for people to follow and (hopefully) not get confused, I will write about the same character for every prompt response. 

I will figure out my posting schedule soon, along with other posts and publication schedules, and make a post about them on our Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/thesandyriverreview?igsh=MTc3eWNuOGQwdmR3aA==.

Sorry for rambling a bit! Without further ado, I’m going to get into my first writing prompt and introduce the character I will be working with this semester. The beginning of each post going forward should look like as follows:

Prompt: What is your favorite way to spend a lazy day?

Lux’s age: 22

TW: mentions and light descriptions of depression and hints at abuse

…

I try not to have “lazy days,’’ as the question put it, if I can help it. I don’t like to not be doing something. It allows my brain to think about things it shouldn’t, about things I don’t want to think about. All the bad memories, fears, insecurities, and thoughts swirl around my head, dragging me into the darkness I desperately try to stay out of, but have yet to fully succeed. Even on the days I keep busy, bits of the darkness seep into my mind, clouding and darkening the corners of my thoughts, rarely leaving me for moments of reprieve. 

On those rare occasions when my mind provides me with peace and I’m not working or don’t have to be doing something, I like to go out to the palace garden, sit below one of the weeping willows, and read a book, often one about different places, races, and cultures of our world. There are so many different races inhabiting this planet, all of which have their own cultures, and many races each have different cultures, depending on the region in which they live. I know of and have met many people from several races, but I don’t know really any of them beyond acquaintances and there are still many I have never encountered. 

When I was little, I was confined to a small corner of my Elven village, my family never allowing me to stray too far or be out too long, afraid something would happen to their “special” and “precious” only child. The majority of my adolescence was spent in near isolation, deprived of most knowledge of the outside world and its people. I was only taught Elven magic, English, and Northern Elvish, along with basic math and intermediate potion and remedy making, so I had very little knowledge of the rest of the world and how it works. In my teenage years, however, things changed, and I started to explore and learn more about the towns and people in the kingdom of Trolsk. I quickly became fascinated and wanted to learn as much as I could. Even now as one of the guards at the castle, I want to learn more about the people and spaces of this world.