We all know those moments when your character is stuck in their quarters in between duty shifts, or when the mission has wrapped up and we’re waiting for a new briefing from the big cheese. Still, we want to keep being active! But the inspiration has run as dry as that replicated tofurky sandwich you had in the mess hall two logs ago. Don’t look any further! We have 5 writing prompts to get your character out of their quarters!
1: “What’s that sound?”
Your character has just retired to their rooms when suddenly they hear an incessant high pitched sound coming from outside. After ignoring it for a moment they realise that it’s not going away. Have them go out and investigate the sound and find a way to make it stop.
2: “The window to the soul”
The good thing about having your own quarters is that there’s a window in them that you can use to stare out of. This night your normal internal ruminations are interrupted when an unidentified object flies by and catches your attention. Your character, always the explorer at heart, immediately dashes out and uses the ship’s resources to find out what that thing was.
3: “You’re the Captain now”
A good friend of yours talked you into taking the graveyard shift on the bridge, being the ranking officer you’re handed the centre chair. What happens that night to make it stand out from all the other graveyard shifts?
4. “A dinner party”
Sure it got a bit out of hand. Your boasting led to someone saying you should host a dinner party. Now that the dinner party has come around it turns out around 20 people are planning to show up, rather than the 3 that you invited. What does your character do as they scramble to get ready for this surprise elaborate dinner party?
5. “My other pants pocket”
Just as your character is about to retire to their quarters they reach into their pockets and find something there, something that they shouldn’t have taken away from their workstation, something they have to return as soon as possible. What is it? Why is it so important that it’s returned? Does anyone find out they took something they shouldn’t have?
With all of this inspiration we hope that you come up with some really nice bits or writing! Feel free to share your results in the comments or link to posts that were inspired by these writing prompts!
Prof.
L.I.S.P. Professor
“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.”
― Ernest Hemingway
