Writing Prompts

Struggling to find inspiration for the upcoming 2023 USYD Anthology? Is our theme this year – prologues and epilogues – too meta for you to nail down an idea? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! Here is a list of eleven prompts to inspire and challenge you as you write. 

• Write about a new beginning from your life 

• Write about a time where you refused to surrender to a bad beginning and instead seized the ending you wanted 

• Write about an ending from your life that you either didn’t expect or refused to embrace 

• Write a story or poem where the beginning and ending are the same 

• Isn’t every ending just another beginning? What really happens after the epilogue? 

• What if the prologue and epilogue were swapped, making the ending the beginning and the beginning the ending?  

• Think of a metaphor that represents the complex nature of, and the relationship between, prologues and epilogues. What does this metaphor reveal about the intricate relationship between beginnings and endings? 

• Do prologues and epilogues need anything in-between?  

• Prologues and epilogues are the bookends of stories; prologues entice and the epilogues provide closure. What would happen if these literary devices were personified?  

• Are there any beginnings or endings that you would like to rewrite?  

• What is your favourite prologue or epilogue from literature? What makes it effective? 

We can’t wait to read your work. Submit your work here.