The prompt generator website I mocked turned out to save my story

I spent months rolling my eyes at those online prompt generators, figuring they just spat out garbage like 'a detective who is also a cat.' Then last Tuesday I hit a wall on my sci-fi short story about a colony ship. I was three drafts in and the middle act felt dead. Out of desperation I used one called Plot Thyme or something. It gave me a random line about a maintenance hatch that only opens every 47 years. That one weird detail unlocked the whole second act for me. I didn't even use the prompt exactly, it just got my brain unstuck. Has anyone else found a tool they assumed was useless that actually helped finish a project?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_robin1d ago

Plot Thyme" - pretty sure it's actually "Plot Twist", but I digress.

maxl931d ago

Bought one of those random plot twist decks at a thrift store for a dollar, figured it was just a gag gift. But one card said "the quietest character isn't mute, they're just saving their voice for something important" and that totally reshaped a character I was stuck on. Still feels weird admitting a cheap card pack helped more than my outline did.

shane_bell1d ago

Totally get that feeling. Had a similar thing happen with a random deck of writing prompts a buddy gave me. One of them said something about letting your characters lose a fight to teach them something. Sounds dumb but it flipped how I was writing a stubborn side character. Sometimes the simplest outside push is what breaks a block.