Don’t be discouraged by a failure. It can be a positive experience. Failure is, in a sense, the highway to success, inasmuch as every discovery of what is false leads us to seek earnestly after what is true, and every fresh experience points out some.
~John Keats

1. Down the Rabbit Hole, by Bobbi
2. Losing Faith, by Jane Doe
3. Frugal Fusion, by Little Wing
4. Untitled, by Becca
5. Nadir, by Paisley
6. Poem in Draft: Somebody Watching You, by Gautami Tripathy

Option Two Can You Picture That?

1. Haiku, by A~lotus
2. Cardinal Totem, by Bobbi

Option Three Poetry

I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs.
~William Arthur Ward

1. Peace, by Bobbi
2. Wanted: Contralto Solos, by sister AE
3. I Prayed for Peace, by Pretty Prats
4. A Piece of Peace, by Ginger
5. Grace in Autumn, by diatribalArts

Option Four:Fiction

Who will tell whether one happy moment of love or the joy of breathing or walking on a bright morning and smelling the fresh air, is not worth all the suffering and effort which life implies.
~Erich Fromm

1. Break of Day, by Medhini
2. The Effort Life Implies, by J. C. Montgomery
3. January Project, by Jessie

Option Five: Timed Writing

Admiration is a very short-lived passion that immediately decays upon growing familiar with its object, unless it be still fed with fresh discoveries, and kept alive by a perpetual succession of miracles rising into view.
~Joseph Addison

1. Words of Passion by Hand, by A~Lotus
2. A Short-Lived Passion, by Rebecca Reid
3. Ice, Ice, Baby, by Melissa A. Bartell

Option Six: Seven Things

In a mood of faith and hope my work goes on. A ream of fresh paper lies on my desk waiting for the next book. I am a writer and I take up my pen to write..
~Pearl S. Buck

1. My Writing Space, by ell
2. My Writing Space: A List of Seven Things, by Rebecca Reid
3. Seven Physical Spaces of Writing, by A~lotus
4. My Writing Space, by Bobbi
5. Seven Things in My Writing Space, by Mike G.
6. Components of my Writing Space, by Ginger
7. Seven Things, by PinkNic
8. Hiding Space, by SlyGly
9. 7 Things, by Tamy
10. Seven Things, by Janet
11. Seven Things, by Bonni
12. Seven Things, by Becca
13. January Prompts: Fresh, by Michelle
14. Desk Set, by Melissa A. Bartell

Instead the theme for this Project is “Fresh,” whether that means “audacious” or “new” – and perhaps a bit of both!

Remember to tag your posts with Café Writing, or link to us in some fashion.

This Project will be live through the end of January. When a new Project opens, the previous one is closed.

Option One: Pick Three

Don’t be discouraged by a failure. It can be a positive experience. Failure is, in a sense, the highway to success, inasmuch as every discovery of what is false leads us to seek earnestly after what is true, and every fresh experience points out some.
~John Keats

Pick at least three of the following words, and build a piece of writing around them. The form is up to you: poem, scene, flash-fic, essay, or general blog entry.
discovery, experience, failure, false, highway, positive, seek, sense, true

Option Two Can You Picture That?
Use the following photo to inspire a piece of writing in any form (poetry, prose, whatever).
(Please remember to copy the image to your own server, and include photo credit when it is known.)

Option Three Poetry

I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs.
~William Arthur Ward

Using the quotation above as your inspiration, write a poem (any form is fine) about praying for peace, planting trees, or singing joyful songs.

Option Four:Fiction

Who will tell whether one happy moment of love or the joy of breathing or walking on a bright morning and smelling the fresh air, is not worth all the suffering and effort which life implies.
~Erich Fromm

Using the above quotation as your inspiration, write a flash-fic, scene, or short story involving a bright morning.

Option Five: Timed Writing

Admiration is a very short-lived passion that immediately decays upon growing familiar with its object, unless it be still fed with fresh discoveries, and kept alive by a perpetual succession of miracles rising into view.
~Joseph Addison

Take nine minutes (use all nine, but don’t go over), and write on the subject of short-lived passions.
This is a timed exercise and it’s expected that it won’t be perfect. Any format – fiction, essay, verse – is welcome.

Option Six: Seven Things

In a mood of faith and hope my work goes on. A ream of fresh paper lies on my desk waiting for the next book. I am a writer and I take up my pen to write..
~Pearl S. Buck

In improvisation, one of our exercises is a game called “Seven Things,” in which we go around in a circle giving each other the challenge, “Give me seven things that [whatever].” We are not going to go around in a circle here, but if you’re drawn to lists, this prompt is for you.

Give me seven things that inhabit or occupy your writing space. Interpret “writing space” any way you please. You’re not required to explain the items in your list, but it’s more fun for readers if you do.

Happy Writing, and Best Wishes for 2009