IT’S ALL ABOUT . . . NEW IDEAS IN THE NEW YEAR! By Melissa Stoller
Jan 20, 2025
By Mira Reisberg
Happy New Year! Cheers to 2025.
I'm excited to share a few prompts to inspire your story ideas this year:
1. Read through any holiday cards you received in 2024 or read cards at a stationery store or online. Perhaps a theme or artwork will spark a story idea.
2. Choose your favorite New Year tradition (whether childhood or current) and write a story title that reflects a memory or emotion from that tradition.
3. View firework displays either in person or online that celebrate the New Year. Enjoy the sights and sounds, and use them to write the first line of a story or to inspire a book idea.
This January, let your new ideas sparkle and make it your most creative year yet! Let me know in the comments if these exercises helped. Happy writing!
MELISSA’S BIO: Melissa Stoller writes to bring connection, joy, and a bit of magic to her readers. Her newest picture book, Hazel and Mabel, illustrated by Anita Bagdi, releases from Gnome Road Publishing in Fall 2025. Melissa is also the author of the chapter book series The Enchanted Snow Globe Collection - Return to Coney Island, and the picture books Scarlet’s Magic Paintbrush; Ready, Set, GOrilla!; Sadie’s Shabbat Stories; Planting Friendship: Peace, Salaam, Shalom; and Building Bridges: Peace, Salaam, Shalom (co-written). Melissa is a Blogger for the Children’s Book Academy, a Rate Your Story Judge, a volunteer with SCBWI/MetroNY, a Book Meshuggenahs member, a Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center Trustee, and a past school and Synagogue Trustee. She also interviews authors and offers resources on her blog. In other chapters of her life, Melissa has worked as a lawyer, legal writing instructor, freelance writer/editor, and early childhood educator. She lives in New York City with her family, and enjoys theatre, museums, and Central Park walks.
CONNECT WITH MELISSA: www.MelissaStoller.com https://www.MelissaStoller.com/blog http://www.facebook.com/MelissaStoller www.twitter.com/melissastoller www.instagram.com/Melissa_Stoller www.pinterest.com/melissa_Stoller
