⚡Day 1. Object lessons.

Welcome to the first day of Flash February 2026!

We’re so glad you’ve joined us on this journey/adventure/challenge.

You’ll receive a fresh writing prompt in your inbox every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday between now and the end of the month. Remember, writing is a process. If the words aren’t flowing one day, don’t sweat it. Do your best to engage with the prompt. You can always come back to it later. And you can always circle back to the beginning.

Okay: let's get started!

We start this month’s challenge by looking for inspiration—exploring the world around us in search of surprises, stories, memories, emotions, or opportunities to make connections.

We’ll start by free-writing about an object.

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PROMPT #1

We’re all surrounded by objects—so many, in most cases, that some of them don’t even really register. They fill many roles in our lives, from the strictly practical to the intensely emotional, and sometimes both! Considering an object can be a way not only to practice tapping into sensory details but also reaching down to explore other layers of meaning.

For instance, in “This Washcloth” by Sarah Kilch Gaffney, “The Blue Phone” by Ghazala Datoo O’Keefe, “Bright Green Box” by Hanna Du Plessis¹, the titular objects are described carefully in their own right as objects, but they are also metaphors that open surprising, affecting paths to stories about relationships, love, and loss.

Free-write about an object.

For this exercise, you just need an object: anything will do, really.

Sure, you might choose something with obvious significance, but it might be even more creatively challenging to start with something random.

Start by employing your senses: what does this object look like, feel like, smell like? What size is it, can you move it, is anything written on it?

Next, you might consider purpose: what is this object for? What is it intended use, and what is its actual use? Who uses (or used) it, and when, and under what circumstances? How did it get to the place where you’re currently interacting with it?

Your writing might start as a sort of list, but don’t be surprised if you find yourself in the middle of a story.

Write for 15-20 minutes.

Share: A photo (if you have one) of the object and a few sentences you wrote that surprised or especially pleased you.

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1. Our thoughts are with Hanna and her team of caretakers as she goes through her transition.