Four Writing Prompts: Aging

Man vs. nature
Your aging protagonists begins to suffer from a medical condition that usually only occurs in old age. As he enters a new chapter of his life, he develops deep bonds with new friends who come together solely because they share the same medical condition. How do they mutually address the laws of nature as combating this condition?

Man vs. man
Three siblings spend the summer caring for their remaining elderly parent, who is near death. What happens if a sibling discovers that one of them shares a deep, dark secret with the dying parent? How does this alter their relationships?

Man vs. society
How does a person come to terms with the different life that is experienced in old age despite that our entire society – from its values to its infrastructure – is geared to youthfulness? What conflicts occur between our aging protagonist who won’t accept her infirmities and society that expects she will be infirm in all ways?

Man vs. himself
What if a man realizes he is becoming senile? Between the ever more frequent disorienting lapses, he is able to piece together that he’s suffering a cognitive decline. How does he deal with this knowledge, and how does it affect his relationship with his self-identity?

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My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editor who runs Inventing Reality Editing Service, which meets the manuscript needs of writers both new and published. I also offer a variety of self-publishing services. During the past decade, I’ve helped more than 300 novelists and nonfiction authors obtain their publishing dreams at reasonable prices. I’m also the author of the 7 Minutes a Day… writing guidebooks, four nonfiction hiking guidebook series, and the literary novel Windmill. Several of my short stories in the literary and science fiction genres also have been published.