Power up Prompt #3: 6.28.25

A Setting, a Character, and a Conflict to use How You See Fit

Welcome to the third Power Up Prompt! We had nearly ten people write stories last week, so I’m excited to see how many we’ll get this week!

While you wait for the next 30-day challenge, Power Up Prompts will be here every Saturday going forward. Read on for a reminder on how they work, and to see this week’s new options!

A Prompt with Three Levels

My vision for Power Up Prompts is to put the power in the hands of my fellow writers. Most prompts give you a single idea to run with, and those are great, but I’m always looking for ways to keep you on your toes.

So, these weekly prompts are going to have three separate parts that can fit together, but they can also work on their own. This will allow you to mix and match to your heart’s content and set the challenge accordingly!

Should you decide to participate, here’s how you can figure out which power level your story or poem falls into:

• Level 1 = A story or poem that uses one of the three elements

• Level 2 = A story or poem that uses two of the three elements

• Level 3 = A story or poem that uses all three elements

For the time being, going for level 3 will also get you a shout-out from me on my weekly writing podcast, Saved as Draft. I’ll feature a quick look at Level 3 stories each week in the show during their own segment.

This week’s prompt is Fantasy. Check out the poll at the end to vote on which genre we should do for next week’s Power Up Prompt!

The Word Count Limit for Power Up Prompts is 2.5K words.

Let’s see what we’ve got for this week’s options! Remember you can do a story or a poem!

Element 1: Setting

This week’s setting is The Floating Isles. A recent seismic event has resulted in vast swathes of land rising up into the sky. Some of these lands holds ancient ruins. Others are seemingly nothing more than forests or plains.

What has caused this strange phenomenon? Is there a connection between them? Most importantly, will they eventually fall and cause untold destruction?

The choice is yours.

Element 2: Character

Your character this week is The Stranger. They are not native to these lands, but they arrived recently and have rumors have begun spreading about who they are, where they came from, and what they want.

Perhaps The Stranger is someone who departed these lands long ago, only to return when they were needed once more. Perhaps they have always been here, hiding in the shadows. Perhaps they are a god that has chosen to walk amongst mortals.

Let your imagination run free. The Stranger is a blank canvas, so use them how you see fit.

Element 3: Conflict

Should you choose to incorporate this week’s conflict, then you must discuss or show the effects of Magic’s return to the realm. It was long believed that magic had been gone from the world, but new evidence has shown that it’s returning.

How magic works, who can use it, and whether its return is a good or bad thing is up to you, but the root of the conflict here should be magic’s return.

Bonus Challenge:

You didn’t think I’d host a fantasy prompt and not mention D’veen, did you?

For those unaware, D’veen is one of my connected universes that blends science fiction and fantasy. You can find a section in my Content Directory with links to all the D’veen Tales.

As a bonus challenge this week, you may choose to set your story in the realm of D’veen.

Now, I don’t expect you to read all the D’veen stories I’ve done, so here are some guidelines to help you understand the universe:

• D’veen is a realm where magic and technology collide. It utilizes science fiction and fantasy elements.

• D’veen tales are narrated by a mysterious bard named Finton Merrybrook whose past is known only to him. He’s far more than a simple bard, however.

• In the present era of D’veen, many of the magical races we know and love are extinct, notably Elves and Dwarves. You may choose to set your story in D’veen’s past, however, when these races still lived.

• Much of the technology in D’veen was introduced during what is known as the Siege of Giant’s Bane. A technologically advanced race called the Verack Horde invaded the aforementioned kingdom, and while they were ultimately defeated, their technology has since been dissected and reverse engineered while also spreading across the realm.

• D’veen is a single continent surrounded by an ocean known as the Endarian Expanse. Few venture out into those waves, however, because it is said that the Aluthian Titans who crafted the realm exiled the ancient gods to prisons beneath those waves.

• Last but not least, one of D’veen iconic images is the shattered moon in the sky. It is said that the Titans departed long ago to create a new realm on D’veen’s moon, only to fail and shatter it into pieces. It is said the Titans perished in this calamity as well, leaving their original realm to its own devices.

Let Inspiration Strike

You may use all three elements for a level 3 story or poem, or you can take just one or two and run in a different direction entirely. When your story or poem is ready this week, be sure to tag me and share which level it falls into.

As always, I will do my best to read every single piece, and of course, level 3 submissions will be mentioned in next week’s episode of the Saved as Draft podcast.

I can’t wait to see what you come up with! Check the poll below to vote on which genre next week’s prompt will fall into!

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Thanks for Reading! Here’s Your Musical Pairing

Listen to this while you brainstorm your idea for this week’s story!