Are you in need of some writing inspiration?
Here is a wonderful reflective writing prompt called 99 Things I Love. This is something I try to write about every year.
How does it work?
All you need to do is to write a list of 99 things you love!
This may SOUND hard, but the key to success is to think small or to not think at all and to just go with the flow. If you can’t finish it in one sitting, write your list over several hours, days or weeks (I wrote this one over 2 days)!
To show you how easy it is, here are my third 99 things I love list. I swear, it gets easier and quicker each time I do this – and I think that shows how great the exercise is, both as a way to help you think positive AND as a tool to help you open up your mind to write (especially if you are suffering from the dreaded writer’s block).
And if you are up to it, why not share your list with me? I’d love to read it!
Here we go!
- My special friends, confidants, best buds. Through thick and thin, we are still together, and I love you.
- A good book you can’t put down even though you need to sleep and have to work tomorrow. And I’m talking about the paper kind.
- Blogging. I’ve been blogging for 7 years, and it has changed my life in many ways. It has even led to a career change.
- Getting back to nature. Walking under blue skies, gazing up at it through the trees as the bird’s chirp, the breeze whips the leaves around, and the sun shines.
- Our home. It’s run down, messy, and chaotic, but I love it.
- Silence. Sometimes it is golden.
- Watching my husband create a piece of art. He looks so at peace and in his element. It’s a beautiful thing watching someone do something they love AND create a masterpiece.
- Looking back over old photos. I love revisiting the memories, bad hairdos and fashion.
- Candles. I love the soft light they emit. If they are scented – even better.
- Summer. The warmth, the sun, the light and shade, the beach, balmy, starry, summer nights…
- A home-cooked roast dinner. Beef, lamb, pork or chicken. Roast potatoes are a must. Oh, and lots and lots of gravy.
- A long hot shower. It’s the cure to most bad days.
- The smell of orange, lemon or lime zest, freshly zested.
- Catching up with old friends I haven’t seen in what feels like forever and hitting it off as if we had seen each other yesterday.
- Meeting a kindred spirit.
- Unplugging
- D – my husband. We got married in January 2015 after 10 years together and are just about to celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary!
- Memories of our wedding. Wow. I had so much fun. It was so much more than I had ever expected. It was the best day of my life.
- Looking back over our wedding photos. Okay, I might be obsessed…
- Date nights, which reminds me, we need to start having date nights again! Just because we’re married doesn’t mean they should stop!
- My fur-child, Kahlua. She is the light in my life, the sunshine on my cloudy days.
- Herbal tea is something I’ve finally come to love in 2017. I especially love fennel tea as it’s good for digestion.
- Me-time.
- Massages, all over aside from the feet. Do not touch my feet!
- Snuggling at night in a freshly made bed.
- A fresh bunch of flowers.
- And warm, cozy snuggle-worthy blankets.
- Fish and Chips by the seaside.
- My beautiful nieces, Charlotte and Emily. They deserve their own listing as they are the most beautiful little girls in the world growing up way too fast!
- Potato chips. Hot chips. Potato. It’s my weakness.
- My 2 wonderful, loving step-kiddies.
- A good movie on the big screen with warm, salty, buttery popcorn and a coke.
- My family.
- A night out dancing. They are few and far between these days, but I still love it – just minus the hangovers…
- White wine.
- Heaters in winter.
- Snuggling with my dog, Kahlua, listening to her grunts, groans, belly growls and snorts as she sleeps and dreams. It is the cutest thing.
- A summer storm on a balmy night.
- The sound of rain on a tin roof.
- Crunching fallen leaves underfoot.
- A binge-worthy TV series… Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Supernatural, Stranger Things… there are so many.
- Netflix – I just lost my Netflix cherry… better late than never!
- Cuddles. Snuggles. Bear hugs.
- Making people smile.
- Laughter. It is the best medicine and one of the keys to happiness.
- Music. I especially love listening to music from the 90s. I can’t help it; I’m a Gen-x’er – the memories!
- Homemade lasagne… drool.
- Wind chimes. On the other hand, my husband hates them thus we don’t have any 🙁
- Sleeping in and waking up naturally without a sleep hangover.
- Hitting the open road for a road trip, the car windows down and the music up loud. AC/DC mandatory.
- Having energy. It’s rare, but when I have it, it is glorious!
- The colour red – most shades.
- Skincare products and makeup that doesn’t irritate my skin. I’ve searched for years and FINALLY may have found the right products. So as not to jinx myself, I’ll give it another month of usage before sharing the product names.
- I love a sexy red or black dress and red shoes. Hopefully, I will find the right ones someday!
- Burning incense, oils and scented candles.
- Travel anywhere.
- Curry cooked by my hubby.
- Mentoring people.
- Champagne. Sparkling wine. Bubbles. It’s just a shame my body seems to be developing an intolerance to it. Damn!
- Superhero movies. Marvel superhero movies, to be precise.
- A good pillow.
- Jumping out of a shower into a nice fluffy towel fresh from the dryer.
- Not working in an office.
- Having flexibility in life.
- Paris.
- My Nan. I miss her so much – still.
- Singapore. Even though I’ve already been there over 10 times, I will never tire of the place.
- Thai food, especially a well-cooked Thai Green Chicken Curry with just the right chilli kick.
- A good, juicy burger. The beef patty needs to be flavoursome and preferably handmade by my hubby. He recently made some injected with coriander and chilli, and they were sublime! Beats the store-bought shit filled with preservatives, hands down!
- Lemon curd. Lemon meringue. Lemon cheesecake. Lemon tarts.
- The smell of freshly washed clothes.
- Wearing boots in winter.
- A long walk in the countryside.
- Cartoons with adult subtext. All the Pixar animations… yep, all of them.
- Bacon.
- Doughnuts! If I had my way, I would have had a doughnut cake for our wedding cake.
- Finding the perfect sun spot on a winter’s day to sit and bask in whilst reading a book or just sitting in silence.
- Star gazing, watching for shooting stars, satellites, and constellations.
- Skipping stones across pools of water.
- Colouring my white hair. It makes me feel younger and regenerated!
- Getting my eyelashes tinted. It makes my eyes pop, and I need to do it more often!
- Freshly washed and dried hair, preferably washed and blow-dried by someone else and accompanied by a head massage!
- Christmas with family.
- Gift-giving.
- Birthdays.
- Having the confidence to speak my mind, do what I want, and say NO.
- Seeing my favourite bands LIVE and in the flesh.
- Naps.
- Bird watching. I love watching birds as they fly freely, soar, play, forage, paddle, perch and sleep.
- Animals. Orangutans, elephants, lions, wolves, frogs, lizards, and whales. The world is so rich with life and wonder.
- The smell of freshly baked bread.
- Lather freshly baked bread with melted buttery goodness and eat whilst still warm.
- Cheese.
- A cup of English Breakfast tea. A hot cuppa is a cure for almost everything.
- A good-fitting yet comfortable pair of jeans is a must for any wardrobe.
- Hatha Yoga.
- Enjoying my weekends rather than spending them with a hangover. I must be growing up!
- The feeling of getting healthy and maintaining it.
- Writing lists like this.
Now it’s over to you to write your 99 Things You Love list.
And do you know the best thing about this exercise?
Once completed, you will have your own list of 99 writing prompts, perfect for journaling, blogging and more!
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