In my Writers as Readers book club, there are a few folks who write fiction and have said they don’t care to read non-fiction. I like to read both — going so far as to read things like the NASA report about the flawed Hubble telescope and court filings in some hacker cases. Geeky, I know. But I get a lot of story ideas from the non-fiction I read. (And the info made great conversation-starters when I met Cliff Stoll and Bruce Sterling.) Here’s one take on some of this year’s best non-fiction.

The 10 Best Nonfiction Books of 2014 So Far – Flavorwire

http://flavorwire.com/464711/the-10-best-nonfiction-books-of-2014-so-far

Is fantasy or science fiction your genre? Do you think it might be? Then you may be looking for a creature or a race to populate your world. Here are a few oldies you might want to adapt. A friend of mine, E.R. Barr, melded the Piasa legend with Celtic mythology in his award-winning debut novel, Roan: The Tales of Conor Archer.

Ten Mythological Creatures in Ancient Folklore | Ancient Origins
http://www.ancient-origins.net/myths-legends/ten-mythological-creatures-ancient-folklore-001805

People die. Or they don’t. This article from Harvard Business Review is about succession planning for businesses, but I find Zara’s story intriguing as a plot line. She’s reacting to a perceived “deadline,” in the most literal sense. With some tweaks, her story could lend itself to a variety of interpretations or genres — mystery, thriller, magical realism, main stream fiction. And imagine the points of view — Zora’s, her husband’s, her children’s, her father’s, the list goes on.
Try it for 1,000 words and see where it takes you.

Executives Must Face Their Own Mortality – Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries – Harvard Business Review

http://blogs.hbr.org/2014/03/executives-must-face-their-own-mortality/

Really.
I can’t take credit for finding these puctures. Mystery writer Dana Stabenow posted this link on her Facebook page with a comment about the first shot.
But as soon as I saw them, I realized the photos are a trove of writing prompts. More than two dozen.
What a great antibiotic for writer’s block. Take one today. Write 1,000 words. Repeat.

2014 National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest, Part II – In Focus – The Atlantic

http://m.theatlantic.com/infocus/2014/06/2014-national-geographic-traveler-photo-contest-part-ii/100764/