Lost Technology: A World Remade: 30 Days of Prompts

My idea of a 30 day challenge is buzzing in my head. I am trying to get myself psyched to do it. My health issues often derail me, but I want to block out time and do this. So, I'm pulling things together to inspire, not just for me, but you as well. I hope you'll challenge yourself to write for 30 days. 

This set of prompts explores a world where a specific technology has vanished, forcing humanity to adapt and rebuild. Choose one or combine elements from a few to get your story started!

1. You are a librarian in a world without digital storage. How do you preserve knowledge? 

2. A traveling tinkerer repairs broken machines with ingenious, non-electronic solutions. 

3. A community struggles to maintain a vital irrigation system originally designed for automated control. 

4. A young person discovers a hidden cache of electronics and sets out to understand their purpose. 

5. A thrilling chase story - a smuggler tries to transport a rare working machine across a lawless territory. 

6. A religious sect believes the lost technology was a divine punishment. 

7. A group of engineers race to rebuild a power grid using forgotten blueprints and scavenged parts. 

8. Write a news report from a world struggling to adapt to a transportation system without cars. 

9. A detective investigates a series of seemingly impossible crimes – are they linked to the lost technology? 

10. A musician composes a symphony using only acoustic instruments, a novelty in this new world. 

Deeper Impact

11. How has the loss of technology impacted social structures and communication? 

12. Explore the emotional toll of a world that has lost a great convenience. 

13. Is there a black market for remnants of the lost technology? 

14. A character grapples with the ethical implications of potentially rediscovering the lost technology. 

15. Write a letter from someone who remembers the world before the technology vanished. 

Unexpected Twists

16. The lost technology wasn't what it seemed, and its absence reveals a hidden truth. 

17. A faction emerges that claims they can bring the technology back online, but at a terrible cost. 

18. The loss of technology is actually a natural defense mechanism against a greater threat. 

19. The story is set hundreds of years after the loss, and the technology is now myth and legend. 

20. The lost technology is slowly reappearing, but in a strange and unpredictable way. 

Broaden the Lens

21. How has the loss of technology impacted the natural world? 

22. Write a story from the perspective of an animal who benefits from the technology's absence. 

23. A team of scientists investigates the cause of the technology's disappearance. 

24. A community thrives despite the loss of technology, proving human resilience. 

25. The story takes place on a space colony that loses contact with Earth, forcing them to rely on forgotten skills. 

Genre Benders

26. Write a fantasy story where magic fills the void left by lost technology. 

27. A post-apocalyptic thriller with a race to find a hidden cache of technology. 

28. A cozy mystery set in a small town that thrives on traditional crafts and skills. 

29. A sci-fi story where a character travels back in time to prevent the loss of technology. 

30. A historical fiction story that explores a real historical period without a specific technology (e.g., communication before the telegraph). 

The Eyes Have It! Simon Bishop

 For a long time, I've been writing a story called The Dream Stealer. The story became so complex that it threw me off, and taking part in NaNoWriMo with a new story each year didn't help. Once I stopped doing NaNo, I could better focus; however, several drafts of very good work constantly competed for my attention. But The Dream Stealer is still something I'm very attached to. Honestly, I think I fell in love with the main character, Simon Bishop. 

Over the years, I had this image of Simon and searched through images online to find someone like him. Toby Stevens resembled him closely. Unfortunately, he's too fair. Simon is dark-haired and his skin tones are less pink. The resemblance to the image in my head is close, but no cigar.

I researched AI and found a site that creates images. So, familiar with his features and given a descriptive box, I assessed the AI's potential. I wasn't completely disappointed. 

Simon Bishop: The Dream Stealer
& Where Dreams Begin

This would be the closest I think I can get to the main character of Simon. The only thing is the eyes are the wrong color. I mean dramatically wrong. Simon has sapphire blue eyes. 

👈🏼 I rather like the image on the left. The image below would be the right color eyes, but the hair is all wrong.  

However, those sapphire eyes are the trait that sets him apart. 

Then there are the other images I've collected. They're equally good. Similar in type, I think, but I don't want the facial hair shown in #4. 

They're also younger or I'm old and they look like kids. That's probably it. 

In the Dream Stealer, Simon is around 40. He has a grown child. So this third handsome gent would be a younger version of Simon. 

And the final version is below. He's older because I ask it to age it a bit, but I don't think AI has quite got the hang of it. Or I really am old. 

Still, these all bear striking resemblance to the Simon in my head. The first and third ones are the closest to what I see.

 But the eyes in the second and 4th are closest to Simon's eyes, with #3 being nearest. 

And then there are the non-contenders AI tossed at me. I've put them below. Not that they're terrible, but they don't strike a chord in my head. The middle guy, that's actually the eyes. But he scares me! LOL

How It Goes

The struggle is real. I managed to work a few hours this week on The Long Summer Run. It just hit me that I wanted ... no needed to write. I have so many ideas that run through my head and have not even felt the urge. I've been sick for months with some sort of respiratory issue and my RA has really not been behaving well. 

I suspect the inflammation has been so high because of the compound issues. I've been on antibiotics and steroids within a single month. It took that long for the sinus infection to clear up, at least the worst of it. I am still having issues with drainage that cause coughing fits. I get embarrassed to go out. Today, I'm revisiting my RA doctor to see if we can get this mess to back off.

However, I had a sudden urge to write. So I did. I worked for several hours. The plan was to come back the next day. Unfortunately, plumbing issues arose and Sarah started her job and school. Sarah is my 17yr old granddaughter who has returned home to live with me after several years away. If you read my other blogs, or are on my Facebook page, you'll have run into references of her growing up. 

Anyway, with all this going on, I didn't get back to the novel. 

(✿◡‿◡)

And as of today, 14 days have passed. Yep. That's how it goes. I didn't get back to the novel. My doctor did nothing but tell me she was retiring. And I'm still struggling with pain, fatigue, and the congestion problems. 

However, last night that urge reappeared, and I worked for a bit on a segment of The Dream Stealer. I don't know why I bother with anything. Something else always interferes. And I know that we're supposed to prioritize our writing. Unfortunately, when you have doctor's appointments, children to get where they need to go, family who also rely on your help, church, running your legs off to find supplies because these days it seems there's not enough of the necessities at any one store. Anyway, by the end of the day, I'm wiped out. Fibromyalgia is a hag.

I enjoyed writing and today I woke with a better mindset and took the time available and do it. And I promptly began working on something for one of my blogs and got distracted searching for information I needed. 

ㄟ( ▔, ▔ )ㄏ

That folks, is the story of my life. When I realized I was caught in a spiral, I shut down the browser for everything but this post. I've got too many irons in the writing inferno. Three blogs, all different. I've considered consolidating a couple, but there are problems with that idea. So I plod along.

For now, I'm going to end here because, let's face it, it is two weeks overdue! I wish you a beautiful day, a wonderful weekend, and many blessings. 

Write any way, anywhere, anytime you are able. 

Starting Over... Again

The July post sounded optimistic, didn't it? I have done a little writing and I was able for a bit to do a lot of things around here that had to be done. The arm is well but I've not been able to go back to the gym but once or twice. 

At first because I was not cleared by the doctor. I actually had to go get a shot in the arm to help with the pain. After several weeks, I was good to go back. I made a trip to the gym on October 12. I remeber I didn't feel well and it was a week before I tried again on the 20th. By then I wasn't feeling well at all and after my 6 mile ride, I came home. I've been down ever since. I think I've had Covid #3.

Today, I'm much improved, but still not great. I'm not coughing as much and there is way less crud in my chest and nose. I've coughed so much my ribs, back, and head hurt. And as for fatigue, I've been so tired I just fall asleep in a chair. 

I'm very annoyed because I was doing really well the first of October. I felt better than I have in a long time. I was getting a lot of stuff done, had started to write again, and planned to go down to Atlanta to visit my aunt and uncle. Two weeks ago I almost left. I was packed but the next morning I was so sick I had to cancel. 

So, here I sit. Planning what to do after I'm completely over this. 

It is very frustrating because time seems to be just slipping away. I've been battling illness for years now and I'm pretty tired of it. Or maybe just tired is a better way to phrase it. 

If my I get better over the next few days, maybe I will be able to get back into it.. writing, sewing, crochet. I feel totally useless at the moment. Always, I'm starting over and honestly, I probably should just give up. 

Whew, what a bummer this is!

Summer of Recovery

 Wow. I keep thinking things will get better. The writing is always so exciting but life, I don't know. Sometimes you feel like it is just out to get you. I had arm surgery on April 4th to repair my left rotator cuff. It was an old injury, happened around 1993. So, 30 years? Yeah. 

They had me in a sling for several weeks, but I stopped wearing it after two. The pain it caused in my neck and back was just horrible, worse than the pain from the surgery. The physical therapy was exhausting, too. I'd come home and have to go to bed. That really shocked me. I couldn't use the arm for 6 weeks and after that, I had to be careful. 

So, in June, just as therapy is winding down, I get an abscess tooth. Every single tooth on the right side of my mouth hurt. My ear hurt. My head hurt. My face hurt. For a month. It took two weeks just to find a dentist I could get in to see. I have an appointment for a root canal on the 18th, but that isn't all. I have another tooth that they need to pull and put a post in. That's will not happen, though. I don't have $5000 for a post. Nope. 

So, with enough antibiotics and antiviral in my system, the pain lessened. I still have times when it hurts but I pray I can get through till the appointment. When I had the arm surgery, they gave me 56 Lortabs for pain. I used, over the 6 weeks, about 20. The rest I used in the month I had the mouth pain. Really. Abscess tooth is worse than arm surgery. I'm not kidding. 

And no, there was no writing. I didn't reach my goal. I didn't even get close. I'm angry about it. I'm ready to just delete everything I have and forget it. I'm getting old. Time is running out. And I'm really just tired. No matter how hard I try to press on, something comes around the bend and flattens me. It's not fun anymore. 

So, there we have it. There were some positives. My sister came in May 1st and stayed the month to help me because I couldn't do anything with the arm. Embarrassing but unavoidable. I mean, I couldn't even brush my hair! I hadn't seen my sister for 4 years and it was truly lovely to have her here. I had such a good time with her.

My sister went home at the end of the month and my granddaughter Sarah came on June 5th. She stayed till July 5th. I was so happy to have her home. Sarah is a ray of sunshine when she's here and we had great fun. We enjoy one another's company so much. 

Now, here I am in the middle of July. I have thought about working on the writing but I'm so depressed over it I don't know where to start. All I've been doing lately is cleaning out closets and drawers, trying to get rid of things. I realized recently, someone is going to have to deal with all this junk, eventually. I'd rather do that myself. So, I'm taking one thing at a time and clearing it. When that's done, I've moved on to the next thing. It's working, but it is so slow. 

The doctor's released me to go back to the gym and I want to do that, but getting started is tough. I know once I get back I'll be better. But the first step, that's the hardest.

I guess it is a summer of recovery. At least, I hope we recover something. Cause it feels like everything is just messed up.