Only in the family room of the Writing Interest House could one find students focused on a “bucket o’ beets.”

Over 25 students sprawled on couches, chairs and the floor to write about the imaginative phrase at last week’s Writer’s Colony. Each Thursday at 9 p.m., the eight residents of the Writing House host the weekly tradition open to all students.

“Writer’s Colony is all about being part of a large group and writing about a prompt with no restrictions on what you can write. It’s just about being creative with words,” said sophomore Kyle Byrd-Fisher, a resident of the Writing House.

Writers write for about 10 minutes on each of three prompts, which range from asking writers to picture themselves in a certain situation to a short phrase that writers interpret for themselves.
“One prompt in the past that I really liked was ‘write a story in the fourth person.’ It was the idea of getting you out of your typical writing boundaries,” said sophomore Ari Frink, who also lives in the house.

“The prompts help a lot. Sometimes you’re by yourself and you can’t think of anything on your own, but sometimes you hear the prompts and you say, ‘I never thought about that: let   me see what I can write on that subject,'” Byrd-Fisher said.

Regulars are still looking for more students to join them.

“The peer pressure of the group, in a good way, keeps you focused because there’s a feeling that everyone is really into what they are doing,” said senior Gus O’Malley.

“This is my fourth year coming to Writer’s Colony. It’s a good break from reading and writing academic material and really lets the creative juices flow,” said O’Malley.

The informal setting allows participants to get whatever they choose out of Writer’s Colony. Some use this chance to keep a personal journal. Others generate ideas that they expand later and share with Whitman publications, such as Quarterlife.

“It’s always cool to hear people who start writing on a prompt and get an idea and want to develop it more, so [one purpose] is to create a space for people to start, then go on and pursue writing outside our house,” Frink said.

At the end of the meeting, writers have an opportunity to share their work with the group. Often one student may write a story while others may write about more abstract thoughts in response to the same prompt.

“It is powerful and empowering to share your writing aloud,” Frink said.