Question about character backstories in prompt writing

I used to think you had to spell out every detail of a character's past in a writing prompt or people would get lost. Then I read this post where someone just said 'a retired astronaut with a grudge against pigeons' and left it at that. The comments went wild with suggestions about why he hated pigeons and what he'd do next. It hit me that not spelling everything out lets other writers fill in the blanks their own way. Does anyone else find that vague prompts actually give you more room to play with?

2 comments

2 Comments

tylerw924d ago

Hang on, a grudge against pigeons? Like all pigeons in general or one specific pigeon that ruined his retirement?

nathan_foster604d ago

Ngl I'm stuck on the idea that it's just one pigeon. Can you imagine being 67 years old, finally retired, and some random pigeon just decides to make your life miserable every single day for years? That pigeon would have to be some kind of mastermind, like it remembers something specific he did back in the 80s. Honestly, I'm picturing some old guy shaking his fist at the sky while one specific pigeon sits on his mailbox flipping him off with its wing. Tbh if that's what happened, I kinda respect the pigeon's dedication.