⏳ Weekly Writing Prompt | November 30: Anam Cara
A prompt inspired by the Celtic idea of the soul-friend + 🎯 FREE December Goal-Setting Workshop for Writers
Welcome to the Weekly Writers’ Hour Contest!
This is a prompt-only week. From now through early January, we’ll continue sharing a weekly prompt to help keep the words flowing. The full Weekly Writers’ Hour Contest returns in mid-January 2026.
This week’s challenge invites you to trace the contours of a bond that makes you feel seen, known, or accompanied.
📝 PROMPT
Inspired by John O’Donohue’s writing on the anam cara—the soul friend—write about a deep and important companionship.
Write in the genre of your choosing.
There is no contest submission window for this prompt. We’ll resume the full contest (prizes, publication, and editorial selection) in mid-January.
A Note from Our Editorial Team
This week’s prompt is inspired by John O’Donohue’s writing on the anam cara—the soul friend. In the Celtic tradition, an anam cara is someone who sees the truest shape of you.
As you approach the prompt, consider widening your sense of what companionship can mean. You might write about a person, of course, but you might also turn toward an animal, a place, an imagined presence, an ancestor, or a moment in your life when you felt deeply accompanied. You’re invited to explore not only who (or what) this companion is, but how this relationship altered your inner life: what it revealed, what it asked of you, what it made possible.
Let yourself follow the thread of belonging wherever it leads.
Congratulations to the winners of The Interview!
We are thrilled to share the contest results for the week of November 2nd. Writers were invited to explore what it means to ask the right questions. Special thanks once again to our guest judge, Hattie Crisell.
First Place: I’d like to send her out ahead of time by Ella Holliday
Second Place: The Interview I’ve Always Wanted (with My Mother, Who Is God, and Also a Child) by Toni Burns
Third Place: Interview with a White Blood Cell by Uma Deodhar
Congratulations to the winners, and thank you to everyone who participated. It’s a pleasure to share these pieces with you.
PS: 🎯 Join our December Goal-Setting Workshop
Join us for a focused, 1-hour goal-setting workshop to help you get clarity around your writing projects in December and start the month strong.
🗓️ Date: Monday, December 1st, 7pm GMT (2pm ET / 11am PT)
📍 Location: Virtual, over Zoom
🎟️ Free & open to all 👉 Register Here
(Silver & Gold LWS Members: RSVP Here)
PPS: ✍️ Write with us daily at Writers’ Hour
Come work on this week’s prompt at Writers’ Hour—our daily silent writing sprints—where writers around the world gather together to write. It’s the perfect environment to focus, share space with other writers, and make progress on your contest entry.
If you’re craving more creative community or a steadier writing rhythm, you’re always welcome to join us. Check out our December events, or learn more about Membership.
🔒 Paid Subscriber Perk: Editorial Feedback Lottery
This week, three paid subscribers will be chosen at random to receive personalized feedback on up to 500 words written in response to this prompt.
How to enter the feedback lottery: