30 Writing Prompts For September 2025

Writers Write shares writing prompts and writing resources. Use these writing prompts for September 2025 to get you writing.

Hello Writer

This month we are talking about punctuation. In 2023, we focussed on building habits, beating procrastination and improving discipline. In 2024, we worked on our novels and improved our craft. This year, we are taking a closer look at editing, specifically self-editing. It is an essential skill every writer needs to master, but man, being objective and cutting down your own work is hard.

Along with a short editing lesson, you will also receive your monthly prompts as usual. Editing is definitely second-draft stuff. Use the prompts to free write, THEN try to apply the editing suggestions. This is optional.

If this is your first time using prompts you can learn more about using them here.

Punctuation

Does your writing look like Morse code? Well, that is not ideal. We need punctuation. It tells when to slow down and take a breath. It tells us when to pay attention to something. It helps convey clarity and meaning, but we tend to overcomplicate it.

Most of the time, we don’t need more than a capital letter and comma and a full stop.  Now, before you clutch your pearls, hear me out. If you have mastered these, let rip, but for a beginner learn how to use the tools first. Then you can expand your repertoire.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: What Is Punctuation?

Capital letters | Aa

Used at the start of sentence and for names.

Commas | ,

Used for lists and pauses. If you have more than three(and it is not a list) your sentence is probably too long. Is it intentional?

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Commas

Full stop | .

Ends your sentence or is used for abbreviations.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Full Stops

Colon | :

Used before a list.

Semicolon | ;

Used to join two sentences, can be replaced by a conjunction or by making two separate sentences.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Colons & Semicolons

Question mark | ?

At the end of a question. When your character says ‘I wonder’ it is not a question.

Exclamation mark | !

Used to exclaim. Loses efficacy if overused.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Question & Exclamation Marks

Brackets/parentheses and footnotes | ( ), {}, *

Used to add extra information to sentences. If you like using them, make sure you know how, why and when. Do we really, really need the extra information or are you just in love with your own jokes? After a while, it just becomes annoying. I’m adding footnotes here because they do the same thing.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Brackets

Dashes and hyphen | – , —

Longer pause than a comma, but not a full stop. There are many different dashes and hyphens which are used for different reasons. If you like using them, make sure you know how, why and when. I recommend a good old comma unless you want to end your line of dialogue abruptly.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Hyphens & Em Dashes

Apostrophe | ‘

Do not use for plurals. Use for contractions. That is when two words are written as one. Do not = don’t, who’s = who is, let’s = let us.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Apostrophes

Quotation mark | ” “, ‘ ‘ 

These can be single or double. It varies in some countries, so make sure you know which to use. We primarily use it for dialogue in fiction. Single quotation marks can be used for emphasis or to indicate foreign words.

Read: Punctuation For Beginners: All About Inverted Commas

Ellipsis | …

Shows trailing off of a sentence or thought or shows missing words in a quote. Sometimes used in dialogue or as a cop-out ending in a story(don’t do that).

Read Punctuation For Beginners: All About The Ellipsis

Homework

Use the prompt to free write. Once you are done with the first draft, look at your punctuation and evaluate the use of each mark.

Next month we’ll start looking at the spelling and common mistakes.

Download your prompts here: 30 Writing Prompts For September 2025

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Make the most of your writing prompts. Read How To Use Writing Prompts

Happiness

Mia

by Mia Botha

Looking for more prompts?

1. 31 Writing Prompts For August 2025
2. 31 Writing Prompts For July 2025
3. 30 Writing Prompts For June 2025
4. 31 Writing Prompts For May 2025
5. 30 Writing Prompts For April 2025
6. 31 Writing Prompts For March 2025
7. 28 Writing Prompts For February 2025
8. 31 Writing Prompts For January 2025
9. 31 Writing Prompts For December 2024
10. 30 Writing Prompts For November 2024

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