Winter Sensory Prompts

Arielle Haughee

25 Sensory Winter Writing Prompts

25 Sensory details add realism to your writing and make the reader feel more connected to the work. Let’s get those creative juices going and do some practice working with sensory details as writing prompts. Look at the suggestions below and see if anything stands out to you. Can you combine more than one of these in a story?

Scent

1. heavy maple sweetness combined with hints of vanilla
   
2. chemical stench of plastic thrown on a fire
   
3. flowery fabric softener embedded in a scarf
   
4. rotten, waterlogged stump of a browning Christmas tree
   
5. new leather on shiny boots
   

Tactile

1. scratchy wool sweater making a rash
   
2. granular salt being spread on the driveway
   
3. warm, fluffy slippers
   
4. sharp serrations on a bread knife
   
5. velvety smooth ice covering a lake
   

Sound

1. wind blowing through bare branches
   
2. tired, strained rumble of the heat turning on
   
3. crunch of compacting wet snow
   
4. dishes being stacked in a busy diner
   
5. church choir’s voices drifting out closed wooden doors
   

Taste

1. savory root vegetables roasted with thyme
   
2. dregs at the bottom of a fourth cup of black coffee
   
3. citrusy glue on an envelope
   
4. decadent, moist chocolate layer cake
   
5. bitter stomach acid from a winter flu
   

Sight

There were so many great images, we included one extra!

Have fun and let us know which one(s) you worked with!