This glorious iridescent beetle is only the size of a ladybird, yet it glimmers as though its been bedazzled. I encountered it in a woodland near my home.

According to a report published by the Wildlife Trusts, 41% of insect species face extinction due to pesticides and habitat loss.

Your challenge is to write a piece that focuses on solutions rather than loss – could you dream up a cheerful story about how efforts to save an extraordinary beetle lead to a more positive outcome for us all?

If you write or create something prompted by this, please send an email to judydarley(at)iCloud.com to let me know. With your permission, I’ll publish it on SkyLightRain.com.

This well-loved teddy bear has been propped in a bush by a passerby so that it will be reunited with its human more easily.

This could make an excellent children’s story. I still recall the day when, aged three, I dropped a cherished toy and my mum succeeded in retracing our steps to recover her.

Think about the person who lost it, whoever finds it and the character of the ted itself. Let me know if your creativity is promp-ted!

If you write or create something prompted by this, please send an email to judydarley(at)iCloud.com to let me know. With your permission, I’ll publish it on SkyLightRain.com.

The beauty of this fallen leaf stopped me in my tracks. This November has been particularly exceptional, with drifts of gold, rust and crimson leaves appearing in every street.

Imagine if no on had seen this phenomenon before, so that the cascade of leaves was the sign of something bigger. Use this as the starting point for a tale, or turn it into a metaphor for what happens when someone dares take a leap into the unknown.

If you write or create something prompted by this, please send an email to judydarley(at)iCloud.com to let me know. With your permission, I’ll publish it on SkyLightRain.com.

While travelling in Thailand, I became increasingly intrigued by the large number of tourists only interested in snapping selfies or seeing their surroundings through the screen of smart devices. Rather than breathing in the moment, they seem intent on how they will look on social media, with that particular backdrop.

In this case, a young girl would rather flick through her phone than take notice of the natural wonder of the Haew Suwat waterfall.

Use this as a starting point for a story. What might happen if one day this girl actually looks up from her phone? What might have changed while her attention was elsewhere?

Alternatively, consider what it could take to remind her that the world can be more than a backdrop to her Instagram photos.

If you write or create something prompted by this, please send an email to judydarley(at)iCloud.com to let me know. With your permission, I’ll publish it on SkyLightRain.com.

This impressive Tithe Barn is situated in Bradford on Avon. The beautiful structure dates back to the 1330s, and has had a number of uses attributed to it, though the name suggests this may have been where people were expected to bring the wares that made up their taxes – basically ten per cent of every crop or animal yield paid to the local church establishment.

I love that this photo catches two modern-day visitors treading in the ancient space, almost as though they are the ghosts in this scenario. What produce might they be expected to submit ten per cent of to this building’s holy masters?

What aspects of history, religion, society and community could you explore with this as your starting point?

If you write or create something prompted by this, please send an email to judydarley(at)iCloud.com to let me know. With your permission, I’ll publish it on SkyLightRain.com.

Imagine finding yourself within reach, as this tiny snail has, of a feast of mouthwatering proportions which just happens to comprise your very favourite food.

How would you restrain yourself? Or wouldn’t you? At what point in your munching might your pause to consider this bounty origins?

What might the implications of such gluttony be?

If you write or create something prompted by this, please send an email to judydarley(at)iCloud.com to let me know. With your permission, I’ll publish it on SkyLightRain.com.