Visual Writing Prompts: The Rule of Three

Three Bottles

For the #augustbreak 2014 prompt “Three,” the first thing that came to mind was this ceramic sculpture on a bookcase shelf in my office. It was made by an art-fair artist whose name I’ve lost, but it’s a quirky piece that I’ve had on display somewhere in the house for the past ten years.

Odd numbers make for more dynamic groupings. Even when things come in pairs, a third element comes into focus. Think of formal arrangements like a pair of planters flanking an entrance door. The g...