'Summer's lease hath all too short a date...'

Welcome back!

The quote above comes from Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 - the one that begins: 'Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?' (In it, he suggests that the fame of the person he is addressing will last far longer than a summer's day - because, apart from anything else, of the poem. And it turns out he was right, wasn't he?)

Anyway, I've appropriated it - because here we are, at what feels like the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, and I want you to think about that. Do you regret the passing of summer, or do you look forward to the crisper days of autumn?

As ever, you could start by gathering some ideas together. What was/is good about summer? What do you look forward to - or not - about autumn?

Here are some suggestions for writing. You choose - do one, two, or all three! 

• Haiku(s) - always useful for limbering up, and to focus your thoughts. Remember - 17 syllables: first line five, second line seven, third line five.

• A reflective piece at the turn of the season: an opportunity to look back, but also to look forward.

• A story or memoir, with the above title. The obvious theme might be transitoriness: a particularly special summer which ended in loss of some kind; some aspect of life at a seaside resort! I'm sure you'll have your own ideas.