Olio of Prompts II
How do you think valentine's day would be celebrated by an alien race who, perhaps, are multicellular globs with no real circulatory system as we know it but who, perhaps, have picked up on the concept of valentine's day from alien visitors (namely, the human race), decide they like the concept, and adapt it to their species?
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Here's a fun idea. You, of course, have your protagonists and your antagonists and all that, but has one of your characters ever written a love letter? I think it might be fun, and maybe even have your antagonist send (gasp!) a valentine to your protagonist. If s/he sends one, what kind would they choose? Sarcastic or saccharine? Would they draw hearts or a skull and crossbones, or perhaps a heart emblazoned with a skull and crossbones, on the card?
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You know how you see the world, how you perceive it. When you read a story (short or series), you bring those experiences to the story, and identifying with the experiences of the characters in the novel engross you in the story.
One fun thing, though: no two people's experiences, no two people's reading, are interpreted in the same fashion. We all have sets of experiences, but even if we went though the same experience, we would interpret them differently from each other.
The same principle applies to our reading. The way I perceive what I read is not the same as the way that you perceive what you read.
This exercise is simple enough, and ongoing: when a part of the story really hits you, when it speaks to you, write it down, and write down (in other words, try to analyse) why it speaks to you. What was it that hit you about it? Even if it's an outrageous, non-reality based experience within the novel, think about the events whivh led up to that moment and then, think about and write down your own experiences and try to see if the similarity in the sequence in the books which led up to that minor apocryphal 'aha!' moment for you, try to find the similar math, or sequence-type thing, in your own life which lets you relate to the story, and to that 'aha!' moment.
They say that life imitates art. Well, sometimes art can mimic life. Where does the mimicry begin? ;-)
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The aphorism states that 'a picture paints a thousand words'. Well, how many words can you use to describe a rose? You can't just cheat and call it a rose, you have to describe its appearance, its texture, maybe even the thorns on its vines. It can be white, red, yellow, any variety (and you may call it by the name of the variety, just don't call it a rose, LOL). Describe a rose, paint a prosaic picture of it as best you can.
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There's a common object that we don't think about every day. Something that most of us take for granted.
How many of you have used a bowling ball? In a bowling alley, of course, with those bowling shoes that look so much like gym sneakers (at least IMHO). How does the bowling ball feel in your hands? Is it new, glossy or smooth, or is it's surface not quite so shiny (perhaps dull and scuffed) and pock-marked from much use? How do the shoes look and feel to your feet?
What do you see in a bowling alley? Try to describe it, including the people.
If someone argues in a bowling alley, what do they argue about? Is it usually about keeping score? Or do they argue and talk about work and other things?
Try to think of a scene or short story which could take place in a bowling alley. It could be humorous (say, to deter a Martian invasion-some contest of that nature), serious, speculative (can someone bowl in Zero-Gee? How?) or poetic (even, perhaps, haiku).
Above all, have fun writing it, and don't worry about the first draft. The rewrite's the important thing.
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I read in another group (one of the Inkies groups) that when one of the folks on the lists runs into problems while writing a character, she switches the gender and writes the character from the perspective of that gender. If you don't have a story that you're working on right now, you can also take an established character from a book and write from that perspective. For example, let's say you choose Huckleberry Finn and use him for this writing exercise: she would still be the same person but, since you switched the gender, _she_, being a tomboy, would face some very different problems and issues in addition to the original plot. What kinds of problems and issues do you think Henrietta 'Huck' Finn would face? Or would you call her Boysenberry? Strawberry? Periwinkle? ;-) Or if you took a cue from fairy tales, what if the little mermaid or Rapunzel had been guys? Humor or not, sketch out a quick 'what if?' scene. You can write a poem about it instead of a scene, too (John, I know you like to write both humor and poetry, so... >=]).
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I'm going to try something a little different this week. For one thing, this probably will take a week.
First, sit down and freewrite something. Choose a setting that you are familiar with, either from your own fiction or from real life. Write something that has a beginning, middle, and end if you can, but don't worry about particulars at this point. Try to do it in five minutes.
On Monday, think about what you wrote and divide it into five parts. You'll write the first part, the beginning. Try to set the scene with tangibles as well as setting the stage for your story-things that can be seen, smelled, heard, felt, perhaps even tasted.
On Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, work on a different part each day. That's why I'm asking you to divide it into five parts. Have the character in your story interact with the environment in some way, for some purpose. If you have a cat as your character in act one, for instance, it could be chasing a dist ball around. In the first part it could be washing itself on the table next to, say, a telephone when it sees a dust ball rolling around on the floor. In act two it jumps off the table to chase the dust ball around, knocking the telephone either off the table or off the hook. In act three, the dial tone sounds, the cat chases the dust ball under a chair and swats it back towards the phone. In act four the dial tone stops, the cat chases the dust ball back towards the phone. In act five the high-pitched noise that comes over unhinged phones can sound right by the cat (you know how phones get when you unintentionally leave it off the hook), startling the cat into jumping on the table again.
Not that this would make an interesting story in and of itself, since you need other elements to make up a story, but it gives you an idea of what I mean: it could still turn into an interesting little story, depending on how it is written. Anyway, you don't need to use a cat, that's just an example.
On Saturday you'll read over what you have written with an eye towards any revisions you might have to make to the story.
Granted, it's a basic exercise in putting a story together, but this exercise might generate an idea or three for you. Happy (plot) hunting!
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We all have villains, 'bad guys', antagonists. Was there a major (to them) event that made them this way?
I had one that actually had a two-part transition, the first when he overheard a conversation that he was never intended to hear and the second, when he was indoctrinated into a group which empowered him to split off from the main group and wreak havoc under his own power, a 'coming-of-age' to the dark side sort of thing.
Whether it's extreme like mine or on a more moderate level (something like overhearing an unfaithful partner, business or otherwise, or overhearing bad things that a so-called 'friend' might have been saying behind his or her back), what made your antagonist start to follow The Dark Side?
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This is almost a surreal exercise. Using no capital letters or punctuation, write straight through, describing a dream or just freewriting something, perhaps a chain of association. Even if it's just a string of unrelated images with no transitions, just keep writing until you're all written out.
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Minor characters can be fun. Sometimes, because we get so wrapped up in the development of a short story or novel that we neglect them horribly: then we start to wonder why they never call, write, or remember our birthdays. [-)
Take one of your minor characters out to lunch today. What are their table manners like? Do they cut their meat with their left or right hand? For that matter, do they even eat meat? Are they messy eaters, splattering and spraying their food? Or are they or fastidious ones, perhaps overly so, and disdain even a minor drop on the table?
What do you think they would talk about, what topic would they choose? For that matter, do they have a companion for lunch and have a dialogue with the other, or do they sit and mutter aloud to themselves, or do they hold a silent monologue or argument? How do they sound? Is their voice like the cacophony of shattering crystal or a low, pleasant murmur? Is it anywhere between those two extremes?
You never know what ideas you might come up with from this exercise, even if it's only for your own enjoyment. You may even get to like the character a little more.
Take a minor character to lunch today. It might make both of you very happy.
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It's funny, how things work out. I always liked to play the piano, even though I haven't really played it since high school. In my imagination, though, I play the guitar. Not in real life: I only know a few simple chords and reading the music, well, fuhgeddaboutit.
I reached a personal epiphany a couple of days ago. My brother, who died in 1978, played the guitar like a virtuoso. His lifestyle was somewhat bohemian, uncluttered, and free.
I realized, finally, that the reason I play guitar in my own imagination is that I envied him that, and the guitar has come to symbolize a personal freedom that I've never known, will probably never know.
How about you? Have you (or your character) ever had one of those moments of realization? How and why did this come about? It might make an interesting story.
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This is the reverse of a previous prompt. Take your bad guy and write about him doing something really, really good and totally nice.
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Since you've been writing, you have a definite view of your character's alignment. I want you to reflect on your good characters, your "heroes".
What's the most evil thing that your good character has done? Write a short piece about it and explain the circumstances, no matter how trivial.
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I'm listening to a recording of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy right now. I have always enjoyed the humor in it, the minor bypass through Arthur Dent's house and the hyperspace bypass through this arm of the Milky Way Galaxy and then progressing through the story from that point.
By a strange coincidence, I thought this would also make a good prompt, either serious or silly.
Friday, what do you think a person could hitch a ride with? A car? A dragon? An interstellar vehicle? An inter-dimensional vehicle? A time machine? Someone's back? Horseback, piggyback... Which one (or more than one) do you think would be fun to write? ("Fun" of course being a relative term). Pick at least two of them and write one on Saturday and one on Sunday.
Oh, yes, flying carpets are okay too, or flying croutons, doughnuts (or if you prefer the American spelling, donuts) (Of course, I should really talk, since I'm a crazy American LOL, but for most of my like I was more familiar with the former rather than the latter spelling). Crickets, kittens and lobsters work, too. The important factor in the prompt is the action of hitching the ride.
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Pick an emotion. Any emotion will do. Let's say, for example, anger or calm. That's by way of example.
Next - what color do you associate with the emotion? Say, anger = red, red faces, the blood rushing to one's face, pulse rate ascending to an unknown crescendo. Or blue (for peace), calm, placid, clear pools, etcetera.
What odor might you associate with the emotion? Burnt roast, burnt toast, sweat, ... or jasmine, tulip, sandalwood, the smells of a freshly cut lawn or perhaps of coffee in the morning that you drink while reading the paper.
Write something based on those three things-emotion, color, aroma.
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Have you ever wanted to write a book? If so, then what would it be about? Who is your protagonist? Who is your antagonist? What is their struggle? What is your story about?
Try to write a one page description of your novel--a synopsis. If you need help with this, I have links bookmarked at LinksAPlenty. If you spend a little time thinking about your story, it will help you to focus and clarify your idea.
Some people write these synopses and/or outlines in present tense, but at this point I would advise you to write it down however you think about it.
Friday, I'd like you to read it over for nay typos or chronological errors, to make sure that the copy is a clean one.
Saturday I would like you to fill out a character sheet for your protagonist. There are several that you can use, including at least one at the writer's library. Try to find out what makes him tick.
Sunday I want you to fill out a character sheet for your antagonist. Keep in mind that he or she will oppose your protagonist, so for the important emotions in your story you will need to set up some kind of difference or point of contention beteween them. A good example of this would be Hansel and Gretel (protagonist[s]) versus the witch (antagonist).
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Imagine a telephone call. Your character just received one. It's the character you're currently writing (or, as the case may be, reading about). If it's, say, Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings, of course you'd have to write in his reaction to a phone call. *maniacal laughter resonates in the background*.
Bad news from home, over the telephone. If the character is at home, then it's a telephone call from a friend at the hospital or the police station. What happened? Was it an accident? A case of mistaken identity? Did they get caught doing something that they should not have been doing? Your viewpoint character receives the telephone call so the only cue they have is the sound of the other person/being's voice (if it';s a vidphone, the video portion is on the fritz). All they would see would be their own surroundings. How do their perceptions of their own environment change, thanks to the news?
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If you're like me, you've daydreamed about winning the lottery. Make a list of everything that would o right for you with it--say, paying bill, buying a house, etcetera. Now, make another list. What are the things that could go wrong when you have so much money? Other than robbery (a real possibility), things like tax brackets and the like, plus maybe a few others that I can't think of at the moment.
When Sunday comes, write a funny story about winning the lottery using just about everything that could go wrong. Yes, if you want then it can turn out all right in the end--but throw all sorts of bad things against your protagonist. Make him or her work for the money, baby--even if it's only make believe. ;-)
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I've been thinking about something.
On another list, they've been discussing "grubby apartment" stories (see THE TURKEY CITY LEXICON.
That list also issues a monthly writing challenge so I suggested it there. I'm going to suggest it here with a twist, mixing it with A SHAGGY DOG STORY to create the writing prompt for today.
The challenge for Tuesday, June 3 is
THE SHAGGY APARTMENT STORY
The challenge for Wednesday, June 4 is
THE GRUNGY DOG STORY
See what you can make of those--and have some fun with them.
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Human error can sometimes be a good thing. A person could write a letter and then forget to mail it: and, if they had remembered to mail it, the consequences of whatever missive the letter contained might have had a deleterious effect on their lives.
For that matter, they could have been on their way to put in a job application at a place they knew without a doubt would hire them, but perhaps get sidetracked--and the business is closed because it was the front for an illegal 0peration and they also would have been arrested, had they worked there.
Such things are happy accidents. For your major character they're not so good, unless you use them as an excuse to send your character headlong into the main plot line. However, minor characters can have them (though if the happy accident is story related, so much the better.
What are you writing now? Is there any way to insert a purposeful "happy accident" into the piece, even if only just for fun?
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I'm taking the lazy way (or the sensible) way out. Take three of the character sketches you wrote yesterday, one for each day, and write a scene using that character. Use the character sheet that you came up with, telling details and all, to find out how they would react in a situation.
The scenario is up to you. The point is to have some fun writing it as well as exercising your creative muscles.
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Whether you commute to work or travel for a different reason, you must have taken a train at some point in your life. Of course, I hope you put it back when you were finished playing with it.
Today's prompt asks you to picture yourself on s train ride. Let's say that, perhaps, you're on the way to visit a relative or an old friend (almost as close as a relative, but in a different way). You know that the trains are crowded at this time of day, One person has a suitcase, another a guitar case, perhaps there's a college student or three. Business suits abound. What kind of stories can you come up with? What are the folks around you wearing? Is the guitar case worn but clean? Do you think that the person carrying it is a struggling folk singer or aspiring rock musician? A classical guitarist? A street corner musician? What do you think drives him or her? (Motivation)
Details can tell you some things about the people around you. Write about five quick character sketches for folks you can see around you, whether in your mind's eye or on your daily commute. I'm sure that you can come up with a story for any one of them, but this is an exercise in seeing and pondering.
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DEUS EX MACHINA
Hi! No, I'm not referring to a story where a god or some random power comes in and saves everybody. Rather, it's the idea of the god in the box or in the machine (even in a twisted way, like in Harlan Ellison's short story I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, which has a computer with delusions of deity).
How many ways can you put God in a box or in the machine?
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Okay, other than bananas wearing tutus, here's a prompt I just thought up for Tuesday's writing exercise.
I want you to write an argument in first person present tense (in other words, happening in the "here and now"). I want this argument to be with a pink elephant. This can't be just any pink elephant, oh, no: I want the argument to be first person, present tense, with a pink elephant who is wearing, of all things, a spacesuit.
Ghu, do you think they come in jumbo extra large?
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Hehehee. Construction, you say?
Well, you know the prompts on the dialogue and then the narrative I came up with, right? Well,
SATURDAY:
Construct a dialogue around a scene.
SUNDAY:
Using the dialogue as a reference for the scene, construct a straight narrative using absolutely no dialogue
MONDAY:
Try to fit the dialogue together with the narrative, like a jigsaw puzzle.
I'm so evil, aren't I? >=)
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The rain pelted on the roof of the garage while the librarian pondered what her next prompt suggestion for the writing prompts list would be: if she could, she would have paced the floor: but the cane, hung from the back of her chair, gave a minor nod to why she wouldn't try it at this moment. Aside from which, she knew that many writer's groups recommended "@$$ in chair" as one of the oldest writing methods in the history of inscribed languages.
Then, it came to her: why not something where the author could use descriptive prose and, perhaps, thoughts and also the viewpoint character's perceptions to convey a scene? Say, a narrative challenge of sorts?
V
"Did you say that you wanted to try writing a story using dialogue alone?"
"Well, the limitations are restrictive, but it can be lots of fun."
"What do you mean?"
"It's a challenge to describe a situation or whatever in dialogue alone, using no narrative whatsoever."
"Liz?"
"Yes?"
"There's a bug on your shoulder."
"Very funny."
"No, seriously, there's a bug on your shoulder."
"Did it come via email?"
"How would I know?"
"Well, let's just hope it doesn't eat the page."
"Very funny..."
"Anyway, I hope you have some fun with this exercise."
"You say that all the time."
"Well, I _am_ the virtual librarian here."
"........."
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DOGGEREL
You don't have to escape, run far away
It's an early writing prompt for Wednesday
take a bit of time, scribbling away
Just take several moments to rhyme today.
They don't need to match or make any sense
Just make up some words while you do progress
(Did I make much sense with this molderrel?
Rhyming in season with this doggerel)
So far as prompts for this Yahoo list go
The idea, say, is "write what you know".
I know--a horrible, horrible rhyme. The prompt today is writing something that rhymes. Granted, I tried to match up the syllables, but you don't have to: and I knw there are several hundred varieties and sub-varieties and micro-varieties of poetry. The idea here is just to create a rhyme and carry it so far as you will,
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I ended up visiting the Surrealist Compliment generator for this one. I'll see if I can add the site to links later: but something about this random quote might just serve as a springboard for a story idea:
Your fingers sublimate into volcanic gases with the slightest cooling touch from the antennae of a passing lyre.
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Here's a fun idea. You, of course, have your protagonists and your antagonists and all that, but has one of your characters ever written a love letter? I think it might be fun, and maybe even have your antagonist send (gasp!) a valentine to your protagonist. If s/he sends one, what kind would they choose? Sarcastic or saccharine? Would they draw hearts or a skull and crossbones, or perhaps a heart emblazoned with a skull and crossbones, on the card?
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You know how you see the world, how you perceive it. When you read a story (short or series), you bring those experiences to the story, and identifying with the experiences of the characters in the novel engross you in the story.
One fun thing, though: no two people's experiences, no two people's reading, are interpreted in the same fashion. We all have sets of experiences, but even if we went though the same experience, we would interpret them differently from each other.
The same principle applies to our reading. The way I perceive what I read is not the same as the way that you perceive what you read.
This exercise is simple enough, and ongoing: when a part of the story really hits you, when it speaks to you, write it down, and write down (in other words, try to analyse) why it speaks to you. What was it that hit you about it? Even if it's an outrageous, non-reality based experience within the novel, think about the events whivh led up to that moment and then, think about and write down your own experiences and try to see if the similarity in the sequence in the books which led up to that minor apocryphal 'aha!' moment for you, try to find the similar math, or sequence-type thing, in your own life which lets you relate to the story, and to that 'aha!' moment.
They say that life imitates art. Well, sometimes art can mimic life. Where does the mimicry begin? ;-)
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The aphorism states that 'a picture paints a thousand words'. Well, how many words can you use to describe a rose? You can't just cheat and call it a rose, you have to describe its appearance, its texture, maybe even the thorns on its vines. It can be white, red, yellow, any variety (and you may call it by the name of the variety, just don't call it a rose, LOL). Describe a rose, paint a prosaic picture of it as best you can.
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There's a common object that we don't think about every day. Something that most of us take for granted.
How many of you have used a bowling ball? In a bowling alley, of course, with those bowling shoes that look so much like gym sneakers (at least IMHO). How does the bowling ball feel in your hands? Is it new, glossy or smooth, or is it's surface not quite so shiny (perhaps dull and scuffed) and pock-marked from much use? How do the shoes look and feel to your feet?
What do you see in a bowling alley? Try to describe it, including the people.
If someone argues in a bowling alley, what do they argue about? Is it usually about keeping score? Or do they argue and talk about work and other things?
Try to think of a scene or short story which could take place in a bowling alley. It could be humorous (say, to deter a Martian invasion-some contest of that nature), serious, speculative (can someone bowl in Zero-Gee? How?) or poetic (even, perhaps, haiku).
Above all, have fun writing it, and don't worry about the first draft. The rewrite's the important thing.
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I read in another group (one of the Inkies groups) that when one of the folks on the lists runs into problems while writing a character, she switches the gender and writes the character from the perspective of that gender. If you don't have a story that you're working on right now, you can also take an established character from a book and write from that perspective. For example, let's say you choose Huckleberry Finn and use him for this writing exercise: she would still be the same person but, since you switched the gender, _she_, being a tomboy, would face some very different problems and issues in addition to the original plot. What kinds of problems and issues do you think Henrietta 'Huck' Finn would face? Or would you call her Boysenberry? Strawberry? Periwinkle? ;-) Or if you took a cue from fairy tales, what if the little mermaid or Rapunzel had been guys? Humor or not, sketch out a quick 'what if?' scene. You can write a poem about it instead of a scene, too (John, I know you like to write both humor and poetry, so... >=]).
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I'm going to try something a little different this week. For one thing, this probably will take a week.
First, sit down and freewrite something. Choose a setting that you are familiar with, either from your own fiction or from real life. Write something that has a beginning, middle, and end if you can, but don't worry about particulars at this point. Try to do it in five minutes.
On Monday, think about what you wrote and divide it into five parts. You'll write the first part, the beginning. Try to set the scene with tangibles as well as setting the stage for your story-things that can be seen, smelled, heard, felt, perhaps even tasted.
On Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, work on a different part each day. That's why I'm asking you to divide it into five parts. Have the character in your story interact with the environment in some way, for some purpose. If you have a cat as your character in act one, for instance, it could be chasing a dist ball around. In the first part it could be washing itself on the table next to, say, a telephone when it sees a dust ball rolling around on the floor. In act two it jumps off the table to chase the dust ball around, knocking the telephone either off the table or off the hook. In act three, the dial tone sounds, the cat chases the dust ball under a chair and swats it back towards the phone. In act four the dial tone stops, the cat chases the dust ball back towards the phone. In act five the high-pitched noise that comes over unhinged phones can sound right by the cat (you know how phones get when you unintentionally leave it off the hook), startling the cat into jumping on the table again.
Not that this would make an interesting story in and of itself, since you need other elements to make up a story, but it gives you an idea of what I mean: it could still turn into an interesting little story, depending on how it is written. Anyway, you don't need to use a cat, that's just an example.
On Saturday you'll read over what you have written with an eye towards any revisions you might have to make to the story.
Granted, it's a basic exercise in putting a story together, but this exercise might generate an idea or three for you. Happy (plot) hunting!
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We all have villains, 'bad guys', antagonists. Was there a major (to them) event that made them this way?
I had one that actually had a two-part transition, the first when he overheard a conversation that he was never intended to hear and the second, when he was indoctrinated into a group which empowered him to split off from the main group and wreak havoc under his own power, a 'coming-of-age' to the dark side sort of thing.
Whether it's extreme like mine or on a more moderate level (something like overhearing an unfaithful partner, business or otherwise, or overhearing bad things that a so-called 'friend' might have been saying behind his or her back), what made your antagonist start to follow The Dark Side?
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This is almost a surreal exercise. Using no capital letters or punctuation, write straight through, describing a dream or just freewriting something, perhaps a chain of association. Even if it's just a string of unrelated images with no transitions, just keep writing until you're all written out.
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Minor characters can be fun. Sometimes, because we get so wrapped up in the development of a short story or novel that we neglect them horribly: then we start to wonder why they never call, write, or remember our birthdays. [-)
Take one of your minor characters out to lunch today. What are their table manners like? Do they cut their meat with their left or right hand? For that matter, do they even eat meat? Are they messy eaters, splattering and spraying their food? Or are they or fastidious ones, perhaps overly so, and disdain even a minor drop on the table?
What do you think they would talk about, what topic would they choose? For that matter, do they have a companion for lunch and have a dialogue with the other, or do they sit and mutter aloud to themselves, or do they hold a silent monologue or argument? How do they sound? Is their voice like the cacophony of shattering crystal or a low, pleasant murmur? Is it anywhere between those two extremes?
You never know what ideas you might come up with from this exercise, even if it's only for your own enjoyment. You may even get to like the character a little more.
Take a minor character to lunch today. It might make both of you very happy.
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It's funny, how things work out. I always liked to play the piano, even though I haven't really played it since high school. In my imagination, though, I play the guitar. Not in real life: I only know a few simple chords and reading the music, well, fuhgeddaboutit.
I reached a personal epiphany a couple of days ago. My brother, who died in 1978, played the guitar like a virtuoso. His lifestyle was somewhat bohemian, uncluttered, and free.
I realized, finally, that the reason I play guitar in my own imagination is that I envied him that, and the guitar has come to symbolize a personal freedom that I've never known, will probably never know.
How about you? Have you (or your character) ever had one of those moments of realization? How and why did this come about? It might make an interesting story.
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This is the reverse of a previous prompt. Take your bad guy and write about him doing something really, really good and totally nice.
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Since you've been writing, you have a definite view of your character's alignment. I want you to reflect on your good characters, your "heroes".
What's the most evil thing that your good character has done? Write a short piece about it and explain the circumstances, no matter how trivial.
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I'm listening to a recording of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy right now. I have always enjoyed the humor in it, the minor bypass through Arthur Dent's house and the hyperspace bypass through this arm of the Milky Way Galaxy and then progressing through the story from that point.
By a strange coincidence, I thought this would also make a good prompt, either serious or silly.
Friday, what do you think a person could hitch a ride with? A car? A dragon? An interstellar vehicle? An inter-dimensional vehicle? A time machine? Someone's back? Horseback, piggyback... Which one (or more than one) do you think would be fun to write? ("Fun" of course being a relative term). Pick at least two of them and write one on Saturday and one on Sunday.
Oh, yes, flying carpets are okay too, or flying croutons, doughnuts (or if you prefer the American spelling, donuts) (Of course, I should really talk, since I'm a crazy American LOL, but for most of my like I was more familiar with the former rather than the latter spelling). Crickets, kittens and lobsters work, too. The important factor in the prompt is the action of hitching the ride.
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Pick an emotion. Any emotion will do. Let's say, for example, anger or calm. That's by way of example.
Next - what color do you associate with the emotion? Say, anger = red, red faces, the blood rushing to one's face, pulse rate ascending to an unknown crescendo. Or blue (for peace), calm, placid, clear pools, etcetera.
What odor might you associate with the emotion? Burnt roast, burnt toast, sweat, ... or jasmine, tulip, sandalwood, the smells of a freshly cut lawn or perhaps of coffee in the morning that you drink while reading the paper.
Write something based on those three things-emotion, color, aroma.
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Have you ever wanted to write a book? If so, then what would it be about? Who is your protagonist? Who is your antagonist? What is their struggle? What is your story about?
Try to write a one page description of your novel--a synopsis. If you need help with this, I have links bookmarked at LinksAPlenty. If you spend a little time thinking about your story, it will help you to focus and clarify your idea.
Some people write these synopses and/or outlines in present tense, but at this point I would advise you to write it down however you think about it.
Friday, I'd like you to read it over for nay typos or chronological errors, to make sure that the copy is a clean one.
Saturday I would like you to fill out a character sheet for your protagonist. There are several that you can use, including at least one at the writer's library. Try to find out what makes him tick.
Sunday I want you to fill out a character sheet for your antagonist. Keep in mind that he or she will oppose your protagonist, so for the important emotions in your story you will need to set up some kind of difference or point of contention beteween them. A good example of this would be Hansel and Gretel (protagonist[s]) versus the witch (antagonist).
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Imagine a telephone call. Your character just received one. It's the character you're currently writing (or, as the case may be, reading about). If it's, say, Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings, of course you'd have to write in his reaction to a phone call. *maniacal laughter resonates in the background*.
Bad news from home, over the telephone. If the character is at home, then it's a telephone call from a friend at the hospital or the police station. What happened? Was it an accident? A case of mistaken identity? Did they get caught doing something that they should not have been doing? Your viewpoint character receives the telephone call so the only cue they have is the sound of the other person/being's voice (if it';s a vidphone, the video portion is on the fritz). All they would see would be their own surroundings. How do their perceptions of their own environment change, thanks to the news?
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If you're like me, you've daydreamed about winning the lottery. Make a list of everything that would o right for you with it--say, paying bill, buying a house, etcetera. Now, make another list. What are the things that could go wrong when you have so much money? Other than robbery (a real possibility), things like tax brackets and the like, plus maybe a few others that I can't think of at the moment.
When Sunday comes, write a funny story about winning the lottery using just about everything that could go wrong. Yes, if you want then it can turn out all right in the end--but throw all sorts of bad things against your protagonist. Make him or her work for the money, baby--even if it's only make believe. ;-)
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I've been thinking about something.
On another list, they've been discussing "grubby apartment" stories (see THE TURKEY CITY LEXICON.
That list also issues a monthly writing challenge so I suggested it there. I'm going to suggest it here with a twist, mixing it with A SHAGGY DOG STORY to create the writing prompt for today.
The challenge for Tuesday, June 3 is
THE SHAGGY APARTMENT STORY
The challenge for Wednesday, June 4 is
THE GRUNGY DOG STORY
See what you can make of those--and have some fun with them.
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Human error can sometimes be a good thing. A person could write a letter and then forget to mail it: and, if they had remembered to mail it, the consequences of whatever missive the letter contained might have had a deleterious effect on their lives.
For that matter, they could have been on their way to put in a job application at a place they knew without a doubt would hire them, but perhaps get sidetracked--and the business is closed because it was the front for an illegal 0peration and they also would have been arrested, had they worked there.
Such things are happy accidents. For your major character they're not so good, unless you use them as an excuse to send your character headlong into the main plot line. However, minor characters can have them (though if the happy accident is story related, so much the better.
What are you writing now? Is there any way to insert a purposeful "happy accident" into the piece, even if only just for fun?
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I'm taking the lazy way (or the sensible) way out. Take three of the character sketches you wrote yesterday, one for each day, and write a scene using that character. Use the character sheet that you came up with, telling details and all, to find out how they would react in a situation.
The scenario is up to you. The point is to have some fun writing it as well as exercising your creative muscles.
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Whether you commute to work or travel for a different reason, you must have taken a train at some point in your life. Of course, I hope you put it back when you were finished playing with it.
Today's prompt asks you to picture yourself on s train ride. Let's say that, perhaps, you're on the way to visit a relative or an old friend (almost as close as a relative, but in a different way). You know that the trains are crowded at this time of day, One person has a suitcase, another a guitar case, perhaps there's a college student or three. Business suits abound. What kind of stories can you come up with? What are the folks around you wearing? Is the guitar case worn but clean? Do you think that the person carrying it is a struggling folk singer or aspiring rock musician? A classical guitarist? A street corner musician? What do you think drives him or her? (Motivation)
Details can tell you some things about the people around you. Write about five quick character sketches for folks you can see around you, whether in your mind's eye or on your daily commute. I'm sure that you can come up with a story for any one of them, but this is an exercise in seeing and pondering.
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DEUS EX MACHINA
Hi! No, I'm not referring to a story where a god or some random power comes in and saves everybody. Rather, it's the idea of the god in the box or in the machine (even in a twisted way, like in Harlan Ellison's short story I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, which has a computer with delusions of deity).
How many ways can you put God in a box or in the machine?
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Okay, other than bananas wearing tutus, here's a prompt I just thought up for Tuesday's writing exercise.
I want you to write an argument in first person present tense (in other words, happening in the "here and now"). I want this argument to be with a pink elephant. This can't be just any pink elephant, oh, no: I want the argument to be first person, present tense, with a pink elephant who is wearing, of all things, a spacesuit.
Ghu, do you think they come in jumbo extra large?
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Hehehee. Construction, you say?
Well, you know the prompts on the dialogue and then the narrative I came up with, right? Well,
SATURDAY:
Construct a dialogue around a scene.
SUNDAY:
Using the dialogue as a reference for the scene, construct a straight narrative using absolutely no dialogue
MONDAY:
Try to fit the dialogue together with the narrative, like a jigsaw puzzle.
I'm so evil, aren't I? >=)
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The rain pelted on the roof of the garage while the librarian pondered what her next prompt suggestion for the writing prompts list would be: if she could, she would have paced the floor: but the cane, hung from the back of her chair, gave a minor nod to why she wouldn't try it at this moment. Aside from which, she knew that many writer's groups recommended "@$$ in chair" as one of the oldest writing methods in the history of inscribed languages.
Then, it came to her: why not something where the author could use descriptive prose and, perhaps, thoughts and also the viewpoint character's perceptions to convey a scene? Say, a narrative challenge of sorts?
V
"Did you say that you wanted to try writing a story using dialogue alone?"
"Well, the limitations are restrictive, but it can be lots of fun."
"What do you mean?"
"It's a challenge to describe a situation or whatever in dialogue alone, using no narrative whatsoever."
"Liz?"
"Yes?"
"There's a bug on your shoulder."
"Very funny."
"No, seriously, there's a bug on your shoulder."
"Did it come via email?"
"How would I know?"
"Well, let's just hope it doesn't eat the page."
"Very funny..."
"Anyway, I hope you have some fun with this exercise."
"You say that all the time."
"Well, I _am_ the virtual librarian here."
"........."
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DOGGEREL
You don't have to escape, run far away
It's an early writing prompt for Wednesday
take a bit of time, scribbling away
Just take several moments to rhyme today.
They don't need to match or make any sense
Just make up some words while you do progress
(Did I make much sense with this molderrel?
Rhyming in season with this doggerel)
So far as prompts for this Yahoo list go
The idea, say, is "write what you know".
I know--a horrible, horrible rhyme. The prompt today is writing something that rhymes. Granted, I tried to match up the syllables, but you don't have to: and I knw there are several hundred varieties and sub-varieties and micro-varieties of poetry. The idea here is just to create a rhyme and carry it so far as you will,
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I ended up visiting the Surrealist Compliment generator for this one. I'll see if I can add the site to links later: but something about this random quote might just serve as a springboard for a story idea:
Your fingers sublimate into volcanic gases with the slightest cooling touch from the antennae of a passing lyre.
posted by Liz | 11:40 AM
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