We expect our acquaintances to behave in predictable ways. Tom might be a show-off, except when spiders are involved and Wilma is reserved until she’s drunk.
Our friends are known, including strengths and faults. What happens when they don’t react the ways we’ve come to expect? We tilt our heads to the side, scratch our necks, and wonder what’s possessed them.
Your task is to write a story in which your character steps out of character and says or does something random.
Have fun with this one.
Imagine a kind, loving, patient parent slapping a child for not making a goal. Or a mean, obnoxious parent offering to buy pizza for the team after a terrible defeat.
A strong man bending down to rescue a kitten stuck in a drain. A lightweight lifting a minivan off of a trapped little boy.
A dictator changing stripes and setting up a democracy. An elected leader suspending government to become a dictator for life.
Your task is to write a story in which the protagonist does something totally unexpected based upon what the reader knows or intuits about that person. The wider the discrepancy, the better.
Have fun with this one.
Have Fun with This One 