The sniffles might irritate you for a few days, perhaps even cause you to miss a day of work, but generally don’t keep your down for too long.
More serious illness might even land you in the hospital for days on end. You get board being there, but realize it’s for the best. Until your stay gets extended over and over.
Your task is to write a story in which your protagonist falls ill. Choose something long-lasting so as to provide necessary tension.
Have fun with this one.
Every now and then someone from our long-forgotten past reappears. It can be a pleasant surprise or one fraught with fear. In the first case, the two of you might go to a café, take a walk around a park, and then exchange contact information.
In the second case, you might search for a way to disengage and escape.
The stories about those events will be completely different: one filled with joy, the other with fright.
Your task is to write a story in which someone from the past shows up, unexpectedly. Your character needs to show emotions appropriate to the scene you’ve chosen.
Pepper the story with interesting dialogue, narrative and scene description.
Have fun with this one.
How many times has a candy shop been a setting in a movie or novel? Most likely, quite a few.
Imagine being that pioneer child, riding into town on the back of the family wagon, going into the store and finding jars of hard candies right before your eyes. If you could only have just one, which would it be and why?
What if the temptation was so great, the saliva pooling in your mouth, and you know there’s no money for just one piece? Would you reach into a jar when the owner was busy?
When did the tradition of buying popcorn and candy to take into a movie begin? For some of us, it’s ingrained in our routines: it wouldn’t feel right to be without the buttery goodness or sticky licorice.
Your task is to write a story in which candy plays an important role.
Have fun with this one.
I was not one of those kids who won things. I never received a perfect attendance certificate or one for being on the honor roll (because I never had either!).
In the 1960s girls didn’t participate in sports, so I there were no participation ribbons for me. I didn’t play an instrument and wasn’t artistically gifted.
I do remember the first time I did win something. I was ten. My family had gone to my father’s union picnic at which a BINGO game was held for kids. I lost the first few games, which didn’t surprise me. I wanted to quit, but my parents made me keep playing.
An announcement was made that there would only be one last game. Numbers were called and very quickly my blocks filled up. Imagine the look on my face when I had a BINGO. I hesitantly raised my hand, convinced that I’d screwed up, but when an adult checked my game board, I had won. I was escorted to the front and was presented with a tiny piece of candy. It didn’t matter the prize. What stood out was that I had been declared a winner.
Your character might have had a similar experience. Ribbons were earned, certificates were given, and promotions handed out. Or not.
Your task is to write a story that involves some type of competition in which your character loses over and over. In time, though, what does she do? Keep playing or walk away.
Setting is important so that the reader can “see” where the story takes place and enough dialogue that it’s apparent how the character feels about what’s happening.
Have fun with this one.
Politics can be a dirty business. Those with money can “buy” lowered taxes and rulings that favor their business. Those without power are often either ignored or disregarded, their needs not important to those seeking influence. A politician will appeal to those without, promising all kinds a magical thinking, but once elected, serve only those with money.
Lawyers are often demeaned for being “criminals” themselves, especially when they take on clients who consistently violate the laws. All this is done thanks to hefty payouts and the notoriety that defending such clients falls upon the law firm.
School administrators who are supposed to be there for students and staff, can fire teachers with very little cause, as long as it takes place before the teacher earns tenure. It doesn’t take much to rid oneself of staff who ask questions, challenge decisions, and speak up against what they believe are injustices. A few negative evaluations can destroy a teachers career, if the charges are serious enough.
Your task is to write a story in which power corrupts. The wanting of power, or seeking power, or utilizing power to get what your character wants must play a major role.
Have fun with this one.
It’s not easy to forgive someone when they hurt you in some way. There are any number of potential offenses, such as stealing a boy/girlfriend, getting the promotion you felt was yours, wooing away what you thought were your friends.
Family relationships fall into that category as well. The mom who seems to hate you, the sibling who physically hurts you, the aunt who gives your sister gifts but never a single thing to you.
Your task is to write a story in which the act of forgiveness (or not) plays an important role.
Depending upon the age of your protagonist, the act might be rather insignificant or life-altering. What hurts a child is vastly different than what pains an adult. In most cases.
Dialogue will be crucial in showing the reactions of the characters. Narrative helps to set the scene as well as increases the causes of tension.
Have fun with this one.
We often keep track of time through events in our lives. There are things that came before, the event, and what happens next. Sometimes the event is so significant that it changes lives.
For example, consider a young boy who broke his arm when he fell out of a tree. He was only eight at the time, but will always remember the incident as a changing point in his life, before the fall and after the fall.
Imagine being hospitalized for such a severe asthma attack that you thought you were going to die. While you were in the hospital, you prayed just to be able to draw a breath. When the tightness finally relaxed, you knew that you were going to live. There is before the asthma attack and after the attack.
Sometimes these events cause significant change in our lives. For example, before a serious illness cleaning house might not have been a priority. But when the doctor tells you that dust is a trigger, you hire a housekeeper.
Your characters keep track of time in the same way. There is before the robbery and then the capture, trial and jail. There is before the monsters come and then the destruction and the deaths of hundreds of people. There is before the military coup and then the restrictions put into place after the general took charge.
Your task is to write a story in which something happens that changes your character’s life. It must be large enough to impact life afterwards. Choose something that’s large enough to have an impact, but unless you’re writing an epic novel, keep it small.
Have fun with this one.
A spell has held the monsters inside their personal prisons. The world has been safe and at peace for as long as anyone can remember. But underneath, behind the scenes, so to speak, the evil lord has been plotting and planning.
Nothing makes a story more interesting than a monster or two set free. Think how mesmerized the world has been with the concept of King Kong, the giant gorilla who terrorized New York City and appeared to kidnap a beautiful woman.
Or the evil shark in the movie Jaws who indiscriminately attacked and ate a how variety to humans. Even the music, that steady beat, beat, beat, told viewers that Jaws was coming, putting them on the edges of their seats.
Your task is to write a story in which at least one monster is set free or escapes its bonds. Depending upon the length, you might want to have only one monster, but make it evil enough for an entire army.
Create an interesting setting, a place where the monster can cause the most terror. Decide upon the protagonist. The young, the olders, and those with disabilities are the most vulnerable, the ones most likely to win sympathy. Decide how the monster gets free. It can be by accident or by intent, but make sure that it causes plenty of fear and havoc.
Have fun with this one.
Storytellers must keep in mind that events from the past can affect how a person looks at the present. Traumatic experiences, long buried, might appear worse when brought into new light. Angry words, a spanking, being accosted, hurt back then, but can still cause pain today.
Even so, the writer might find a sense of catharsis through the writing, and so telling those stories becomes a valuable experience.
Your task is to write a story in which your main character revisits past occurrences that caused some degree of emotional distress, whether the offenses were committed against her or if they were directed toward others.
You might consider looking at family dynamics. For example, in many families, the older brother who is worshiped by the mother and a younger sister can do no wrong. The middle child, no matter how hard she tried, you could never garner the mother’s attention.
In your story, show what the character did that got him in trouble, as well as those things that he could not control but that shaped who he became.
Include dialogue to touch on emotional issues and to build tension.
Have fun with this one!
There are times to celebrate all the good things that have come our way. Times to rejoice, to laugh, to pray, to give thanks. To remind ourselves That we might have more than others, and to be grateful for what we do have.
Thanksgiving Day has become a huge commercial enterprise. There are gift cards, decorations, themed toys and gifts, cookies in the shape of turkeys and pilgrims. Schools have Thanksgiving celebrations where students make pilgrim costumes and share themed candies.
Commercials show happy families welcoming guests. For many, television mirrors their family life. But, for others, family gatherings are times of extreme stress and so they choose to eat alone.
Your task is to write a story in which Thanksgiving plays a major part. Your character might be the type who celebrates alone, in which case you need to show how this is handled. For example, does she cook a turkey breast for herself? Volunteer at a local food bank? Go to a restaurant that serves a typical dinner?
Or does your character celebrate with others? That time doesn’t have to be free from stress. In fact, to make the story more interesting, a bit of high drama might be fun.
Remember to include emotional details so that readers walk in the minds and hearts of the characters.
Have fun with this one.
Have Fun with This One 