Some people are naturally brave. They climb trees, strap on skates and speed down bumpy sidewalks all without an ounce of fear. Are they brave or foolhardy?
Imagine your character participating in a frightening activity. How does she act?
Your task is to write a story about a time when your character did something requiring bravery.
Include emotional details.
Have fun with this one.
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.
From a young age we’re taught to do what we’re told, no questions asked. If a parent tells you to clean up your room, you go do it. Later on, if a teacher tells you to open your history book, you comply.
Then when your boss says to wipe out the computer’s memory, you stop and contemplate if that’s what you’re really being asked to do.
There’s a certain code drilled into us that tells us we must do what an authoritarian figure tells us to do. But when commanded to do something that feels wrong, seems illegal or questionable, we hesitate. When the act is discovered, who will be blamed?
Your task is to write a story in which defying authority plays a central role.
Imagine an office filled with expensive treasures. You tend to be a bit clumsy. When faced with such a situation, what do you do? Stand in the middle so as to not touch anything? Slink over to the nearest chair?
What happens if you do break something? Do you hide it? Put it back in place hoping the owner won’t notice?
Your task is to write a story in which something gets broken. It doesn’t have to be something of great financial or historical value, but perhaps something meaningful to the other person.
Have fun with this one.
Honesty isn’t always the best policy. If someone asks if you like their new hairstyle, which you think is abominable, and you express those feelings, the friendship will be ended.
However, if that same person asks if you’d prefer Italian food or Mexican food, and you reply Mexican, they might laugh and say, “I knew that’s what you’d like!” Well, that’s okay.
Your task is to write a story in which the expression of true feelings is a key part. Increase tension by making it a bit dicey for your character to speak the truth. Or by having him say what he really thinks, then having the other person become offended.
Have fun with this one.
When someone goes missing, we panic. We expected them to arrive at a certain time, but then they don’t. We pace the room, stare out the front window, call repeatedly.
As time passes, our level of anxiety rises. We try not to think the worse, that the individual was injured in some way, or got lost, or, in the worst-case scenario, was kidnapped.
When it’s an item that we lose, there’s a similar degree of anxiety, especially if we need it for an upcoming activity. We retrace our steps, pick up pieces of paper and clothing strewn about. We feel our blood pressure rising, heart beating rapidly, and our level of activity increase exponentially.
Your task is to write a story in which someone or something is missing. Make the person or item important enough that the protagonist is incredibly anxious.
Have fun with this one.
Many of our memories come from times that hurt us or made us cry. Not having the ability to speak your thoughts and feelings is an important one. Don’t think about a time when laryngitis stole your voice, but when someone chided you or told you to be quiet.
The first time might have happened when you were quite young. For example, a teacher called on you to answer a question and then didn’t like your response.
Maybe at home you said something that angered your parent and were severely disciplined.
Your task is to write a story in which your character was silenced. You must evoke the emotions that arose so that the reader feels the pain, the hurt, the frustration, the anger.
Have fun with this one.
Sometimes unexpected things happen. For no rhyme or reason, a gift arrives in the mail, no sender’s name included. Or perhaps your character is demoted and no explanation is offered.
Perhaps it’s something uncontrollable, such as a major storm that shuts down the highway you intended to take, or it takes down a series of power poles in your neighborhood, robbing you of power.
Are these occurrences some form of a divine act? Or are there other, logical explanations?
Your task is to write a story in which something completely unexpected happens that borders on the bizarre. It needs to be impactful enough that your protagonist’s life is altered in a major way.
Have fun with this one.
Imagine a scene in which a frightening monster arises, eating, mauling, destroying, everything and everyone in sight. Who comes to the rescue? Does it depend upon what kind of beast? For example, if it crawls up from underground, are there special forces that arrive? But what if it’s from outer space? Who then?
Perhaps it’s not a fantastical monster but rather a tyrannical teenager? The boy who rules the house, or the girl who demands all the attention? What if the teen behaves perfectly at school, but runs roughshod at home? Who, then, tames the beast?
We’ve all seen toddlers in action. Stomping feet, pounding fists, tossing things about, screaming a the top of their lungs: who brings the kid under control?
Your task is to write a story in which a monster is the antagonist, a pretty scary one at that.
Have fun with this one.
Imagine cleaning out a relative’s house and finding something you thought had been thrown away or lost. Holding it brings a smile to your face and lights up your eyes.
The artifact could be valuable, such as a cameo once owned by your grandmother, or it could be sentimental, such as an old teddy bear.
Imagine also that another relative lays claim to the item. An argument ensues. Angry words are exchanged. And there’s a possibility that fisticuffs break out.
Stories such as these appear regularly in the news.
Another consideration is that a stranger finds the items, perhaps using a metal detector on the beach, or when tending a flower garden. What happens then?
Your task is to write a story in which the discovery, response and feelings play a major role.
Have fun with this one.
Have Fun with This One 