Tag: writing idea

Opening Line Prompt

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Choose one of the following sentences to begin your story. You can change the name of the character, the setting, and the tense, but you must keep all else the same.

  1. Pete stepped toward the bow of the ship.
  2. A gray blob appeared on the horizon.
  3. Rain began to fall just as Sarah…”

Be sure to add at least one additional character, hopefully one that brings tension and discord. Add details to the setting, for example, what kind of ship is it, where is that blob and what was she doing before it began to rain.

Add sensory details to enrich the scene.

Bring in conflict caused by words or action.

Have fun with this one.

Early Morning Walk

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Imagine getting up before dawn, eating a quick breakfast, slipping into a warm jacket and heading out for a walk. You might hear the morning birds begin their calls, spot a cat slinking under a car, and pass neighbor’s heading to work. Day after day you walk, sometimes heading north, others south.

There are stories to tell. Why did the old couple move out? What happened to the two-story house that’s now surrounded by yellow tape? How did the single woman afford a high-end electric vehicle?

Your task is to write the story of your neighborhood. Choose one house to focus one, or several. Using your imagination, place a family inside. Give that family jobs, kids, friends, wishes.

You can write a rosy-story in which all things are wonderful, but a little tension is preferred. Perhaps a tree drops a limb, crushing that new EV. The tree sits on the neighbor’s property, and the car owner had been begging to get the tree trimmed before it caused damage.

Or maybe small children live in both homes, children who don’t always play nice.

There are tons of stories waiting to be told.

Have fun with this one.

Unusual Meal

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            Think of a meal you planned for a group. Most likely there were appetizers, a main course that consisted of a variety of dishes, followed by dessert.

            The quantity depends upon how many invited. If it’s a meal for two, you didn’t need large dishes. But, if you invited ten, then you need casseroles, cakes, and bowls of fruits and salads.

            Your task is to write a story in which your character prepares a most unusual meal, one that consists only of desserts.

            Perhaps there are cupcakes in the shapes of stuffed mushrooms and cookies that look like crackers layered with slices of cheese. The entrees are pies that resemble different types of pizza and cheesecakes molded into meatloafs.

            Imagine what the guests will say! In your story, show your character cooking the items as he talks to someone. Through dialogue we see into the protagonist’s mind as she explains what she’s doing and why.

            Descriptions will show the setting, which includes the table, decorations, and the overall depiction of the room.

            Have fun with this one.

Roadside Meal

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            How many times have you been away from home and stopped to eat? What types of places do you normally choose? Fast food chains? Sit-down restaurants? Or something in between?

            When you scan the menu, do you have go-to preferences? Some go for hamburgers, while others choose salads. Some like sweet potato fries, eggs over-easy, chocolate cream pie.

            Your task is to write a story in which your character is traveling and stops for a meal. Depending upon the restaurant, she either reads from a menu board or from a handheld menu.

What does she order? Is it served cold or hot? How does it taste? From her reactions, you tell if it’s as she expected and whether or not she’s satisfied.

If there’s waitstaff, when someone checks in, your character responds by saying what she likes or doesn’t like, whether she’s satisfied or might like to order additional items.

To make it interesting, have someone strike up a conversation with your character. A little tension builds because this person is annoying or clinging and doesn’t take the hint that she’d like to eat alone.

Have fun with this one.

A Day at the Beach

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            Let’s say you’ve been to the beach. It could be at the ocean, at a lake, or even at a large river. No matter where, but there’s some type of beach.

            If you’re lucky, it’s soft sand. If you’re not, it’s rocks that cut the bottoms of your feet.

            Perhaps the water’s warm, but there’s a good chance that it’s not.

            There might be waves, especially if a strong breeze arises or it a watercraft motors by.

            And there are creatures in the water.

            Your task is to write the story.

            Your character and friends go to a beach for the afternoon. Or the weekend if they rent a cabin or pitch tents.

            They’re excited, looking forward to a great time.

            In your story, we want to see what they see, feel what they feel, see and taste all the things they do.

            How does the beach feel on the feet? Describe the picture of them getting to the beach. They’ll talk and laugh and maybe cry out in pain.

How cold is the water? Show us the group as they enter the water. Does one of them run and dive? Do some stand in only ankle-deep water?

Make at least one character worry about whatever might be in the water. Perhaps someone freaks out when seagrasses brush their legs.

Have fun with this one.

Outside Your Window

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            Try to recall a time when you sat by a window. Normally your neighborhood is fairly quiet. No small children live there and very few cars rush in and out during the day. One family owns a large dog, another had a small, yapping mix breed of some kind.

            On this particular day you’re supposed to be completing a work assignment. Your computer desk just happens to be located by a large window that looks out on the street.

            Something both interesting and unusual is taking place.

            Your task is to write the story. Begin by identifying the characters by age, height, color and length of hair and any other details that might make for a story. Next think about what might be happening. Are there kids playing basketball? A delivery driver trying to turn around? A dog gets loose and is terrifying adults trying to exit their car?

            How do your characters react? Is there screaming or fighting? Is one of the passengers a dog whisperer?

            Write from the perspective of the watcher. To make things interesting, there might be an open window so that words can be heard.

            Have fun with this one.

Café Talk

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            Some people love to sit in a café, nurturing a steaming cup of coffee while talking with friends. Others go alone, but listen to what’s being said.

            When there’s disagreement, things can be really interesting…or embarrassing, depending upon POV.

            Your task is to write a story that takes place in a café. It can be a fancy one situated in an expensive locale. Imagine a busy Parisian street, where lots of people walk by. Or downtown New York City, in the financial district.

            The café could be in a war-torn city, surrounded by ruined buildings or in the heart of the low income part of a major city, a place were homeless sleep on the streets and drug-deals go down.

            Give your protagonist a colorful background, such as being a loan officer at the bank or a farmer who’d just sold her grain. To make things interesting, add an additional character. That way dialogue will help readers see and understand what’s happening.

            Have fun with this one.

Your Worst Self

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            We have good days, in-between days and terrible, horrible rotten days. On our good days, everything works well. Our boss is happy, our significant other is as well and all is wonderful in the world.

            The in-between days are partly good, partly not-so-good. The dinner comes out delicious but the toilet won’t shut off. The front door sticks but the roof doesn’t leak.

            Our worst days are filled with dismay, dislike and depression. Everything triggers our anger and we lash out at coworkers, friends and family. Things break, leak or fall apart. The phone rings with endless spam callers and every time someone knocks at the door, you find a religious troop or a peddler selling high-priced chocolates.

            Those days bring out the worst parts of ourselves. We yell, sometimes obscenities, call names, and slam things about. We say things we later regret. We fight with the people we love when we’re really angry at someone else.

            Your task is to write a story in which your protagonist is having a horrible day. Begin by setting the scene: establishing setting and situation. Make the other characters do something annoying, something that will send the protagonist on an outrage.

            Have fun with this one.

Forms of Punishment

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            Every society, every home, has its own forms of punishment.

            In some homes, naughty kids are sent to timeout while others might be beaten until blood seeps from open wounds. Some kids might be denied privileges while others are locked away in the prison of their bedroom, or in worse case scenarios, in an actual prison somewhere in the home.

            Society might punish offenders with community service or therapy, while others are beheaded or hung to die. Some are tarred and feathered while others have to clean up garbage along interstate highways or on beaches.

            In a fair situation, the punishment fits the crime, but in far too many, prison sentences are too long or too harsh depending upon the color of one’s skin or how much money the family has.

            Your task is to write a story in which punishment takes on a crucial role. You decide if it’s the family that enforces the pain or society. Does the offender continue to live at home or is she detained in a cell? Is the cell in a clean facility, or in a dank dungeon?

            The protagonist can be the victim or the enforcer. What’s important is that your readers feel the suffering, the pain, the humiliation.

            Have fun with this one.

Poisoned Marshmallows

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            Imagine a story in which your protagonist is the victim of a poisoning. And the mode in which the poison was delivered was marshmallows! 

Does she die in the first scene? If so, how do you tell her story? The reasons that someone hated her enough to want her dead would be revealed as the story spins.

Or, perhaps your protagonist is the poisoner. Why would she choose marshmallows and not, say, a bottle of wine? Does the intended victim have a passion for the simple marshmallow?

How does the poisoner make sure the intended victim is the one who consumes the poison, and not some innocent child?

Your task is to tell the story in such a way that readers will be enthralled.

Narrative is important in setting the scene. Dialogue is needed to establish the tense relationship between the victim and the poisoner.

Rely on sensory details. Readers need to see, imagine the taste, smell and touch of the marshmallows. And to watch the suffering of the victim. Is it a quick or slow death?

Have fun with this one.