While we haven’t yet had a chance to put in redirects from the old blogs since we still have one to go, I might as well start posting new exercises here so there’s something for folks to play with when they get directed here. In the meantime, if you see any rough edges do let me know–we haven’t quite finished up yet and might have missed something.

I’m currently reading Michael Michalko’s second edition of Thinkertoys (review), and found a quote that I think could inspire some interesting writing:

A lion has to be a lion all its life; a dog has to be a dog. But a human being can play with and bring about one of a huge number of different identities; the one he finally chooses will be determined by neither reason nor common sense, but by imagination.

There are many different ways to use this quote in an exercise. Journal about it. Free-write based on it. Create a character from it. Use it as the basis of a story. Pick something and go!

I somehow missed my husband’s latest postings in his blog. Guess I’m not very awake lately. Anyway, the following quote from one of those posts immediately sent me scurrying off to post here:

If you don’t act with integrity all the time, where does it begin and end? Do you start acting honorably when you leave the house in the morning? On the drive in to work? When you clock in? Only after your second coffee? When talking to your own people? Existing customers? Potential customers? When you preface your words with “Simon says?” If you don’t display good character and integrity at all times, why should I trust that you’ll act uprightly when dealing with me?

Free-write on this topic, or apply to a fictional character–in any way that appeals to you.

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, prompts, write, writers, writing

It’s time for another mix-and-match. One way to spur creativity is to combine unlikely or random images, words, or concepts and use them as a springboard to start writing. You can free-write using the combination as an inspiration; find a way to include the combination directly in your writing; begin a story based on the combination; etc. Today, pick one of the following combinations of words and start with it:

• minute, tool, sense

• draft, tooth
• cheating, morning, beyond
• guarantee, subject, unconventional
• people, manual, chill

Just let go of your thoughts and allow them to make unusual mental leaps, combining the words in new ways. You might even free-write a list of ideas to start with, then pick your favorite and run with it.

Infant wear for gamers’ kids!

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, prompts, write, writers, writing

Not that long ago I received a spam with a randomly generated subject line of “be my delusion.” There’s something fascinating about that particular phrase. Today, do one of the following:

• Begin a poem with that line.

• Include it as a line of dialogue in a story.
• Free-associate from the phrase, using it to brainstorm a plot or character.

You might also think about what it means to be delusional and how you could treat the subject in a non-stereotyped manner.

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, mental health, mental illness, prompts, psychology, write, writers, writing

It’s been a while since I put up one of these, so it’s time for another word association game. Take any of the following sets of words and free-associate off of the combination or work all of them into the opening page of a story, article, or essay:

• homicidal, fall, guy

• dune, reservation, moved
• queen, grass, sees
• jaw, kick, salt
• mice, time, sand
• souvenir, moist, impropriety, heartbreaking
• details, perfection, heiroglyphic
• drooping, monsoon, jello
• instant, napalm, minnow
• midrange, low tide, venison
• dark, influences, settle
• incineration, tongs, mist
• noble, all-inclusive, warship

Indecision Sticker (Bumper)

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, prompts, write, writers, writing

It is a fact that cannot be denied: the wickedness of others becomes our own wickedness because it kindles something evil in our own hearts.
      ~ Carl Jung

Today, free-write about wickedness and how it might “spread” from one person to another. Or, write a story that examines wickedness as a theme. Try to avoid trite explanations (or the old lazy fallback of “he’s just eeeevil”). You might also try free-writing a list of some of the ways wickedness has been treated in fiction and literature before now, and perhaps some thoughts on how you might add to or diverge from those treatments. How might a wicked person (deliberately or inadvertently) tempt those around him with his wickedness?

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, prompts, quotations, quotes, write, writers, writing

Today, write about (or begin a story based on) the following quotation:

Disobedience, in the eyes of any one who has read history, is man’s original virtue. It is through disobedience that progress has been made, through disobedience and through rebellion.
      ~ Oscar Wilde

If writing a journal entry or free-write, you might consider the place of disobedience in your life or the lives of those around you. Consider its virtues and problems. Of course, a piece of fiction involving disobedience can take so many forms and paths. Must someone find the strength to consider disobedience in order to do the right thing? Must someone find the strength to trust a superior rather than following the instinct to disobey? Situations are rarely clear-cut in real life–you might brainstorm some of the ways in which disobedience could be necessary or could cause severe problems within a given plot.

“Writer at work” magnet

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, prompts, obedience, quotations, quotes, write, writers, writing

As I mentioned a couple of entries ago, with VDay coming up love is an interesting topic to write about, no matter your feelings on it. Remember–romance is responsible for a disproportionately huge percentage of book sales. Love is incredibly important in our lives, whether we’d like to admit it or not. So today, surf on over to eWriteLife for Write Life Challenge #25: Love, a five-part prompt on various aspects of love.

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, love, prompts, write, writers, writing

I love randomized spam subject lines. Unfortunately, the spammers changed their algorithms some time ago and I get fewer subject lines that make my brain cells spin these days. Still, occasionally they do arrive, and yesterday’s was: “False Fruit Cake.” This left me thinking: why on earth would someone falsify a fruitcake? Driver’s licenses, passports, deeds, wills, expensive artwork–all these things have a lofty history of forgery in literature and life. But fruitcake? Uh-uh.

Today, pick an everyday item that it seems no one in their right mind would forge (use fruitcake if it gives you ideas!) and free-write or write a short story to delve into this mystery.

Two pages away from Greatness

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, prompts, write, writers, writing

Today, read this page on “open source beer” and get a handle on the idea of what it means for something to be open source, if you aren’t yet familiar with the concept. Next, brainstorm a list of things that could be made open source–use free-writing and go crazy with this; don’t censor your list. Just set a timer for ten minutes and see what you come up with.

Finally, pick one item that you think could be particularly interesting–whether for its amusement or satire value, or because you think that open-sourcing it could result in something really interesting and/or valuable–and write about it! Try to pick something unusual and unexpected.

Technorati Tags: free-writing, journaling, prompts, open source, write, writers, writing