Writing Exercises 11: The Portal

First published 2/16/2002; last edited 12/16/2004

A portal has just opened up in front of you. You step through. Where do you find yourself? If you're a fiction writer, you can use one of your characters in place of yourself in these exercises.

Portal Variations

#11a. What does the portal structure look like? Is it simply a hole in the air? Is it an elaborate technological structure? Is it invisible? Does it look ancient or new? What materials is it made of?
#11b. Can you see what lies beyond the portal? What does it look like from here? If not, what do you see?
#11c. What would you want to do first? Would you just step through? Would you run off to tell someone? Would you collect practical items first?
#11d. What would you take along for the ride?
#11e. Who would you bring with you, if anyone? Why?
#11f. What are your first thoughts when you see the portal?

The Other Side

#11g. What's the first thing you see when you reach the other side? Describe the scene as vividly as though you were standing there.
#11h. Are you on another world? Are you on another version of your own world? Are you in a fictional world? Are you on another part of your own world? Are you somewhere entirely different?
#11i. Who do you encounter on this side of the portal?
#11j. Write up the events of a full day on this side of the portal as though it were a journal entry.
#11k. What happens next?