What do you think about reality TV? Do you enjoy watching it or avoid it wherever possible? Do you think that it portrays real life or do you think that the rules of the "game" make for contrived situations? Draft a letter to the tv network expressing your opinion on this ever increasing type of tv entertainment.

Your exercise today is to incorporate all of the following words into an article, short story, poem or whatever comes to mind. You must use all of the words (in any order) to complete the exercise, but the context in which they are used is up to you. Think about the words for a few minutes before you start to write and see what pictures come to mind - then see if you can weave them all together into a piece of writing.

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What are you afraid of? Is there something in life that you fear most of all? Does the thought of a dark quiet street fill you with dread, or perhaps the mere image of a spider in a book is enough to send shivers down your back. Perhaps you fear losing what security you have, or maybe you are more frightened of this happening to someone you love. Think about it for a moment and then describe what scares you most of all?

Idea Seeds! Start your page with any of the following and see where your creative muse takes you:

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Your main character decides to do some entertaining at home. What form would this take - an intimate meal for close friends, or a full-blown party? Write a scene were either he/she organises the event, or starting from the point the guests arrive. Or why not do both!

Think about what your clothes closet contains. Describe its contents. Are you due for a major fashion overhaul, or are you bang up to date with fashion? Do you have every size from tiny to large or are you clutter-free and down to a bare minimum? What’s your favourite item in there and what memories do you have associated with it?

Your exercise today is to incorporate all of the following words into an article, short story, poem or whatever comes to mind. You must use all of the words (in any order) to complete the exercise, but the context in which they are used is up to you. Think about the words for a few minutes before you start to write and see what pictures come to mind - then see if you can weave them all together into a piece of writing.

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If money were not a problem, and all other problems associated with attending were solved, who would you most like to see perform live? Would it be a current pop star rising through the mediocre via the media, or an aging oldie but goodie? Would it be a classical musician or a tenor perform in a musical? Perhaps you’d like to attend a huge arena with thousands of other fans, or maybe you’d prefer a personal performance. What is your dream performance? Sit for a few moments and think about all the music you enjoy, and then write about the performance of your fantasies. If you’d like a bigger challenge, how about writing about this as a journal entry as if you had just attended the concert.

1. "Just once more!" Whined Kristen as she eyed ….

2. The van had been parked across the street for ….

3. Jess hammered the last nail home, sat back on her heels and smiled as she admired the ….

An exercise on characterization for fiction writers this week.
Your antagonist has a weakness. What is it? Write a scene that allows your protagonist to exploit this to his/her advantage.