America is once more under the microscope as she addresses proposed changes to her Pledge of Allegiance. Write an opinion piece as to whether or not you believe politics and religion ought to be kept completely separate.

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.

(more…)

Are you a list-a-holic? Do you make lists for everything from chores to weekly shopping? Do you find that they motivate you to get more done in your day, or do you avoid them because they tend to highlight how much you didn’t get done? Write a essay on how you feel about lists as a way of keeping track of things to do.

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

(more…)

An exercise on character building for fiction writers this week.
What is your character most afraid of? Write a scene where this fear is shown to the reader. Will your character confront the fear head on in this scene, or will he/she back away until another time.

What chore in your everyday life do you procrastinate the most about? Is the yard or the laundry where you feel reluctant to spend your precious spare time? Perhaps your not one of life’s procrastinators at all - or perhaps like me, you could turn professional in the craft of procrastination!

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.

(more…)

What’s the earliest memory that you have? How old were you at the time? Do you know whether or not you remember this from the event or whether it’s because other people have told it to you so many times that you actually can picture it happening? Today, start your page with the words, "The oldest memory in my mind is about.." and continue from there.

Idea Seeds

(more…)

A lesson in dialogue for fiction writers this week.
Your character has made a shocking discovery about their birth. Write a scene where they confront the people they have always assumed to be their parents, and demand to know the entire truth plus the reason why they weren’t told earlier in life.