Found More Writing Prompts

1. Your favorite childhood vacation.

2. The last words of your novel are, “As night became day, he started to understand the truth.” Now, go write the rest.

3. Turn one of the last texts you sent into a story.

4. Add an original scene to the last movie you watched.

5. Two friends have a disagreement.

6. Write about your favorite teacher.

7. Outside the window, you see something you can’t believe.

8. Write about the first time you held someone's hand.

9. Write about the last thing/person that made you smile.

10. Write about a time you were lost.

11. Write about your first job.

12. Write a letter to your 14-year old self.

13. Write about why you write.

14. Five years from now, I will be.

15. Write about your dream vacation.

16. Do you like to be alone or with company?

17. You have $300 and a Prius, describe the 2,800 mile road trip from NYC to LA.

18. Write about your biggest goal.

19. Write about your biggest fear.

20. A conversation you and a stranger have on a plane.

21. A time you or someone you love was scammed.

22. Turn the last song you listened to into a story.

23. Describe the life of your favorite singer.

24. Write about a piece of furniture in the room you’re in.

25. If I knew then what I know now.

26. If you could travel back in time, where would you go?

27. You have a billion dollars in your bank account. How did you make it?

28. You’ve discovered a new planet. Describe what you see.

29. If you could do anything for work, what would you do?

30. You live on an abandoned island, describe your morning routine.

31. You’re in a foreign country and don’t speak the native language.

32. Describe how you think your grandparents met.

33. Write about a time you failed.

34. You wake up today with the superpower of your choosing.

35. You’re a dog, describe your interaction with a human.

36. Write about someone you admire.

37. Go to Twitter or Facebook and write about the first post you see.

38. Write about a time you were uncomfortable.

39. She tried to forget him, but never could.

40. Just as your flight takes off, you discover a shocking note under your seat.

41. None of your friends remember you, describe yourself to them.

42. An island rose from the sea.

43. Out of the ashes, arose a hero.

44. The whales grew feet.

45. I open the last book on earth.

46. You knock louder and louder on the door, but nobody answers.

47. The door you had locked, is wide open.

48. Just as you fall asleep, the phone rings.

49. She had the perfect party planned, only to have it ruined by her ex.

50. She said her final words and left, there’s no turning back now.

51. A blind man falls in love, describe his feelings.

52. You have the power to stop time, what do you do?

53. The sun rose for the final time.

54. You discover that your partner is a robot.

55. You have 10 days to live.

56. How will cars look in 50 years?

57. This needs to be cleaned, the police will be here any minute.

58. For years, he carefully planned out this day.

59. The birds didn’t go south for the winter.

60. It’s June 13th, the snow won’t stop falling.

Write about somebody who likes to work in silence.

Set your story in the lowest rated restaurant in town.

Write about a character with an unreliable memory.

Found Prompts

 

1. A cat meowing from a tree branch.
2. A sink full of dirty dishes.
3. A splash in the pool behind your house.
4. A suitcase parked by the door.
5. The elderly women walking into a dive bar.

One Word Scary Story Prompts

 

• Describe a horrifying monster in as much detail as possible.
• 
  
• Write a monologue for a character who is afraid of something. 
• 
  
• Write a scene in which several characters are accusing each other of something. Focus on the tension and the emotions.
• 
  
• Describe a creepy old house. What are the elements that make it creepy?
• 
  
• Write a scene in which a character is paranoid about being watched or followed. Maybe they’re walking home in the dark, afraid of an ex-partner, or just overthinking. 
• 
  
• Write a character’s reaction to finding a dead body. 
• 
  
• Write a scene in which a character receives terrible news.
• 
  
• Listen to a horror movie soundtrack or horror ambiance track and write whatever it makes you think of. 
• 
  
• Write a series of letters, composed by one of your characters to a member of their family (or a close friend). 

H'Ween / Suspense One Word Story Prompts

Pumpkin

Leaves

Tea

 Black Cat

Bat

 Spider

 Candy Apples

 Raven

Moth

Candle

Tarot

Horns

Ghost

Cryptid

 Moonlight

Fog Haunted

Lantern

Owl

Toad

 Familiars

 Vampires

 Skeleton

 Potions

 Garden

 Cauldron

 Stars

 Forest

Nightmare

MB Prompts H'ween/Suspense #7

 Date: Thu, 23 Oct 1997 09:58:11 EDT

Subject:      EXERCISE: Plot #13: Maturation: 20 Master Plots

[with mere hours to go before the midnight parade of the zombies...]

Based on the book "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)" by Ronald B.
Tobias.  ISBN 0-89879-595-8.

Master Plot #13: Maturation

[the loss of illusions...]

(p. 160) "The maturation plot--the plot about growing up--is one of
those strongly optimistic plots.  There are lessons to learn, and those
lessons may be difficult, but in the end the character becomes (or will
become) a better person for it."

(p. 161) "The protagonist of the maturation plot is usually a
sympathetic young person whose goals are either confused or not yet
quite formed.  He floats on the sea of life without a rudder.  He often
vacillates, unsure of the proper path to take, the proper decision to
make.  These inabilities are usually the result of a lack of experience
in life--naivete..."

"This coming-of-age story is often called the _Bildungsroman_, which is
German for 'education novel.'  The focus of these stories is the
protagonist's moral and psychological growth.  Start your story where
the protagonist has reached the point in her life at which she can be
tested as an adult.  She may be ready for the test, or she may be forced
into it by circumstances."

Phase the First:  Before

(p. 162)  "...begin with the protagonist as he is before events start to
change his life.  We need to see who this character is, how he thinks
and acts, so we can make a decision about his moral and psychological
state before he undergoes change.  Your character may exhibit a lot of
negative (childlike) traits.  Perhaps he is irresponsible (but
fun-loving), duplicitous, selfish, naive--all the character traits that
are typical of people who haven't accepted the responsibilities of
adulthood or who haven't accepted the moral and social code that the
rest of us abide by (more or less)..."

When suddenly...

(p. 163)  "Which brings us to the test.  The catalytic event. ...
suddenly something comes along and smacks her square in the face...."

death of a parent, divorce, loss of home....

"...The event must be powerful enough to get the attention of the
protagonist and literally shake up her belief systems...."

"You will prove your skills as a writer by making us feel the
apocalyptic force of the event on the child's psyche..."

Phase Two:  I Don't Wanna

The first reaction usually is denial, either literal or figurative.
Don't shortcut this.  There's anger, resistance, etc.--work your
character through them.

(p. 165)  "It may be, in fact, that your protagonist is actually trying
to do the right thing, but doesn't know what the right thing is.  That
means trial and error.  Finding out what works and what doesn't work.
That is the process of growing up, the journey from innocence to
experience."

Phase Three: Finally

(p. 165) "Finally your protagonist develops a new system of beliefs and
gets to the point where it can be tested.  In the third dramatic phase,
your protagonist will finally accept (or reject) the change.  Since
we've already noticed that most works of this type end on a positive
note, your protagonist will accept the role of adult in a meaningful
rather than a token way."

Be careful with this plot.  Don't lecture or moralize, let the reader
find the meaning buried in the prosaic...and see the world fresh again.

Checklist:

1.  Is your protagonist on the cusp of adulthood, with goals that are
confused or not yet clear?

2.  Does your story clearly show the readers who the character is and
how s/he feels and thinks before the event occurs that begins the
process of change?

3.  Does your story contrast the protagonist's naive life (childhood) to
the reality of an unprotected life (adulthood)?

4.  Does your story focus on showing the protagonist's moral and
psychological growth?

5.  Does the "precipitating event" clearly challenge the beliefs and
understanding of the world that you have shown?

6.  "Does your character reject or accept change?  Perhaps both?  Does
she resist the lesson?  How does she act?"

7.  Does your story show your protagonist undergoing the process of
change?  Is the change realistically gradual and difficult?

8.  Is your young protagonist convincing?  Does she display adult values
and perceptions before she has developed them?

9.  Does your story try to convert someone to "instant adulthood"?  Or
does it use small lessons and major upheavals to reflect the long
process of growing up?

10.  Does your story accurately show the psychological price that this
lesson demands, and how your protagonist copes with that cost?

That's our technical background lesson from Tobias...

Since we're still in the time of the halloweenies, let's consider
whether growing up (maturation) could be the basis of a horror...aha!

Suppose, just for example, that we have our normal, fun-loving bunch of
teenagers (young people, pick your age group)...hotrodding, dancing on
the beach, headed for the prom...or just hanging out at the mall?

And then comes...the bubbling goo from outer space?  the phone call from
the doctor (and just what was the diagnosis?)  or the maniac from
central New Jersey?...design your precipitating incident, anyway.

Spend a while mixing, brewing, stirring the soxes off the emotional
twists and turns of the kids...

And rock our little worlds with the maturity that the kids step up to.
Did Jose really skip the homecoming dance just to sit with Fernando,
watching the sun rise one last time before...or does Emily decide that
she doesn't care if the baby does have cloven hoofs and those buds on
its skull, it's her baby and it's going to get a college education if
it wants one...what about the wonderful way that Alfred admits to the
police that while he did lure the graduating class into the swamp, he
was simply not aware that the great vampire bat migration was going
on....

In short, it seems to me that facing down a little natural (or
unnatural, take your pick) horror often is the catalyst for maturation.
Take that kid with the cotton candy, add a boll weevil gleefully eating
its way towards his heart, and if he's plucky, bold, and true...you may
end up with an adult who knows that dental hygiene helps avoid cavities.

(and if you think you've seen this plot before a few times--you're
right!  but there are still a few tales for you to wring out of this
one...so start twisting!)

How about...a number from one to six?

1.  "Mature man needs to be needed, and maturity needs guidance as well
as encouragement from what has been produced and must be taken care of."
Erik H. Erikson, Childhood and Society (1950), 7.

2.  "We have not passed that subtle line between childhood and adulthood
until we move from the passive voice to the active voice--that is, until
we have stopped saying 'It got lost,' and say 'I lost it.'"  Sydney J.
Harris, On the Contrary (1962), 7.

3.  "The latter part of a wise man's life is taken up in curing the
follies, prejudices, and false opinions he had contracted in the
former."  Jonathan Swift, Thoughts on Various Subjects (1711).

4.  "To live with fear and not be afraid is the final test of maturity."
Edward Weeks, "A Quarter Century: Its Retreats," Look, July 18, 1961.

5.  "The turning point in the process of growing up is when you discover
the core of strength in you that survives all hurt." Max Lerner, "Faubus
and Little Rock," The Unfinished Country (1959), 4.

6.  "One of the signs of passing youth is the birth of a sense of
fellowship with other human beings as we take our place among them."
Virginia Woolf, "Hours in a Library," Times Literary Supplement, "Nov.
30, 1916.

[Quotes taken from The International Thesaurus of Quotations, by Rhoda
Thomas Tripp, ISBN 0-06-091382-7]

How about making a list of five different qualities which you admire
(honesty?  okay...)  Then consider how someone who has not yet achieved
that level of maturity may act.  Focus down to the one that your
character is going to be tested on (or challenged)...

Then pick the catalytic event.  If you like, here's a list (pick your
number!):

1.  Death (of a friend, a relative, etc.)
2.  Illness
3.  Pregnancy
4.  Reaction by others to revealed "secret" (you did what?)
5.  Being "invited" to join in a crime
6.  Having a parent (or other influential adult) leave

Refine that general event.  Lay out the reactions to it.  (and if you
want, mix in the horror...up the ante on that catalyst!  I think
almost every item on the list has been used as the basis for
horror--just push them a bit beyond the everyday, and you find fear
and loathing grinning through the muck...)

Then lay out the story.  Introduce us to the young person(s).  Have
their life interrupted by...change.  Show us the actions and reactions,
the attempts to escape, to hide, to avoid...and then show us the growth
into maturity, into someone who acts with knowledge of the price of
their actions...

(wow!  what a tale you've got to tell!
write!)

tink

MB Prompts H'ween/Suspense #6

Date:         Sun, 5 Oct 1997 12:45:17 EDT

Subject:      EXERCISE: Fear and Trembling...

Well, well, well...we are in the midst of our halloweenies contest, and
you still don't have an idea?  (you could always do a piece about a
writer facing a deadline without an idea, and the agonies of that
position, but perhaps that is a bit too recursive for you?  a bit too
far into the hall of mirrors, reflecting each other each other each
other...:)

Let's try an experiment.  First, pick a number from one to six.

1.  Fear is sharp-sighted, and can see things under ground, and much
more in the skies.  Cervantes, Don Quixote (1605-15), 1.3.6, tr. Peter
Motteux and John Ozell.

2.  Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources
of cruelty.  Bertrand Russell, "An Outline of Intellectual Rubbish,"
Unpopular Essays (1950).

3.  Neither a man nor a crowd nor a nation can be trusted to act
humanely or to think sanely under the influence of great fear.  Bertrand
Russell, "An Outline of Intellectual Rubbish," Unpopular Essays (1950).

4. Present fears / Are less than horrible imaginings.  Shakespeare,
Macbeth (1605-06), 1.3.137.

5.  Horror causes men to clench their fists, and in horror men join
together. Saint-Exupery, Wind, Sand, and Stars (1939), 9.3, tr. Lewis
Galantiere.

6.  Penetrating so many secrets, we cease to believe in the unknowable.
But there it sits nevertheless, calmly licking its chops.  H. L.
Mencken, Minority Report (1956), 364.

So there you have a little bit of a quote about fear...and maybe you
could pick again?  One to twelve this time...some of the flavors of
horror and fear, as given by the Microsoft Bookshelf thesaurus:

1. fear, healthy fear, dread, awe, respect
2. abject fear, cowardice
3. fright, stage fright
4. wind up, funk, blue funk
5. terror, mortal terror, panic terror
6. state of terror, intimidation, trepidation, alarm, false alarm
7. shock, flutter, flap, tailspin, agitation
8. fit, fit of terror, scare, stampede, panic, panic attack, spasm
9. flight, sauve qui peut
10. the creeps, horror, horripilation, hair on end, cold sweat, blood
turning to water
11. consternation, dismay, hopelessness
12. defense mechanism, fight or flight, repression, escapism, avoidance

[The Original Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases
(Americanized Version) is licensed from Longman Group UK Limited.
Copyright c 1994 by Longman Group UK Limited. All rights reserved.]

You probably got several words there.  Pick one of them, and think about
that particular shiver in the back of the neck, that specific clench in
the abdomen, that lovely pasty shade of fear...make yourself remember
when you felt that horrified.  What exactly had happened?  What did your
mouth feel like?  How about the back of your hand?  Your toes?

[horripilation, incidentally, is "bristling of ... body hair, as from
fear or cold; goose bumps" from The American Heritage Dictionary of the
English Language, Third Edition copyright c 1992 by Houghton Mifflin
Company. Electronic version licensed from INSO Corporation. All rights
reserved.]

Now, imagine that your quote was on a little brass plate (or maybe
nicely framed, waiting to catch your eye?  how about embodied somehow in
another character?  perhaps simply floating in the shared knowledge and
understanding of our reality, waiting to be reinvented?)  So there you
are, facing your horror (or running from it?) and the words, or at least
the sense (or nonsense?), of your quote slaps you hard in the cowardice
and stiffens your spine...

(pssst?  Make a list of five ways that your quote and your fears go
together--and conflict...)

Now, put it all together.  Imagine a character out there, with fear.
What kind of activity are they engaged in?  How many other people are
helping or hindering them (don't forget your antagonist!)  Put them into
that scene, and make us believe it, make us live it.

Then how does the horror creep in?  Or does it leap from a shadowed
alley, drop out of the blue blue sky, or merely slink along on soundless
paws, silently pursuing the victim with flickers on the edge of sight?

As the horror grows in power, how does the character struggle?  Do we
try to tell people, only to find that they don't believe that the kindly
old parish priest doesn't seem to have a shadow?  Do we look around in
fright, then start to run, and run, and run...?

(maybe two or three scenes here, with the protagonist investing more and
more in fighting the horror, and the horror growing stronger, more
pervasive?)

Finally, with the life, liberty, honor, and sanity of the protagonist at
stake (or at least whatever stakes you want to put up...not in, just
ante up)--does the protagonist face their fear?  Or does the horror
remove its face, revealing a truly gruesome gaping hole?  What is the
climax, the point toward which your horror story builds?

[you put the right foot in, you shake it all around, then drop it in the
pot... you put the left foot in, and stir up the piranha, then let them
strip it to the bone... that's how you do the horror stew?]

MB Prompts H'ween/Suspense#5

 Date: Fri, 26 Sep 1997 09:43:11 EDT

Subject:      EXERCISE: Plot #12: Transformation: 20 Master Plots

Based on the book "20 Master Plots (And How to Build Them)" by Ronald B.
Tobias.  ISBN 0-89879-595-8.

Master Plot #12: Transformation

(p. 153) "The plot of transformation deals with the process of change in
the protagonist as she journeys through one of the many stages of life.
The plot isolates a portion of the protagonist's life that represents
the period of change, moving from one significant character state to
another."

Some "standard" points of change: becoming adult; war and combat; search
for identity; divorce and other family shifts; facing violence; deaths;
and learning something new (remember Pygmalion?).

But the large-scale change is only one kind.  Consider small events that
may build and shake lives...

Structure:
    Phase one - an incident that starts a change in the protagonist's
life.  Be sure the reader knows who the protagonist is before the
change!
    Now let the ripples of the incident begin to stretch out..."There
are lessons to be learned, judgments to be made, insights to be seen."
    Phase two - show us the full effects of the transforming incident.
What hidden parts of the main character are stirred up in the wake of
the storm?
    Phase three - show us (often via another incident) the results of
the transformation.  What does the protagonist (and the reader) learn?
"It's common for a protagonist to learn lessons other than what he
expected to learn.  The real lessons are often the hidden or unexpected
ones.  Expectations are baffled; illusions are destroyed.  Reality
overtakes fantasy."

Checklist:
    1.  Does your plot of transformation deal with the process of change
as the protagonist journeys through one of the many stages of life?
    2.  Does the plot isolate a portion of the protagonist's life that
represents the period of change, moving from one significant character
state to another?
    3.  Does the story concentrate on the nature of change and how it
affects the protagonist from start to end of the experience?
    4.  Does the first dramatic phase relate the transforming incident
that propels the protagonist into a crisis, starting the process of
change?
    5.  Does the second dramatic phase depict the effects of the
transformation?  Does it concentrate on the self-examination and
character of the protagonist?
    6.  Does the third dramatic phase contain a clarifying incident
representing the final stage of the transformation?  Does the character
understand the true nature of the experience and how it has affected
him?  Does true growth and understanding occur?
    7.  What is the price of the wisdom gained?  a certain sadness?

Thus spake Tobias (along with some paraphrasing).

Transformation, change...what could be more appropriate for our little
Halloweenies contest?  (Don't know what I'm talking about?  Take a look
at http://web.mit.edu/mbarker/www/hall97/hall.html !)

Let's pick a number!  From one to six, or thereabouts?

1.  amphisbaena -- serpent having a head at each end (Greece)
2.  dybbuk -- dead person's evil spirit that invades a living person
(Jewish folklore)
3.  ghoul -- evil being that feeds on corpses
4.  lamia -- monster with the head and breast of a woman and body of a
serpent that lured children to suck their blood
5.  phoenix -- immortal bird that cremates itself every 500 years, then
emerges reborn from the ashes (Greece)
6.  windigo -- evil spirit, cannibal demon (Native American folklore)

[taken from the section on Mythological and Folkloric Beings in Random
House Word Menu, ISBN 0-679-40030-3]

Now, back up and consider your character(s).  How old are they?  What
change or shift in their life are they facing?  For example, someone who
is just starting high school has a little different viewpoint from
someone who is about to graduate from college and face the world of
work, or from the young couple about to have their first baby, or the
slightly older parent thinking about their child leaving home, or...
And don't forget, if you don't want to go with the big shifts, a little
dabble do you!  So think about the change they were facing...

Then mix in that delightful creature you picked up in the first part.
Offhand, I'd recommend making a couple of lists.  First, a list of
points about the change--what's good, what's bad, what are we going to
learn from it?  Second, a list of points about the monster in our
midst--what's good, what's bad, what are we going to do about it?  Now,
look at the linkages between the lists.  Can defeating the monster be
turned into a sort of metaphor for the change we are dealing with?  What
if we don't defeat the monster, but learn from it something about
ourselves?  Could defeating the monster be an "anti-metaphor,"
contrasted to the change which we cannot defeat?

What if we are transformed into the monster?  Or what if there is no
monster, just poor sad humanity, hiding behind the cloak of the monster?

Let's see.  How about something borrowed, and perhaps blue?  Pick a
number, one to six, and let's see what you got:

1.  a yellow highlighter
2.  a red papiermache pepper
3.  a 5 pound bag of sugar
4.  a spoonful of hot fudge
5.  a two year old comic book from a dentist's waiting room
6.  a clipboard

There you go.  Now you have a prop, a little bit of physical setting
which you are going to cleverly weave into the story.  And don't forget,
if you mention hot fudge in the first scene, someone should have a
sundae before we get done...

Put it all together, it spells...

Well, that's up to you!

Write!
tink

MB Prompts H'ween/Suspense #4

 te: Fri, 11 Oct 1996 23:30:20 EDT

Subject:      EXERCISE: To Dream, Aye, There's The Rub...

"To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause...who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover'd country from whose bourn
No traveler returns..."

Hamlet, III, i, 56, Shakespeare
From Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 16th Edition.

fardels?  oh, well, we could look it up, but such burdens and loads are
not worthy of our harried times, eh?

[For those who may be wondering--this is a simple exercise in the art
of tall tale construction, sometimes known as writing.  For our
purposes today, we'll be picking a few bits and pieces by selecting a
number from one to six (you may use dice if you like).  You may use or
abuse the exercise as you like, the instructor in the course isn't
terribly formal about it...]

Let's see.  Try taking one from the following:

1.  There and back again.  ...in which someone from our world ventures,
falls, or is abducted into another more magical world.

2.  Beyond the fields we know.  ...those works which take place entirely
in magic worlds, with no concrete links to our own time and place.

3.  Unicorns in the garden. ...those tales in which magical and
fantastic events occur in our mundane world.

4.  That Old Black Magic.  stories in which the everyday is menaced by
the supernatural to inspire fright and horror are a class by themselves;
alas, the unknown is still terrifying to most of humanity.

5.  Bambi's Children.  ...stories in which animals think, speak, and act
with human intelligence...

6.  Once and Future Kings, Queens, and Heroes.  stories that have been
handed down from time immemorial, the great legends of many cultures,
which have been used by contemporary authors to provide new insights
into the ancient myths or into our own time.

[categories from A Reader's Guide to Fantasy, by Baird Searles, Beth
Meacham, and Michael Franklin, ISBN 0-380-80333-x]

Mix well with...

1.  Health - fitness, ailments, liver, bile, or physical infirmity?
2.  Fate - work, career, plans and goals?
3.  Success - prestige, distinction, a name?
4.  Life - ambition, illness, emigration, where does this life wander?
5.  Head - concentration, self-control, independent, reckless, mindful?
6.  Heart - the emotions, the feelings, sympathy, jealousy, happiness?

[palmistry lines borrowed from The Book of Fortune Telling by Agnes M.
Miall, ISBN 0-517-64730-3]

Season with a dash of fairy dust, blinking in the eyelids:

1.  Ghosts
2.  A talking non-human entity (animal, mineral, veggie at your
discretion)
3.  A moving part of a dead body (which one?  you decide!)
4.  Energy (flashes, mere shocks, or whatever your little spirit
moves...)
5.  Parasites, small insects, or even your local viral infection...okay,
a mold or two will do if you really prefer fungi
6.  those amazing marching machines, ticking their way into your
embrace...with a scalpel?

So - one very sketchy category of story, one line of interest, and a
dash of ugliness.  Stir well, and think about where your protagonist
would like to go (the back seat of a chevy?  why?) and what your evil
genius (the monster, mashed?) wants (a quiet coffin of its very own?
with a view of the swamp?  simply heart rending, eh, wot?).

Then write that tale of the darkness, enchant the evil spirits, and send
it in to the contest!  Only a few hours remain before sharp edge of time
cuts across the deadline, so hurry, hurry, hurry, scrape your very own
beast out of the dusty soul of the cemetary and let it go...

Send them to "Robyn Meta Herrington" <rmherrin@acs.ucalgary.ca>

Fast Start?

    From the shadows, bent, fetid, tumultuous and lonely, squealing and
whistling now and then with exhilaration, it watched.

[You may use this sentence to start your work if you like.]

What dreams may come...
tink

MB Prompts H'ween/Suspense #3

 Date: Sun, 29 Sep 1996 19:19:13 EDT

Subject:      EXERCISE: Don't Open The Door!

[based on Chapter 5 in How To Write Horror Fiction by William F. Nolan]

(Behind that locked door, so rumor goes, lie the remains of...)

Suspense!

"_Anticipation_ is the key to suspense.  You are leading your reader
towards what he or she _knows_ is going to result in a dangerous
confrontation with evil.  You do it in careful stages, encouraging the
reader to anticipate the horror, but holding it back, layering in other
sequences that move your story forward but delay the actual climax the
reader _knows_ is coming."

(no, no, it was years ago, and the key was lost.  It was almost a work
of art, that key, and...yes, that's it!  Where did you get...you can't
be the long lost son of the family, sent away in hopes that the
curse...oh, nothing, nothing...)

"If you have done the proper job of characterization, of making your
reader _care_ about the protagonist, then they will emotionally identify
with the upcoming danger."

"The descriptive words and phrases you use to build suspense are
extremely important.  They set the proper mood for the upcoming
encounter."

"The reader never knows when or under what circumstances this horrible
transformation will occur--a guarantee of reader anticipation."

(I remember the night when it first happened...the dark clouds rolled
over the waning moon, and the ocean seemed to moan against the rocks,
grinding, battering, roaring defiance of the fates...)

1.  Set up your threat early.  Right in the beginning, have someone else
die, let a rumor ramble past, refer to the mystery...

2.  build and deepen suspense by bringing the menace closer.   a near
encounter, destruction of the means of escape/rescue, loss of
protection...

(We thought the priest could save us...and then we discovered him
crouched outside the church, frothing at the mouth, with his own hands
holding the stake in his chest...)

3.  separation/isolation are excellent aids in building the suspense.
Start with a busload of happy travellers, then whittle them down, down,
down to the final desperate survivors, standing off the hordes of
genetically exercised cockroaches with a bowie knife and a can of
beans...

"Your readers will stick with you as long as the outcome is uncertain.
They will be trying to guess what's going to happen, so your job is to
give the narrative a sudden twist that misleads.  This creates surprise
and continues the process of building suspense."

"The threat cannot be false.  It must pay off, and this means you must
show your monster _in action_.  Chewing up minor characters, for
instance..."

1.  The Principle -- Don't Open That Door!  And the hero(ine) walks down
the long, dark hallway, takes a deep breath, and slowly, slowly turns
the handle...

2.  Isolation, vulnerability -- put your characters at the mercy of the
incoming menace with nowhere to run, no one to help...and feel the
suspense rise!

3.  Darkness.  The primal fear of the night, of what may be lurking in
the shadows, of that sound from behind the black shield...

4.  Is the Monster Real?  Often, characters start out not believing,
then slowly give ground, until they finally believe completely in the
monster, just as they finally reach the limits of their attempts to deal
with it...often while the people at the 911 desk are still chuckling
about the nut with their crazy story...

Okay?  So, pick a number from one to six...

1.  napkin
2.  telephone
3.  empty vase
4.  broken light
5.  wastebasket
6.  painting

and again?

1.  A door
2.  A cave
3.  A car trunk (or the bonnet, for those of you who speak the queen's own)
4.  A locked suitcase
5.  A closet
6.  A long-unused boat house

and one more time?

1.  the family curse
2.  the monster from...
3.  the marching dead
4.  a zombie snake
5.  a doctor who doesn't know when to say "no more cutting and
    stitching!"
6.  your own pet fear, magnified and manifested out there, waiting for
    us...

Take the object, put it in the place, and think about how finding a
napkin in a locked suitcase could be the clue that makes (in time,
once we've fought our way past the disbelief, past the fear that
clutches our stomach, past all that...until, at last) your protagonist
rock and roll with the marching dead, streaming past on their way
to...

Short starter?

    "I don't want to go in there," she said.

But you and I know that she will, almost certainly, because she has to
face her terrors...and those terrors will grow, will encircle her, and
will make her shake in agony...

shiver!
tink

(and if you're still wondering what's behind the door...open it, go
ahead, turn the latch, pull on the handle and...now tell us what you
found there!)

MB Prompts- H'ween/Suspense#2

 Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 00:03:22 EDT

Subject:      EXERCISE: Fearfully...


In horror of the situation, let us consider some things that might make
you fearful.  Scared?  A deep-down, bone shaking, quivering puddle of
pusillanimous timidity?  Just as examples:

fear in a dentist's office...the sound of whirring, punctuated with
clashes of whining, framed in aching silence touched with liquid gushes.
the medicinal odors, tainted with the stink of burning bone and decay.
the faint twinge of abdominal muscles tightening in anticipation.  the
screaming--expected, awaited as a release from the tension, and yet
never allowed, never heard, swallowed in sputtering silence.

or perhaps your metier is a wall of blooms--lovely golden explosions of
petals, a joyful collar of lavender pink surrounding a black velvet
button, long green stems and tattered leaflets--and the small black
spider lurking deep inside, red hourglass marking the last grains of the
sands of time.  Or does the flitting bobbing drone of the happy bee
conceal the sting of finality?

So, pick a number from one to six.

1.  Insects (pick one, pick one...)
2.  Snakes/Reptiles/fish (you get to select one that you shiver with)
3.  Illness (yes, you decide whether it will be a simple burst appendix
or the more exotic strain of something from afar...Andromeda?)
4.  Disability (smashed, cut, gouged, a small nick in a nerve...)
5.  Rodents and other chitters in the night...
6.  Plants (from the little greenhouse of horrors?  or your own
backyard?  you plant the seed, water it, and reap the thorny cold
embrace...)

Play with it.  What about that would be frightening to you?  Now, can
you take a character or two and put them in a situation where they are
going to put their hand into the dark crevice where it lurks?

Let me give away a plot.

1.  The protagonist is introduced, with a little bit of foreshadowing
that this is a person who has some problems.  Perhaps they duck away
from the sound of a car backfiring?  Or maybe they have some trouble
pulling the drapes in their room to hide the hideous green outside?

2.  There is...a kitten?  a puppy?  a child?  someone weak and in need
of help...that forces our protagonist up against the thing they fear.

3.  amid flashbacks, carefully sketching in the breaking of the
protagonist, the horror of that time that can never be forgotten -- and
never remembered in full! -- the protagonist struggles and twists,
trying to help, but...

4.  take your time.  make us feel the agony of the protagonist, looking
at the little girl about to drown and fearing to tread where memory
tells them evil lurks...tighten the tension, drive home the drip of
sweat trickling cold down the back, make us hang our head in shame as
the hot tears and fear paralyze us...

5.  And the triumphant end!  The cathartic release of doing it, of
snapping the bonds of the past and saving the day!

Quick Start?

    "Leave the bloodsuckers behind us," she said, and kicked his
kneecap, hard, leaving him lying on the ground.

or maybe...

    Any day that starts with dead men kicking in your front door isn't
going to be a good one.

Write two three four...
tink

MB Prompts H'ween -Suspense #1

 Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2000 23:18:53 -0400

Subject:      [WRITERS] TECH: Horror Springs From...

Let's see.  The halloweenie contest is going to start accepting submissions 
on... October 1?  Plenty of time to... NEXT SUNDAY!  Better start writing 
faster and furiouser, my dear Alphonse.
Okay, here's a few words that may help with the horror of the situation.

 From Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman ISBN 0-553-09503-X, which in 
Chapter 13 talks about Trauma and Emotional Relearning.

"At the core of such trauma... is ' the intrusive memory of the central 
violent action: the final blow with a fist, the plunge of a knife, the blast 
of a shotgun.  The memories are intense perceptual experiences -- the sight, 
sound, and smell of gunfire; the screams or sudden silence of the victim; 
the splash of blood; the police sirens.'"

So we might want to make sure our horror story has a central violent action, 
with carefully crafted "intense perceptual experiences."  This is the time 
to make sure you are describing the senses (sights, sounds, smells, tactile 
feelings, tastes) in detail.

"Any traumatizing event can implant such trigger memories...: a fire or an 
auto accident, being in a natural catastrophe such as an earthquake or a 
hurricane, being raped or mugged.  Hundreds of thousands of people each year 
endure such disasters, and many or most come away with the kind of emotional 
wounding that leaves its imprint on the brain."

"Violent acts are more pernicious than natural catastrophes such as a 
hurricane because, unlike victims of a natural disaster, victims of violence 
feel themselves to have been intentionally selected as the target of 
malevolence.  That fact shatters assumptions about the trustworthiness of 
people and the safety of the interpersonal world, an assumption natural 
catastrophes leave untouched.  Within an instant, the social world becomes a 
dangerous place, one in which people are potential threats to your safety."

"The operative word is _uncontrollable_.  If people feel there is something 
they can do in a catastrophic situation, some control they can exert, no 
matter how minor, they fare far better emotionally than do those who feel 
utterly helpless.  The element of helplessness is what makes a given event 
_subjectively_ overwhelming. ... It's the feeling that your life is in 
danger _and there's nothing you can do to escape it_ ..."

So, a violent act that seems to intentionally select the victim, and leaves 
them helpless… that's the kind of act that is most likely to generate horror?

Okay, here's a little exercise.  Take your favorite character, and pick a 
number from one to six.  Got it?  So they are going to encounter:

1.      Fire
2.      Automobile accident
3.      Earthquake
4.      Hurricane (other storm at your selection)
5.      Rape
6.      Criminal Act (mugging, etc.)

Think about it.  Do you want them to directly encounter it, or are they 
helping a friend who has encountered it?  Do you want to show us the 
incident, the immediate results, or the longer-term disintegration?  Or do 
you want to show us the recovery?

How can this encounter strip the character of control, leave them dangling 
helpless in the path of the oncoming disaster?

Can you make their situation one that has been deliberately planned for 
them?  Even if the hurricane seems to be a purely natural affair, perhaps 
being locked out (chained down?) in the path of the oncoming storm could be 
more intentional evil?

Go ahead and craft that encounter with violence...

And for those who want to know, there are steps for recovery from trauma:  
"attaining a sense of safety, remembering the details of the trauma and 
mourning the loss it has brought, and finally re-establishing a normal life."

"Another step in healing involves retelling and reconstructing the story of 
the trauma in the harbor of that safety, allowing the emotional circuitry to 
acquire a new, more realistic understanding of and response to the traumatic 
memory and its triggers."

Why do people like to read horror stories?  What is it about that peculiar 
sense of fear under control that makes it deliciously attractive?

Something to think about, especially while you're preparing your entries for 
the unhallowed contest that starts so soon...

(for details, see <http://web.mit.edu/mbarker/www/hall00/>.  And watch this 
list for those little tales of terror that will soon be turning up!)


"Every poem is rooted in imaginative awe....there is only one thing that all 
poetry must do; it must praise all it can for being and for happening." W.H. 
Auden

t
ink

MB Prompts#4

 Subject: [WRITERS] EXERCISE: some characters...

One of the problems that often makes diving into a new story difficult is
that of dreaming up some characters.  Since we're considering erotica right
now, an obvious possibility is to look at the personal pages, where he's and
she's are advertising to meet someone.  All you need to do is pick an
interesting he and a fascinating she, then consider various ways for them to
meet... to be frustrated and blocked... and then, oh yes, what happened then?

Since you may not have personal pages handy, here are some possibilities...

Pick a number from 1 to 6.  Roll a die, look at your watch and divide the
current second by 10, or whatever, but pick a number...

(No, you have to pick a number first.  Now be a good sport and pick a number!)

1.  A gypsy wind is blowing warm tonight, the sky is starlit, and the time
is right.  I've seen you smiling in the summer sun, I've seen your long hair
flying when you run.  SWM, 5'8", 175#, black/brown, nonsmoker, nondrinker,
hard-working, Harley riding, music loving, reflective, introspective
extrovert, easy to talk with and trusting.  You: a fit SWF, a self
confidence about yourself and your direction, enjoy the outdoors and want to
build a lasting relationship.

2.  My first love was Scarlett O'Hara.  SWM, traveled to Southern Civil War
scenes every scheduled vacation.  C.S.A. enthusiast.  Seeking another
relationship with southern belle same age or older.

3.  DWM, self-employed, healthy, Italian, brown hair/eyes, 5'11", 195#,
glasses.  I enjoy dining out or cooking a nice Italian meal, Florida in
February, romantic and sensitive.  Seeking woman with same interests,
attractive and caring with good sense of humour, not overweight, nonsmoker.

4.  Professionally employed, financially secure, physically fit, honest,
considered handsome, nonsmoking, nondrinking, DWM, 5'5", brown hair, hazel
eyes.  Seeking S/DWF with similar qualities for possible long-term
relationship.  If you still believe in true love and are emotionally
available, please call or write.

5.  Outdoor enthusiast, DWM, nonsmoker, 5'7", 170#.  Seek active,
attractive, slender, physically and sexually adventurous S/DF.  Camping,
canoeing, fishing, hiking, biking, skiing and more.  A lover, like holding
hands, kissing, cuddling, being very close.  Need companion to travel, enjoy
natural beauty, hopefully for life.  Long hair a plus.

6.  Dear Earth Girl from New Hampshire.  This is Sailor Boy.  You left me a
message in October.  It was your first time leaving a message.  You were cut
off and I did not get your name or phone number.  Call me back, I want to
talk to you.  Thanks.

So there we have the masculine interest.  Take a moment and think about your
character.  What does this personal ad tell you about them?  What other
characteristics do you see when you picture this character?  What is their
name?

Now pick another number from 1 to 6.

1.  Free spirited but grounded, youthful but wise, well mannered but sensual
DWF, very shy, pretty but not thin, seeks man with character and kindness
willing to open up to me and 2 teens.  I have a messy house, three cats,
interests and energy galore and I love life.

2.  Beauty/brains DWF, 5'11", genuinely attractive, auburn/blue, slender,
sexy, fit, intelligent, fiery, honest, kind, romantic, discerning.  Enjoys
animated intellectual discussion, travel, literature, music, theater,
cooking, wine, nature, animals, horticulture, boating.  Seeking tall, fit,
nonsmoking, college educated, confident, romantic, attentive, highly evolved
man of integrity.

3.  WWF, 5'7", blonde/blue, 2 hands full.  Come on baby, light my fire.  Do
we match?  Me: nonsmoker, passionate, clean, honest, sincere, outgoing.
Enjoy laughter, roaring fires, full moons, slow dancing, camping, ocean,
cards, etc. and being with you.  Looking for functional equipment.

4.  DWF, 5'3", brownish golden hair, hazel eyes, kind, considerate, sensible
mom, no drugs, light drinker.  Looking for male partner who is willing to go
the distance.  Must be sincere, honest, like kids, wanting joy, fulfillment
and happiness in life and not into head games.

5.  DWF, genuine Barbie doll, 5'2", eyes of blue, looking for you.
Requirements: perfect gentleman, extremely well mannered, romantic, caring,
"honest", physically fit, energetic, with many interests.  Mine: dancing,
golf, skiing, work out regularly, very energetic.  If you feel you can
compare, let's share interests and more if we score!

6.  Maid Marion looking for her Robin Hood.  DWF, 5'9", attractive, full
figured, auburn hair, hazel eyes, mom of 1.  Enjoy music, movies, dancing,
football and much more.  Seeking someone honest, caring, good sense of
humour and is interested in a long-term relationship.  Please call or write.

And there you have the other half, she who may get involved with he.  Again,
take a few minutes to dream about the mysterious woman.  Picture her in your
mind's eye.  Listen to her talking on the telephone, in anger, in
laughter... what is her name?

[From The Dating Page February/March 1999... it's a free hand out in local
supermarkets and drugstores.]

With two characters in hand, the next step is to work out how they will
meet, and what happens next.  One possibility is for one of them to not to
be really interested -- maybe he prefers someone else's looks or maybe she'd
really rather find someone who has hair?  This can quickly become a struggle
or chase.

Another possibility is for them both to be interested, but there are
obstacles -- the friend who doesn't seem to realize what is happening, the
parent who does understand what is happening and doesn't like it, the
five-year-old, the dog, even the weather... overcoming conflict is the
essence of story.

In any case, think about the story.  Two characters in a plot... what tries
to keep them apart and what do they do to overcome?

(and don't forget the climax!  :-)

"I'd call it love if love
didn't take so many years
but lust too is a jewel." Adrienne Rich

MB Prompts#3

 Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 23:45:51 -0500

From: the limbs of a dismembered poet <mbarker@MIT.EDU>
Subject:      [WRITERS] EXERCISE: some characters...

One of the problems that often makes diving into a new story difficult is
that of dreaming up some characters.  Since we're considering erotica right
now, an obvious possibility is to look at the personal pages, where he's and
she's are advertising to meet someone.  All you need to do is pick an
interesting he and a fascinating she, then consider various ways for them to
meet... to be frustrated and blocked... and then, oh yes, what happened then?

Since you may not have personal pages handy, here are some possibilities...

Pick a number from 1 to 6.  Roll a die, look at your watch and divide the
current second by 10, or whatever, but pick a number...

(No, you have to pick a number first.  Now be a good sport and pick a number!)

1.  A gypsy wind is blowing warm tonight, the sky is starlit, and the time
is right.  I've seen you smiling in the summer sun, I've seen your long hair
flying when you run.  SWM, 5'8", 175#, black/brown, nonsmoker, nondrinker,
hard-working, Harley riding, music loving, reflective, introspective
extrovert, easy to talk with and trusting.  You: a fit SWF, a self
confidence about yourself and your direction, enjoy the outdoors and want to
build a lasting relationship.

2.  My first love was Scarlett O'Hara.  SWM, traveled to Southern Civil War
scenes every scheduled vacation.  C.S.A. enthusiast.  Seeking another
relationship with southern belle same age or older.

3.  DWM, self-employed, healthy, Italian, brown hair/eyes, 5'11", 195#,
glasses.  I enjoy dining out or cooking a nice Italian meal, Florida in
February, romantic and sensitive.  Seeking woman with same interests,
attractive and caring with good sense of humour, not overweight, nonsmoker.

4.  Professionally employed, financially secure, physically fit, honest,
considered handsome, nonsmoking, nondrinking, DWM, 5'5", brown hair, hazel
eyes.  Seeking S/DWF with similar qualities for possible long-term
relationship.  If you still believe in true love and are emotionally
available, please call or write.

5.  Outdoor enthusiast, DWM, nonsmoker, 5'7", 170#.  Seek active,
attractive, slender, physically and sexually adventurous S/DF.  Camping,
canoeing, fishing, hiking, biking, skiing and more.  A lover, like holding
hands, kissing, cuddling, being very close.  Need companion to travel, enjoy
natural beauty, hopefully for life.  Long hair a plus.

6.  Dear Earth Girl from New Hampshire.  This is Sailor Boy.  You left me a
message in October.  It was your first time leaving a message.  You were cut
off and I did not get your name or phone number.  Call me back, I want to
talk to you.  Thanks.

So there we have the masculine interest.  Take a moment and think about your
character.  What does this personal ad tell you about them?  What other
characteristics do you see when you picture this character?  What is their
name?

Now pick another number from 1 to 6.

1.  Free spirited but grounded, youthful but wise, well mannered but sensual
DWF, very shy, pretty but not thin, seeks man with character and kindness
willing to open up to me and 2 teens.  I have a messy house, three cats,
interests and energy galore and I love life.

2.  Beauty/brains DWF, 5'11", genuinely attractive, auburn/blue, slender,
sexy, fit, intelligent, fiery, honest, kind, romantic, discerning.  Enjoys
animated intellectual discussion, travel, literature, music, theater,
cooking, wine, nature, animals, horticulture, boating.  Seeking tall, fit,
nonsmoking, college educated, confident, romantic, attentive, highly evolved
man of integrity.

3.  WWF, 5'7", blonde/blue, 2 hands full.  Come on baby, light my fire.  Do
we match?  Me: nonsmoker, passionate, clean, honest, sincere, outgoing.
Enjoy laughter, roaring fires, full moons, slow dancing, camping, ocean,
cards, etc. and being with you.  Looking for functional equipment.

4.  DWF, 5'3", brownish golden hair, hazel eyes, kind, considerate, sensible
mom, no drugs, light drinker.  Looking for male partner who is willing to go
the distance.  Must be sincere, honest, like kids, wanting joy, fulfillment
and happiness in life and not into head games.

5.  DWF, genuine Barbie doll, 5'2", eyes of blue, looking for you.
Requirements: perfect gentleman, extremely well mannered, romantic, caring,
"honest", physically fit, energetic, with many interests.  Mine: dancing,
golf, skiing, work out regularly, very energetic.  If you feel you can
compare, let's share interests and more if we score!

6.  Maid Marion looking for her Robin Hood.  DWF, 5'9", attractive, full
figured, auburn hair, hazel eyes, mom of 1.  Enjoy music, movies, dancing,
football and much more.  Seeking someone honest, caring, good sense of
humour and is interested in a long-term relationship.  Please call or write.

And there you have the other half, she who may get involved with he.  Again,
take a few minutes to dream about the mysterious woman.  Picture her in your
mind's eye.  Listen to her talking on the telephone, in anger, in
laughter... what is her name?

[From The Dating Page February/March 1999... it's a free hand out in local
supermarkets and drugstores.]

With two characters in hand, the next step is to work out how they will
meet, and what happens next.  One possibility is for one of them to not to
be really interested -- maybe he prefers someone else's looks or maybe she'd
really rather find someone who has hair?  This can quickly become a struggle
or chase.

Another possibility is for them both to be interested, but there are
obstacles -- the friend who doesn't seem to realize what is happening, the
parent who does understand what is happening and doesn't like it, the
five-year-old, the dog, even the weather... overcoming conflict is the
essence of story.

In any case, think about the story.  Two characters in a plot... what tries
to keep them apart and what do they do to overcome?

(and don't forget the climax!  :-)

"I'd call it love if love
didn't take so many years
but lust too is a jewel." Adrienne Rich

MB Prompts #1

 Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1998 08:00:00 -0500

Subject:      [WRITERS] EXERCISE: A Line In Deed (was: Re: FILL: A Poll For Us)

At 04:30 PM 12/22/98 -0800, Anthony V. Toscano wrote:
:)but they're all a bunch of oil-glazed pinkos sporting polka-dot panties and
:)bad attitudes, so pay them no mind.

[you'll probably recognize the tune soon enough...]

oil-glazed pinkos in polka-dot panties,
bad attitudes spiked with a stiletto,
these are a part of my curmudgeonry!
when the reds bomb...when Iraq burns...

(psst!  there's a beginning.  feel free to add to the chorus, to make the
welkin ring, to get up on that soapbox and raise a ruckus...)

[what, you don't know "These are a few of my favorite things"?]

"The friends that have it I do wrong
When ever I remake a song
Should know what issue is at stake,
It is myself that I remake."  William Butler Yeats

tink

MB Prompts#2

 Date: Mon, 28 Dec 1998 07:13:00 -0500

From: "the rags of time..."
Subject:      [WRITERS] EXERCISE: The Truth... (was: Re: filler:  very
              interesting)


:)open to the truth of our angle on partial birth
:)analysis of the universe

Let me repeat that, in case you missed it...

     open to the truth of our angle on partial birth
     analysis of the universe

allow that phrase to roll around in the old synapses a few times.  Consider
openness, closedness, truth, falsehood, angles and curves, partial birth and
whole birth (spontaneous generation?  sure, if that bugs you:-) and analysis
of the universe...

mix well with some sensory impressions, toss, and...

let the poetic beat of the rhyme roll free...
or wend your way along the tale of the wag...

but WRITE!

"The friends that have it I do wrong
When ever I remake a song
Should know what issue is at stake,
It is myself that I remake."  William Butler Yeats

tink