It’s November when we usually don’t post the writing exercises or prompts so everyone can concentrate on meeting their NaNoWriMo goal.

This year I’m not participating but I’m cheering all of you on to victory. And to help you reach the end, I’m going to post some different prompts and dares throughout the month to help you when you need a push. These are random, so you never know when one will pop up.

Here’s the first prompt:
Surprise a character

~Amber

NaNoWrimo begins in a few weeks.

Let’s help you get prepared for it now. Doesn’t matter if you’re a panster or a plotter. This one simple exercise will help you with your time in November.

• Find a November calendar you like and will look at. It’s up to you if you want one that shows the hour for each day or just an empty block.
• Enter all “must do” activities (doctor’s appointments, family time, working, classes, etc.) that you can’t put off.
• You should be left with some empty space showing you when you have time available to write. SCHEDULE YOUR TIME TO WRITE.

Good luck!
~Amber

Use one of the following images as the inspiration for a short story or poem:

~Rhonda

Today was stressful at work and I made a conscious decision to NOT have a Coca-Cola Classic. I gave them up just over a week ago. This made me think about how our characters deal with stress. Something to think about as you prepare for NaNoWriMo is the evolution of our characters. How they deal with stress at the beginning of the novel can be quite different from how they deal with it at the end.

Can you think of some behaviors that people (or animals) exhibit when under stress? Feel free to share – you may help someone else build a character!
~Amber

This week write a poem or short story in a genre you’ve never written before or re-write one of your short stories or poems to be from a different genre than it was originally.

~Rhonda

Write about a situation in which your writing (or someone elese’s) has made a difference.

Prompt taken from an exercise in THE WRITING PROCESS by John M. Lannon and David B. Parsons

~Rhonda

We had so much fun a few months ago with first lines I thought we could work on some more. Below are some first lines. Rewrite them to make them more engaging to hook the reader.
~Amber

• The dog belly flopped into the pool.
• An alien zapped me with laser beams from his eyes.
• I couldn’t believe I was standing in front of my hero.
• Hail pelted the windows.
• We were going to be rock stars at any cost.

This Friday I challenge you to write a Dear John or a Dear Jane letter. Make it funny or serious, realistic or fantastic. Just write it

I’m a week late in posting my writing prompt for Monday. I hope you have fun with this one.

Write a story which involves a fortune teller machine. If you’re working on a novel, you can even write it into a scene.

Good luck!
~Amber

I’m a day late with the Monday exercise. This one is a bit different from ones we’ve done in the past.

At some point, you may have the opportunity to pitch your novel to a publishing house. But you only have three sentences. The trick is to use well constructed sentences – not ones that are 25 words each with lots of commas. These can also be used in your NaNoWriMo profiles. Can you do it?

Examples

• Red caped girl travels alone through the woods to see her ill grandmother. She successfully overcomes the obstacles set in her path and then finds a wolf inside her grandmother’s house. Only she can vanquish the wolf and save her grandmother.
• Treated like a servant by her stepfamily, Cinderella finds acceptance with her animal friends. The intervention of a fairy godmother allows Cinderella to attend the royal ball and find true love. Can she defy her stepfamily and live happily ever after?

Good luck!
~Amber