It’s the third Monday of the month, and you know what that means!
Well, no, not donuts… although that is a good guess and given the “sweet” in today’s activity maybe we should have donuts…
So, ok, donuts:
But what I was actually referring to, you incorrigible donut hounds 🙂 , is Monday Funday Short & Sweets!
badge created by Loni Edwards
Nothing like a little warm-up writing fun to kick off the day and the week, don’t you think? Who knows what great story idea we might spark from this!
So.
Today’s Short & Sweet will work best if you don’t peek. I’m not quite sure how to accomplish that on a blog post, so let’s go on the honor system – no scrolling down yet!
First, pick a number from 1 – 10. Got it? Write it down.
Now pick a number from 1 – 10 again and write that down.
Now do it again.
And now one last time.
(BTW, it’s okay if you pick the same number more than once. If you want to make it really random you can roll a pair of dice and just discard any 11s or 12s you get. Or take an Ace through 10 out of a deck of cards and randomly choose cards to see what numbers you get.)
Hopefully you now have 4 numbers between 1 and 10 written down. (For example, I have 5, 9, 3, and 2.)
Now. Use your first number to select from this list:
Character:
- a boy who comes from the Land of Nod
- a guinea pig who always carries a lucky penny
- a princess who is mischievous
- a knight who hates to get wet
- a dinosaur who is forgetful
- a king who loves licorice
- a witch who loves to whistle
- a monster who is shy
- a robot who is to curious
- a cowboy who loves bugs
Use your second number to select from this list:
Setting:
- outer space
- a birthday party
- the shore of Lake Chaubunagungamaug
- a city sidewalk
- the edge of a meadow
- zoo
- the soda fountain
- lighthouse
- circus
- campsite
Use your third number to select from this list:
Time:
- nap time
- June twilight
- just after losing first tooth
- during a blizzard
- snack time
- after losing the big game
- first light of morning
- the day before Halloween
- the first really hot day of summer
- moments before the school play
Use your last number to select from this list:
Situation/Challenge:
- someone’s feelings have been hurt
- someone is having a bad day
- someone had a fight with a friend
- someone is stuck or trapped somewhere
- someone is lonely
- someone can’t climb to the treehouse
- someone wishes s/he were bigger
- someone is moving away
- someone is being chased by an animal
- someone broke his/her big toe
You should now have a randomly selected character, setting, time, and situation/challenge – everything you need to prompt a story!
In the comments below, list the 4 you got and write 50-100 words of whatever story they suggest to you! Don’t agonize! Don’t over-think! We’re all among friends. Just write! All we’re doing here is priming the pump. If all you can squeeze out is 50 rusty words, that’s fine! You wrote 50 words in the middle of your hectic, busy day! But maybe, just maybe, 25-50 more will trickle out a little less rusty, and maybe after you’ve written your 50-100 here you’ll find you’ve got a gush of clear water rushing forth and a whole new story will well up and land on your list of accomplishments for today!
Oh, and if you find it’s too hard to include all 4, it’s okay to just use 1, 2, or 3 of the prompts you picked – the exercise is just to get ideas and words flowing 🙂
Here’s my example in case you don’t quite get it:
The numbers I chose were 5, 9, 3, and 2, so I get
Character #5 – a dinosaur who is forgetful
Setting #9 – circus
Time #3 – just after losing first tooth
and Situation/Challenge #2 – someone is having a bad day
Given these prompts, I might write the following 50-100 words:
So far, Reinhold was not having a good day.
He was last to the breakfast table so all the Frosted Flakes were gone.
His favorite blue-sequined tight-rope walking outfit was in the wash, so he had to go to practice wearing the stupid red and green striped one that made him look like a triceratops-shaped elf.
Worst of all (and the reason he had been late to breakfast) he had lost his first tooth.
This should have been a good thing. He had been looking forward to this moment for months, ever since Jiminy had lost his first tooth…and then Alvin…and then Sparky.
He had begun to worry that maybe his baby teeth were going to stick in there forever. Maybe he’d never lose a tooth!
But now he had.
And he hadn’t just lost it. He had LOST it.
Tonight the Tooth Fairy would come to the rainbow-colored circus tent where Reinhold was supposed to be sleeping soundly.
She would look under his pillow for his first baby triceratop tooth.
And she would find . . .
NOTHING!
Because Reinhold could not remember where he had put it!
Okay. So I went a little over with 188 words 🙂 But I hope you’ll get carried away too!
See how easy?
Ready, Set, WRITE!!!
I can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Have a marvelous Monday, everyone!!! 🙂
Susanna Leonard Hill 
Love this idea! Thank you for sharing and setting this up.
You’re very welcome! Enjoy! And let me know if you get a good idea from it 🙂
I love short and sweets!!
A Dinosaur who is forgetful, at the soda fountain, during nap time, and an argument between friends! (5,7,1, 3)
1, 2, 3, 4, Rex got in line and made himself number 5. This was all wrong. If only Terry could understand that he didn’t MEAN to knock over his soda. It was an innocent yawn! He was so tired and it was all Terry’s idea to skip nap. The two friends had a great morning, he didn’t want things to end this way. As he line to the soda fountain inched forward, he decided it would take a lot more then a refill to fix his mistake. Rex needed a plan, but first he had to remember what kind of soda Terry wanted … (106 words, oops!)
Oh, well done! And no oops for 106! That’s good 🙂 The 50-100 was just so you wouldn’t feel overwhelmed 🙂 Thanks for joining in the fun!
I chose 2, 2, 2, and 2. This activity couldn’t have made me happier if it were a real live donut jumping out of my screen. I’m not writing my 50 words right now, but I AM writing them first thing in the morning. Short and Sweet. SWEET!
Awesome, Genevieve! I hope you’re all fired up in the morning for a GREAT story! 🙂
I chose 8,3,5,2 –
Gargantuana the monster sat along the shore of Lake Chaubunagungamaug where his class was having a field trip. Snack time always put Gargantuana in a bad mood because his mom never packed enough snack. Ten watermelons, 5 bunches if bananas and 2 pizzas and Gargantuana was still hungry. He’d never make it to lunch without more food but he was too shy to ask any other monster to share. He eyed HumonGus as he shoved a basket of walnuts, shells and all, and a bushel of pears into his mouth.
” I love sweet and salty together, don’t you?” said HumonGus. “Hey, I think it’s about to rain. I hear thunder.”
But it wasn’t thunder, it was Gargantuana’s stomach growling…
Very cute ❤
I love Monday Fundays! And donuts. Can’t wait to try this. 🙂
I won’t post our stories as both my daughter and I wrote to the end and had 500+ words, but what fun! She chose 3,2,1 & 5. I chose 4, 6, 8 and 10. We may very well play again tomorrow! Thanks Susanna!
Love this activity, Susanna…I plan to do this once a week!
Princess Palantina hurried to the edge of the meadow. The County Fair opened at twilight tonight. She’d been waiting all year. Cotton candy. Games of chance. And best of all, the Super Duper Loop-de-loop Rollercoaster. Clutching her ticket, she stepped onto the end of the line. One by one, the ride operator filled each car. Palantina moved closer and closer. Then she saw it. The measurement post. Your head had to reach the top line to show you were tall enough to go on this ride. Palantina straightened her shoulders. She balanced on her toes. She stretched her neck as far as she could…
That was fun…thanks, dear friend.
Well, mine wasn’t exactly short at 286 words, but I do hope it is sweet! I chose 5,2, 7 and It’s called Reginald the Forgetful.
Reginald smoothed his long tail, brushed his white teeth, and stretched his long neck to get the kinks out. He was a dinosaur on a mission__ he had a birthday party to attend. It was a party for his best friend Samantha.
He’d spent the entire day before finding the perfect gift which he carefully wrapped in palm fronds. But now that he was ready to go, he couldn’t remember where he’d put the mangoes. He looked under his giant bed of logs and leaves. He looked in the hollow tree stump used for storage. And he looked in the cat tails at the edge of the pond where he hid the coconuts he used for bowling.
Reginald began to cry. “I can’t show up to a party for Samantha without a gift,” he said between sniffles.
“It’s early still,” his mother said. “Perhaps you have time to find another gift.”
Reginald brightened at the suggestion and decided to paint a picture of mangoes. He found a large flat leaf, some berries, and a stick. After his painting dried he rolled it up and tied it with a vine. He then set off to find Samantha.
When it was time for the presents, he told Samantha how he’d misplaced her gift and only had a painting to offer her.
Samantha just laughed. “You gave me the mangoes yesterday, Reginald. You said you wanted me to have them while they were fresh.”
Reginald’s face turned pink at his forgetfulness, but Samantha was pleased. Because of Reginald’s forgetfulness, she now had a lovely reminder of the birthday gift he’d given her. “Thank you for the painting,” she said. “I’ll hang it on the tree next to my bed.”
8, 4, 7, 10 from a random draw.
She had to find someone to help her and quickly. The pain in her big toe was excruciating; she was pretty sure she broke it when she tripped up the sidewalk. Although at first she was glad no one saw her, now she wishes they had. They probably would have asked if she were okay; instead she has to find the guts to impose on a complete stranger.
Okay, I’m late, but here I am! I had 3914 – a mischievous princess at the circus during nap time involving someone stuck/trapped somewhere. This is awesome. 😉
Gloria was a fairy princess, and she knew it. And fairy princesses don’t take naps. Never, ever, ever.
But Mrs. Gloria’s Mom didn’t see it like that. “Gloria, of course fairy princesses take naps! After all, how are they supposed to look like nice little fairies?”
Who said fairies had to look nice? Yet Parent Power is even stronger than a fairy princess’ Pixie Might, and that’s how Gloria found herself being tucked in.
Five minutes and thirty-four seconds of tossing and turning later, Gloria heard a noise coming from her window.
Taking a peek, she saw ginormous tents and heard a band playing while she breathed in the popcorn and caramel apples on the wind.
The circus!
Fairy princesses are resourceful, so Gloria climbed out her window and ran towards the tents. Finally, she was out of her room!
After weaving through legs, Gloria ended up in front of the tall giraffes that touched the sky. She kept walking, and saw clowns juggling flaming sticks, heard a rotund lady singing very high, and felt the excitement race through her body!
Suddenly, Gloria had no idea where she was.
Now, you know that a fairy princess is resourceful, but a fairy princess can also be scared and cry a little.
And that’s how Gloria was found by a worried Mrs. Gloria’s Mom – by the ticket stand at the front of the circus.
You know what though? After a big adventure like that, a nap is perfect! 🙂
So, yeah. I think I went over a bit. 😉 And I dislike the ending. But I haven’t written in a while, so I guess it’s okay. 🙂
AAARRRGH! The editor in me kept making changes so it wouldn’t be right for me to post my story. But I will share that I got a great idea from this exercise and am encouraged because I just MIGHT be able to complete a new draft for 12×12 this month! YAY! Thank you, Susanna! 🙂
Oh, and I chose 10 – 10 – 5 – 1 A cowboy who loves bugs at a campsite during snack time and someone’s feelings have been hurt. Looks like it could turn into a humorous one? Maybe?? 😀