Woo-hoo!  Last day on the road (until next week :)) AND a Summer Short & Sweet Day!

Badge created by Loni Edwards

Did I tell you my GPS’s name is Jill?  I’ve taken to calling her Jo-Jilly thanks to my niece 🙂  But let me tell you, after this week? 1500 plus miles later? she and I need a little time apart!  She gets extremely snippy whenever I depart from the route to refuel (Susanna runs on Dunkin’ – the coffee, not the donuts… most of the time… :), Princess Blue Kitty runs on anything she can get except BP which I am morally opposed to!)  I always promise Jo-Jilly that we’ll get right back on the road, but you know, I don’t think she believes me!  It’s this lack of trust I find hard to live with.  Lucky I get a break for a few days 🙂

ANYway, are you ready to be Short & Sweet?

Alrighty then.

Pick a letter – any letter! – the first letter of your name, a letter you like the shape of, a letter you like the sound of – any letter!

Got one?

Now, pick a name that starts with that letter.  This will be your character.

Now, write us 50 – 100 words (more if you like, but 50 – 100 will do :)) of a story about this character.  But here’s the challenge:  you have to use as many words as possible that start with the letter you chose!  Nouns, verbs, adjectives, people, places, descriptions, actions, and things – see how many words that start with your letter you can work into your story.  It does not have to be a complete story (although it can be if you want), just get started and see where it goes.  You might be surprised at the directions you go trying to use words that begin with your letter!

Here’s my example, using D (which is for dogs because I miss mine!)

Delilah dreamed of dogs.
Dogs were devoted.  Dogs were delightful.  In fact, they were downright dynamite!
“Daddy,” Delilah declared, “I’m desperate for a dog.  Dalmatian or Dachshund, Doberman or Dingo, anything doggy will do.”
“Darling Delilah,” Daddy said, “how about a donkey or a duck? A dragonfly or a dolphin?”
“Don’t you like dogs, Daddy?”
“Dearest, I do!  But I’m dreadfully delicate.  Dogs make me sneeze dangerously.”
Delilah despaired.
But dreams don’t die easily.
Delilah was determined.
She developed a dog dander destruction device.
“Now a dog will be no danger, Daddy!”
Daddy drove Delilah downtown.
Delilah named her dog Daisy.
Daisy is devoted.  Daisy is delightful.  In fact, Daisy is downright dynamite!
Delilah is delirious.
And Daddy dotes on them doubly!
(122 words)

Get the idea?  Mine’s a bit pathetic, I know.  I’m drained from driving 🙂  But now no one should be afraid to give it a shot 🙂

I hope you’ll find this fun!  Perhaps yours or someone else’s will spark a story idea that you can then write normally, without using all the same-letter words.  Either way, it’s a good exercise to make you think very carefully about every word you write.  I think you’ll be surprised at how much stronger nouns and verbs you’ll think up!  And at how your ideas take off in bizarre directions in order to accommodate your letter – I personally would have been unlikely to think up a dog dander destruction device under other circumstances 🙂

Have fun with this!  I can’t wait to see what you come up with – y’all amaze me every week!

Happy writing and happy weekend 🙂