Dick Cheney did WHAT???

In 2006, VP Dick Cheney accidentally shot and wounded a friend while they hunted quail in Texas. Fortunately for the friend, Cheney wasn’t a very good shot because the friend recovered. Unfortunately for Cheney, he became the butt of jokes from every comedian and late-night talk show host. How could he NOT?

It’s your turn! Everyone knows that comedy is verrry close to tragedy. And humor is derived from someone else’s foibles. Create a joke or write an anecdote about a funny and embarrassing thing that YOU’VE done in your life. Or, if you’d like to pick on Dick, go for it. Make up some jokes about our VP and this famous hunting trip in history.

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Write a tingling spy story

In 1962 on this date in history, American Francis Gary Powers was released by Russians after being shot down in an airplane and held captive. (Then Americans released a Russian spy.)

Write your own spy story. Read one and “model” after the author. Choose a paragraph or two that you admire and try to mimic the style of prose. What makes it suspenseful? Watch a spy movie. Write a movie script for your story.

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Outcome of Disaster

On Feb. 9, 1971, The San Frernando Earthquake occurred.

Have you ever experienced a traumatic event? Lived through a natural disaster? Write about this happening as though you are re-experiencing it for the very first time. Place your reader there, with all of your senses, thoughts and feelings. Slow-down-the-moment for maximum suspense.
After you have written about this, take stock. What possible outcomes did this have on your life? Remember the positive. How did this tragedy cause you to grow and change. What happened to others around you?

You may choose to take what you’ve written and use it to create a poem, a short story, or some other art work.

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Create the World’s Yummiest Doughnut!

In 1926, Trausch Bakery from Dubuque, Iowa, launched the first doughnut making machine.

What is the VERY FIRST thing you think of when you read that sentence? I thought of the scene from the children’s book, Homer Price, by Robert McCloskey. The second thing I thought of was the OTHER Homer, Homer Simpson, whose survival depends on this sugary confection.

Writing exercises to choose from: 1. Write your favorite doughnut memory. Describe it, the circumstances, the actions, your feelings, the characters surrounding it. 2. Write a short story or poem featuring a doughnut or a bakery as an important element. 3. Create a new doughnut recipe! Think of a fabulous new name. Describe it! Create an ad campaign! Give the recipe. What makes your doughnut special?

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Make your OWN Magazine!

Happy Birthday Reader’s Digest! Feb. 5, 1922

Reader’s Digest is so well-known, we even use its name in slang. “Give me the Reader’s Digest version,” tells us to shorten the tale into the most meaningful parts rather than ramble on and on.

Do you have a favorite magazine? Or did you have a favorite magazine from years ago that you remember?

Create a magazine of your own. What will be in your table of contents? What will be your theme? Your title? Will you have fiction and nonfiction, games and puzzles? Art and poems? Perhaps your writer’s group or class can create a magazine together and vote on a theme and title.

Or . . . choose a favorite magazine and read it very carefully. Study it like you would a textbook. How do writers write each piece? Who are the readers? Now come up with an idea for an article or story for this magazine. Research your piece and write it, modeling it after the original magazine. Share it with your writing partner or writer’s group. Then try to sell it to the magazine. Write a cover letter pitching your piece to the managing editor. Good luck!

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February 4, 2009

Happy Birthday Barbie! The Barbie Doll was invented in 1959 by Ruth Handler and named after Ruth’s daughter. Later Ruth created the Ken doll and named HIM after her son.

Exercise One:
Do you recall your first Barbie doll or beloved toy? What was your favorite play toy? Why? What made it special? Describe it. Describe how you would create a make believe game around it. Who played with you when you were little and had fun with this toy? Did you ever fight over it with anyone? Anything funny ever happen with a toy you had? Do you have any pictures of you and this toy? If so, it might be fun to find a photo and put it with your writing. Or, if you can draw or create a piece of art, do so with your toy or game in mind.

Exercise Two: What is your favorite “toy” today? Do you play basketball? A special video game? Soccer? Scrabble? My “toy” is alive. Sorry to describe her this way, but I play with my dog all the time. See Zoie on my website. www.lizbooks.com She is always a source of my writing. If you have a special pet, your pet might be a source for you too.

Exercise Three: Excuses! Yesterday, Feb. 3 I didn’t post a blog. Ykes! I forgot all about it. I can’t say my dog ate my computer either. Life got in the way, and my “normal” writing did. Have you ever forgotten your homework or a deadline or even forgotten to go to work? Come up with the 10 funniest excuses ever! I’d love to see them.

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Happy Groundhog Day!

It’s a sunny day here in Northern California. Happy Groundhog Day! Does it feel like winter where you are? For your writing today, write about the weather right now. Describe the sensation of the air on your body. What does it feel like when you stick your tongue into the air? What does the ground feel like? Write what the sky looks like. Show a scene where you must deal with the weather in your daily life.

Or: Create a national holiday celebrating YOU! In my case it would be: Happy Liz Day! We’d celebrate chocolate, reading, dogs, and the beach! I’d write paragraphs about each! What would your holiday be about?

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