Need inspiration? - previous monthly writing themes

[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for Jan 2009: A 1000 word crime story.

 

Write a crime story of a specific length - 1000 words.

 

1. Subject. The crime can be anything from scromping apples to the exploits of a serial killer, however don't make it to grisly, a description of what is found at the crime scene will suffice, try to avoid writing a blow-by-blow account of a murder.

 

2. Introduce an element of humour into the story, this could range from the unexpected, like the little old lady who defrauds a corrupt insurance company when they refuse her claim to the comically inept, like the worlds worst bank robbers getting locked in the vault. There are plenty of other options, try to think of something original and unusual.

 

3. Keep it tight. Because of the story length your story has to have a tight plot and be well paced, don't overpopulate your story with superfluous characters. Everyone has to be there for a reason, when they talk the dialogue must be believable.

 

Try not to give the ending away too soon, you must try to engage the reader all the way through and the end of the story must be satisfyingly complete.

 

4. Final checks. When your story is finished check your first draft, make sure that everything that happens is to move the plot and the characters along at a reasonable pace. Be ruthless, if your plot or characters diverge and start doing things that are unnecessary then cut it out.

 

5. Word Count. State your word count under the title; this is a thousand word story, a tolerance of plus or minus 4% is acceptable; therefore your word count should fall between 960 and 1040 words.

 

A word count program is usually included in most WP packages, in WORD it's listed under the TOOLS tab.

Edited February 1, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for Feb 2009:'Valentine flashback.'

 

This months optional theme is to write a short story that contains the following three elements:

 

1. A romantic scene, nothing too smutty of course, SHOW the romance, don't tell us about it and avoid clichés like the plague, like I've just done.

 

2. A flashback scene which has relevance to the main story, ideally it should be incorporated seamlessly into the main plot. Flashbacks can often unsettle the reader if too abrupt so be subtle and think about where it should be placed in the main story.

 

3. Dialogue - you have two options.

 

(a) Use no dialogue whatsoever, which will be an interesting challenge for this kind of story.

 

Or

 

(b) Use realistic, believable dialogue, if you do, a minimum of 50% of your story must be dialogue.

Edited March 1, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for March 2009:'The red herring.'

 

Write a story that will keep your reader guessing to the end.

 

In a suspense story the reader is always trying to second guess where the story is going, you're going to surprise them by giving them what they want, but not in the way they expect.

 

To do this your story must lay a believable false trail, the surprise at the end of the trail must be used accurately to confound the reader's expectation, but what happens must be within the established characterisation, the plot structure and the laws of probability.

 

For example, a private detective could be following a married man / woman who is acting very elusively and appears to be conducting an affair, the surprise could be (a) they are organising a secret birthday party for their spouse (b) the subject is having an affair with the detective © the detective follows the wrong person (d) the detective is being used as an unwitting alibi whilst another crime is taking place.

 

What you should avoid is the 'wild surprise' as this undermines the credibility of the writer - these occur when the ground has not been prepared, and are not related to what the reader has anticipated.

 

An example of a 'wild surprise' would be the sudden appearance of a hit and run driver in the last sentence, killing the hero with no warning.

 

Whilst herrings in the ocean occur in large shoals in books they should appear singly, unless you are writing in the detective genre, in which false trails are a convention. One or two small red herrings increase the readers concentration and the writer's authority, but too many are an irritation so use them sparingly.

 

An alternative secondary theme - "Water."

 

Write a story where there is a life changing moment that involves water.

Edited June 3, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for April 2009:'The Graveyard.'

 

This month's theme is to write a horror story that involves a graveyard.

 

At night, graveyards can be scary places; the rows of gravestones become moonlit monoliths that mark the last resting place of a departed soul... or do they hide something more sinister?

 

1. Descriptions. The graveyard should be described in an evocative way, you must bring to mind the image of the graveyard and tap into the reader's latent fear of such a setting whilst developing the suspense and building a menacing atmosphere.

 

Read CHAPTER 1 of 'Great Expectations' by Charles Dickens if you want to see a good example of this.

 

2. Suspense. Build up the suspense gradually, the reader should be aware that something horrible is about to happen, be careful to not give away the ending too soon.

 

We've covered this before, see HERE for more details on suspense.

 

3. It should be frightening. Whether you keep your story firmly rooted in reality or wander into the supernatural arena the primary aim of the story is to scare the reader!

 

 

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An alternative secondary theme - "Holiday disasters"

 

Write a short, amusing story that involves strife whilst on holiday.

Edited April 30, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for May 2009: 'Weapon.'

 

This month's theme is to write a story that involves a weapon.

 

You decide what weapon; it could be anything - a pointed stick, crossbow, nuclear bomb, or even something that hasn't been invented yet.

 

Whether the weapon is actually used or not is unimportant, sometimes the threat is more effective than the actual execution.

 

The main aim of the story is to show the impact of the weapon on your characters and how it changes their lives.

 

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An alternative secondary theme.

 

Write an amusing tale that involves a family pet.

Edited June 3, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for June 2009: 'Missing.'

 

Write a story where either someone (or an object) has gone missing.

 

Some elements that you may consider worth incorporating into your story are:

 

The anxiety faced by the missing persons family or by the people doing the searching.

 

A detailed search sequence, Do the searchers follow a false trail? How is technology used to aid the search?

 

The reason for their disappearance may be explained, were they simply lost, taken against their will or did they have a reason to hide?

 

An end sequence where the person / object is discovered - are they dead or alive? Or are they never found and their fate is open to speculation?

 

Build in a clock that the protagonist(s) are working against - pay particular attention to building up the tension as the clock ticks down.

 

 

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An alternative secondary theme.

 

Write a story with TWO characters and one of them is forced to do something against their will by the other one.

 

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Edited July 1, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for July 2009: 'Dystopian Fiction.'

 

This month's theme is to write a story set in the near future that illustrates the effect of a dystopian society upon your protagonist.

 

This is a very popular genre and has spawned books such as '1984' by George Orwell and 'Brave new world' by Aldrous Huxley which are widely regarded as 20th century classics

 

A dystopia is a vision of society in which conditions of life have deteriorated compared to the present day. Life is characterised by poverty, violence, oppression, war, disease etc.

 

The future government in such a fictional setting is generally oppressive and imposes many restrictions upon the individual citizens; the political systems involved could range from communism to fascism or anything in between (bureaucracy, capitalism, totalitarianism, dictatorships etc.) Alternatively, the government could have been eliminated and is replaced by anarchy.

 

Because dystopian literature typically depicts events that take place in the future, it often features technology more advanced than that of contemporary society.

 

Three things to consider.

 

1. The primary objective of this exercise is to introduce your protagonist early on and show the effect of this society upon them.

A common theme is that the individual rebels against the social injustice and tries to bring the system down, whether they succeed, fail, adapt, or change things for the worst is up to you.

 

2. You must seamlessly incorporate a selectively told 'back story' of how the society developed in the way it did, you could use events such as wars, revolution, critical overpopulation, environmental change, the rise of Peter Mandelson or some other disaster that precedes the shift in the emphasis of control from previous types of government to your imagined model.

 

3. (Optional) As the story is set in the future invent just ONE futuristic device that you consider plausible enough to be invented. Incorporate it in your story.

 

Some useful links below:

 

Dystopian fiction

 

Dystopia

 

Brave New world.

 

top 10 dystopian novels.

 

 

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An alternative secondary theme.

 

Write a concise, informative review of a book or a film, state your word count which must be between 400 and 600 words.

 

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Edited August 12, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Tallyman 10]

The writing theme for August 2009: Speech! Speech!

 

The challenge for this month is to write a speech - on any subject you like, for any occasion. It can either be fictional or express your real thoughts and opinions. It can be amusing, informative, political, persuasive or even provocative.

 

For example, it could be:

 

• A parent-of-the-bride speech
  
• An amusing 'after dinner' speech
  
• An expression of an opinion, political or otherwise
  
• A rousing 'call to arms' or 'night before the battle of Agincourt' type speech
  
• A speech supporting, or condemning, a particular action
  
• A eulogy, a speech in praise of someone
  

 

Some tips and thoughts:

 

Writing for the spoken word needs a different approach from writing for a reader. As you write, read what you've written out loud to see if it comes across well. This may seem obvious, but your audience has to understand you first time round, and follow your line of argument. They can't go back and re-read something they're not clear about, and if they're struggling to understand what you mean, you've lost them.

 

Remember to keep sentences short, with plenty of room for pauses. There may be laughter or applause you have to allow for, and you need to speak more slowly and clearly so that people have a chance to keep up with you.

 

You may need to repeat, or re-state, things from time to time, especially if you are building an argument, and you need your audience to make connections between the different elements of your speech.

 

How would you like your audience to feel at the end - amused? Roused to action? Incensed by the injustice you've outlined? Persuaded to your point of view? You need to think about the appropriate language you use to give the right effect.

 

Engage your audience. They make up their mind about you very quickly, so think of a good opening. Will it be a joke? Or a staggering fact that shocks them into listening? It needs to be a hook - something so interesting or entertaining that they want to hear more - either more amusing anecdotes, more about the person you're talking about, or more information about the amazing fact you've just presented them with.

 

Think about any speeches you've listened to; think about the routine of a stand-up comic you like. What is it that makes you listen to them? Some orators are mesmerising. What is it about them? The words they use, the style of their delivery? Can you do something similar?

 

If, by chance, you expect to be making any kind of speech in real life, this is the ideal place to try out your ideas!

Edited August 31, 2009 by Mantaspook
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[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for September 2009: 'First line.'

 

A very simple theme this month, we'll give you the first line and invite you to complete the story by writing the next 1000+ words.

 

Your first words are: The last thirty minutes of my life were very interesting.

 

Notes

 

Do not put quotation marks around the above quote or use it as a line of dialogue.

 

The line leads you into a first person perspective story, whether you want to develop the story in the first person is up to you.

 

Your main character can be man, woman or child, or even an animal if you so wish.

 

You can introduce as many characters as you want but as we've mentioned before, only do so to move the story along.

 

At what point does the narrator tell their story? Just before their demise is the obvious point - but are there any others?

 

 

 

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An alternative secondary theme.

 

As above, write a 1000+ word story off the following first line:

 

Even I had to admit, it was a most curious place to find a horse.

 

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Edited October 1, 2009 by Mantaspook

[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for October 2009: 'Little clouds.'

 

There is a scene in the film 'Goldfinger' where 'Q' says "Now pay attention, 007" before launching into an explanation of the intricacies of a modified Aston Martin DB5, its optional extras included machine guns, a smoke generator, ejector seat and a bullet proof shield.

 

Lo and behold, later in the film James Bond uses all them to thwart the bad guys, it was most fortunate that 'Q' gave him such a thorough briefing or he could have got himself killed.

 

What we have just seen is the cinematographic equivalent of a 'little cloud' - this is a writing technique where a hint is dropped early on to prepare the reader for what is to come later.

 

As Checkhov once said: "If you are going to fire a gun in the third act, your audience must see it loaded in the first."

 

In the most satisfying kind of detective story, clues to the identity of the murderer are gradually woven into the story. They must not be too obvious, but part of the pleasure lies in picking them up, so that at the end the reader can say "I thought so!" and congratulate themselves on their astute observation.

 

Little clouds can be of tremendous value, readers are suprisingly good at recognising such clues and storing them in their mind for future reference, the element of surprise is not necessarily lost because it is no more than a hint,it's a little cloud, not a thundering great cumulo-nimbus.

 

But beware; the reader's readiness to pick up these clues means there is a danger in dropping a piece of information which later turns out to have no significance. To use the Checkhov example again, if the gun is loaded in the first act it MUST be fired later, if it isn't the reader will feel cheated.

 

This month's theme is to write a story that contain AT LEAST TWO little clouds, one of which must be introduced into dialogue, eg: The character(s) may give a hint of their interests or traits which you will use later in your story.

 

An optional extra exercise for the more advanced writers.

(only attempt this if you feel confident.)

 

It is not unusual in murder mysteries to lay a false trail by the use of a 'red herring' to intentionally divert the reader from the true murderer / item of significance.

 

Write the story as above but also incorporate a believable red herring into the story, remember, this is a deliberate misdirection - don't simply introduce a 'little cloud' then leave it unfulfilled.

 

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.............................An alternative secondary theme.

 

...............Write a fast, concise opening to a story. (approx 500 words)

....................It must have IMPACT and HOOK the reader immediately.

 

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Edited October 31, 2009 by Mantaspook

[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for November 2009: 'Dice.'

 

For further details click HERE.

Edited December 2, 2009 by Mantaspook

[Mantaspook 14]

The theme for December 2009: Christmas switchover

 

Write a light comedy Christmas story and introduce your two main characters, one loves Christmas, the other one hates it. By the end of the story the positions are reversed.

 

The characters can be anyone you like.

 

For example

 

A jaded supermarket Santa Claus vs. a happy brat that doesn't get quite what they want…

 

Two lads steal a fir tree from a forest for Christmas - describe their accident-prone journey home.

 

The Christmas office party has New Year repercussions for the inebriated staff.

 

Try to get at least one "laugh out loud" moment into your story.