posted February 04, 2005 07:46 PM         

The first exercise is to write ten first sentences of possible stories. It took me an hour to do this, but they did get better and better as I worked on it. I'm not asking anyone to post all ten, but if you'd like to share one, you're welcome to.

Here's one of mine:

There are things she does with her left eyebrow that say when she’s angry, or skeptical, or in the mood, or definitely not—thing is, all these expressions look the same to me, and sometimes I get the message confused.

posted February 04, 2005 10:21 PM         

And so it was, the rest of my afternoon was spent feigning an interest in the welfare of Mrs.Dunrow's prize tulips as I waited to catch the sound of my sunkissed sweetheart's bare footfalls against the white washed wood of the veranda.

posted February 05, 2005 12:34 AM         

hehe, just kidding.

um.
wow. this is really hard.
I'll come back. This is such a great exercise, thank you so much!

posted February 05, 2005 10:37 PM         

Future_uncertain, thank you, I'm told I'm very good with descriptions. It's the major plots I have problems with lol!

posted February 06, 2005 03:29 AM         

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posted February 06, 2005 06:04 PM         

Here's another one of mine:

Just then, the wind started to blow and it swept five bills right off the top of the stack, followed by five more, then twenty, and soon bills were blowing all over the place and they were no longer part of that stack or part of his small fortune, but rectangular sheets of hope or maybe even God that found themselves in the cold dirty hands of the beggars in the back alley.

posted February 07, 2005 09:05 PM         

.... Man, now I have to write this story...

26,

Click... that hits pretty close to home.

posted February 08, 2005 10:18 AM         

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posted February 08, 2005 05:57 PM         

2)His old locker hadn't changed one shade since he'd left; same shiny chipped green surface that reflected the emotions bubbling forebodingly from within.

3)The faces seemed to appear out of nowhere; one moment she had been sneaking through the back hall of the chapel, the next, all the candles in the room had sparked spontaneously to life, illuminating expressions of utter pain and anguish.

4)The stench rose seethingly from the floorboards, filling the narrow chamber with a sooty cloud.

5)The urge to slap the pale creature senseless was barely repressed by the growing crowd, embarassment and blame fueled their need for revenge.

6)Two bright blue eyes filled her gaze as she rapidly regained conciousness, blithely aware of a slight weight pressing down upon her chest.

7)Duct tape was good for a lot of things, it patched up a myriad of leaks and fractures, but somehow, it just couldn't fix the shattered chaos that had become his life.

8)As the fax machine hummed in the background, the only thoughts on the mind of the drowsy employees were of coffee, though their future weighed heavily on the page printing out.

9)"Why now?", she thought, although she knew in her heart he was playing his last trump card, as an apology now only rattled her again.

10)The chill of the metal table penetrated through the cotton shorts he had been wearing as he left the house, but the damp basement was very unlike the sunny wetlands outside.

posted February 09, 2005 02:37 AM         

1.)The orphanage was, if anything she thought, austere and sterile. Charlotte often gazed at the stark whiteness of the walls and the plain cotton sheets that covered the numerous beds, wondering if she would ever wake in a room that was her own.