642 Things to Write About: Live at IKEA

"642 Things to Write About: You have been evicted from your home, but rather than live on the street you go to IKEA. At night you hide in the bathroom until the janitor leaves. Write about your life."

I like to move around a lot. I'm never content in the same house with the same boring decor. I'd move to a new apartment every week if I could, but it turns out that's not in the budget. In fact, staying in the same place isn't in the budget either. My landlord posted an eviction notice on my door today. I didn't care. I was bored of that place anyway. I should've been furious or terrified, but as I sat on my cappuccino colored love seat going through the IKEA catalog, a brilliant idea struck.

642 Things to Write About: Write the Scene...

642 Things to Write About: You realize you have inadvertently become a stalker

"You realize you have inadvertently become a stalker."

All the books and blogs say you need to make a personal connection. The Internet is the perfect place to get to know a person you've never met. I found her blog and read every post. I found her Facebook and scoured her likes and interests. I found a dozen interviews she was featured in and studied every detail. I assembled a profile to record every piece of information that could be even remotely relevant. That's when I realized I was a stalker. In my defense, all the books and blogs say to make a personal connection (in your query letter) with the literary agent you want to represent your manuscript.


Reference (because plagiarizing isn't cool)
The San Francisco Writers' Grotto. (2011). 642 things to write about. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books LLC.

642 Things to Write About: Start a story with...

642 Things to Write About: Peer Pressure

"You are a teenager. Your friend asks you to meet him at a culvert everyone knows isn't very safe. How do you get out of the house? What happens when you get there?"

The latch on Ali's bedroom window always stuck. She loosened her grip, stepped back, and second guessed herself. Her phone buzzed. Ali jumped at the sound. She turned to her nightstand and leaned towards her cell, "r u on ur way? - Logan." She grabbed the phone, shoved it into the back pocket of her jean shorts, and stood in front of the window. Ali drew in a deep breath before she wrenched the window open. Sneaking out created a guilt and freedom cocktail in her stomach and it wasn't sitting well. Her phone buzzed again. Ali rolled her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. She pulled her phone from her pocket and moved deeper into the night, forgetting to close the window behind her.

642 Things to Write About: A woman, her husband, and a former lover?

"Write a scene in which a person is leaving a restaurant with her husband and bumps into a former lover."

It was the most gut-wrenching feeling, a husband and a jealous, former lover meeting--and in a crowded restaurant no less. I reached for my husbands hand. We skirted around the edge of the seating hostess' station, but it was no use. He spotted us. My husband recognized him instantly. He positioned himself between me and my old flame. The sparks had fizzled out long ago, but that didn't stop my husband from confronting him, "She's not interested."

My ex didn't say a thing. Instead, he maneuvered  around my husband and leaned in for a kiss. Without hesitation, my husband thrust is fist towards my former lover. Then we darted to the car.


Reference (because plagiarizing isn't cool)
The San Francisco Writers' Grotto. (2011). 642 things to write about. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books LLC.

642 Things to Write About: Set Something on Fire

It was perched on the dresser like it had been for the last year. The team photo, no frame, curled edges. The caption beneath the photo read, "Lawrence Academy Girls Tennis, Conference Champions." Abby tucked her chestnut curls behind her ear, "We weren't all champions. Hannah cheated." Abby glanced at the candle and the box of matches that sat beside the photo. She slipped a match from the carton and struck it against the side. A flame erupted from the friction. Abby grasped the photo, her hand trembling as the fire met the paper. Hannah's face and torso melted before Abby shook the flame from the photo.



Reference (because plagiarizing isn't cool)
The San Francisco Writers' Grotto. (2011). 642 things to write about. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books LLC.