Inside this issue we have a special report from Barbara Brabec at www.barbarabrabec.com on the issues surrounding the Google Book’s settlement, an interview with the lovely Tasha Alexander, author of historical novels including And Only to Deceive, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, and her latest, Tears of Pearl. Chico Writers Group member, Lori “Stormy” Storm, pens a moving essay about The Library and gives her review of the book, Art & Fear. Much more are here in this monthly edition, including the instant hit, daily writing prompts.

So hurry on over and read up, then get to writing. And don’t forget, you, too, can have your article printed in our e-newsletter. For more information, read our Submitting Articles post.

The February issue of the Yet to be Named Newsletter is almost ready to be released. In the meantime, check out these priceless finds:

• Guide to Writing an Effective Synopsis
• Essential Synopsis Checklist
• 10 Synopsis Dos and Don’ts

Want to be notified when the newsletter comes out? Send an email to: TheChicoWritersGroup@gmail.com with “SUBSCRIBE” in the subject line.

Would you like to contribute to the monthly newsletter? Check out our submission guidelines [here].

Can’t get the reader to work? No problem! Bookmark the calendar here: http://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=h3n5onp2sb5pp4musqqa0rt8ao%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America%2FLos_Angeles&gsessionid=Ga98-SwTsY40jEL9VK_DKw

To access the prompts, click on the highlighted entry for the “description”.

Chico Writers Group: 

If You Write It, They Will Read It

Welcome to the Year 2010!

Did you ever watch Conan O’Brien and his sidekick, Andy, doing their skit “In the year 3000“? Fun stuff.

So here we are in the year 2010. Resolutions are being made. Changes and revisions are being pursued. Now’s your chance to get in a squeal of a deal at any of the gyms in town. And since the introduction of the fantasmagoric CSUC Associated Students gym, there will be some incredible deals.

And how about you, as a writer? What does this mean for the likes of us? Maybe this is your year to take your writing to a whole new level. To dust off a few manuscripts, spend some one-on-one time and polish it up, see if it will fly. Try your hand at a different genre, perhaps, maybe even a completely different style or just work on improving what’s tried and proven already.

Whatever your resolutions are, your goals, your dreams and aspirations, may the year 2010 be yours! And to help kick off your year, we bring to you the very first issue of the CWG Yet To Be Named Newsletter, a monthly publication for all current and former members of the Chico Writers Group. Enjoy!

Kathie Leung
Founder & Organizer
Chico Writers Group

What’s your poison? Linked-In? Facebook? Twitter? What social network are you using to connect with others? Are you doing the network thing in hopes of creating a marketing base when it comes to publishing your work? What are the upsides of social networking? Etiquette? Precautions to consider? Here’s the scoop!

The very first thing to remember – anything that goes out into cyberspace is there to remain forever.

This is a concept not a lot of people understand. And yet we must. Think about it. The Internet is a network of computers. It’s always on. It’s always gathering information. If you delete a spiteful post, remove a rather questionable photograph, upload the rough draft of a manuscript then delete it when you realize you have a best seller – it’s all out there. It’s resident on someone’s computer, squirreled away on a server.

The purpose of this article is not to sell books. It’s not on how to market you, your novel, or even to make money using a blog. It’s about looking down the road, off into the future to that day that you finally sell your manuscript, it goes into publication and you’re ready to hit the circuit peddling your finest work.

No, you might not be going for a political position or that big corporate job or off to track down serial killers with the Behavioral Analyst Unit at Quantico. But yet what you say, what you do, how you react could potentially become your enemy down the line. So it’s important to keep in mind what your ultimate goal is here and now. Focus on that when you are interacting out in the public eye.

Pictures: Be very mindful of any picture you upload anywhere on the ‘net. Even if you’re in the biz of selling sex (erotica and the like), social media isn’t the place to be posting sexually explicit photographs. Suggestive, yes. Explicit? Absolutely not.

Leave the kids out of it. And family, too. Cherish their privacy and safety. In the public eye, it only takes one deranged person to bring your world crashing down upon you. Be mindful of this in the here and now.

Connecting with family: Again, privacy is imperative, especially when it comes to minors. You’re looking at a business proposition, a viable source of income, a money maker. Unless you are engaging your entire family in what you’re writing, say a non-fiction piece on the importance of volunteering within your community, leave your family at home and focus on your work. There’s no need to make them accessible to your public.

The dividing line: If you opt to use social media to keep in touch with family and personal friends, consider a secondary account and keep the two separate. Still be very careful of what you post. Even when your settings might initially be very private, remember, nothing is every a constant on the ‘net and anything that goes out, stays there. We saw this happen with the recent (12/09) changes in privacy at Facebook. Suddenly the personal, private information folks were putting on their pages was made public and very accessible to others. To those who forgot the golden rule of not putting personal, private information out on the ‘net, the fallback was tremendous.

Stay focused: Even if you don’t have a salable manuscript in the works, even if you don’t see yourself publishing anything in the next three to five years, it’s still important to maintain a social network profile that shows your head is in the game. Going off topic now and again is perfectly acceptable, even good practice. Remember that saying, all work and no play makes Jack a very dull boy? But keep the majority of your interactions about  your writing, your intent to publish, making contacts and rubbing elbows with those in the industry and those that contribute to the industry by buying books, where your focus is at least 90% of the time.

Cheat Sheet:

• Do not publish pictures that you wouldn’t have on your jacket flap.
• Do not publish pictures of family members.
• Use a business or post office box address, not your personal residence. Same applies for phone, instant messaging, any other form of contact.
• Fudge on your location, especially when you live in a rural area. Select a larger area or omit it entirely.
• Never use your family member’s real names.
• Don’t say online what you wouldn’t say in person at a book signing.
• Keep your private life separate from your online business persona.
• Stay focused on the prize. At least 90% of the time.
• Write!

Benjamin Franklin wisely advised, “By failing to plan, you are planning to fail.” What are your dreams, your goals, your desires when you write? Have you taken the time to think of it or are you afraid to because you’re afraid you won’t be able to fulfill them? If you do take the time to think about where you hope to go with your writing, are you shooting it down with excuses, pointing the finger at reasons why you won’t be able to achieve your goals? Here are some tips and sage advice from authors and professional writing coaches that might help you reevaluate and take the stand in setting writing goals.

Bonnie Hamre (www.bonniehamre.com), a multi-published author of fiction and travel, has several pages worth of resources for writers including one about setting and making goals. As with any type of goal setting, it’s all about the path you choose to follow. And to get to the big goal, of course, you should take small steps.

Bonnie sets out an easy-to-follow plan that takes you from looking at the big picture and then breaking it down into smaller, more obtainable and palatable ways to get there. To learn more about her method, visit: www.bonniehamre.com/goalsetting.htm

Joe Konrath (J.A. Konrath, author of the Lt. Jack Daniels series) has a wonderful website (several, actually) built to help writers learn from his 600+ rejections to best selling author experiences. At his blogspot site (http://jakonrath.blogspot.com), he shares his insights and wisdom with his “Newbie’s Guide to Publishing”. Most notably, and the most worthy for any burgeoning writer to read, is his very recent “to sum it all up for you” post dated Sunday, December 27, 2009: What I Know (http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2009/12/what-i-know.html). It’s hard not to be inspired to set down on paper your writing goals after reading this post.

Linda Sellers (L.J. Sellers, author of the Dect. Jackson series, professional editor, journalist) is a big proponent of setting writing goals and does this often as she progresses with the various phases of her own noveling ventures. The art of setting goals has fueled Sellers as she has made some phenomenal changes in her career path over the years, all of which have been hugely rewarding on both a personal and professional level. While she doesn’t exactly spell out the process of how to develop personal goals, she does offer some insight with a very candid post regarding her goals for this past year. Take a peek here: http://ljraves.blogspot.com/2009/01/goals-for-2009whats-really-important.html

And then there’s Holly Lisle who’s profession is fiction noveling and has fed, clothed and housed her family solely from the proceeds – which is quite a feat! She maps it all out for you in one of her free workshops, all on one page. Definitely worth visiting and reading what she has to say. Get started here: http://hollylisle.com/fm/Workshops/setting_goals.html

FAQ:

1. Q: Should I be setting up goals for daily writing or long-term goals, more lofty, like being a best-selling, multi-book author?
   A: Up to you. Both, one or something entirely different. These are your goals.
2. Q: What are some daily writing goals?
   A: Setting a minimum number of words/pages to write; setting aside so many minutes/hours to write in a day. One author elected to learn a new word a week and try to weave that new word into the manuscript!
3. Q: In the ever-evolving world of publishing, is it even worth developing a long-term plan?
   A: Of course! But it would be wise to update the plan more frequently in light of these changes.
4. Q: How often should I revise my goals?
   A: As you reach your goals or if there are influences directly related that would alter them.
5. Q: Is there a site that I could use to help me be held accountable for the goals I set?
   A: Try www.43things.com. You can set your goals, find others with similar goals who may be on their way to achieving them or already have and get advice from them. You can also set up the free service to email you periodically to “check up” on you.
6. Q: Is there any software out there to help me keep track of my progress when it comes to writing?
   A: There are many. Next month in our newsletter there will be a spreadsheet that you can download that can help you keep track of and watch your progress with your manuscript.

From this month’s newsletter:

• Setting Goals, Deadlines, and Rewards http://ejourn.net/cwg/2010/01/02/setting-goals-tytbnews/
  • Multi-published author, Bonnie Hamre’s website: http://www.bonniehamre.com
  • Bonnie Hamre’s method of setting up writing goals: http://www.bonniehamre.com/goalsetting.htm
  • J.A. Konrath’s website: http://jakonrath.blogspot.com
  • “What I Know” by J.A. Konrath: http://jakonrath.blogspot.com/2009/12/what-i-know.html
  • L.J. Seller’s Goals for 2009: http://ljraves.blogspot.com/2009/01/goals-for-2009whats-really-important.html
  • Holly Lisle’s Free Workshop for setting up goals: http://hollylisle.com/fm/Workshops/setting_goals.html
• Writing Prompts and Ideas http://ejourn.net/cwg/2010/01/01/writing-prompts-and-ideas/
  • Ideas Think Tank: http://ejourn.net/cwg/2009/12/10/idea-think-tank/
  • Urban Dictionary entry: immaculate congestion http://list.urbandictionary.com/t/8547176/59948095/26447/0/
  • Creative Writing Solutions www.creative-writing-solutions.com
  • Rock-a-Bye Lullaby lyrics http://parenting.ivillage.com/newborn/ncrying/0,,b6wt,00.html

Agents

• Nathan Bransford (Curtis Brown Ltd.)
  Tons of information abounds at this full-service site. If you haven’t already, be sure to sign up to receive a copy of his daily blog posts. Becoming a member (for free) of the forums at his site and making regular stops is always beneficial.
  Bookmark Nathan’s site: http://www.nathanbransford.com (also on Twitter and Facebook, links at his site)
• Colleen Lindsay (Fine Print Literary Management)
  Sharp-tongued, Colleen won’t go down without a fight. But she knows her stuff and isn’t afraid to pass that information along to her followers. She can be followed on Twitter as well. Good luck getting your foot in the door, though, at Facebook. Be sure to bookmark her blog as there is a plethora of information to anyone looking at becoming published.
  Bookmark Colleen’s site: http://theswivet.blogspot.com
• Janet Reid (Fine Print Literary Management)
  Another sharp shooter, Janet’s better known as the Query Shark in most tide pools and as Miss Snark. Great place to start if you’re looking for an agent. At least with her, you get feedback and a response to your query. Not all are as nice as the shark!
  Bookmark the following sites:
  Query Shark:
  Twitter – www.twitter.com/queryshark
  Website – http://queryshark.blogspot.com/
  Miss Snark: (officially stopped blogging as Miss Snark in 2007, but website is still worth perusing)
  Twitter – www.twitter.com/misssnark
  Website – http://misssnark.blogspot.com
  Janet Reid (also on Facebook)
  Twitter – www.twitter.com/janet_reid
  Website – http://jetreidliterary.blogspot.com
  Agent website – http://jetreidliterary.com/
• Jessica Faust (Book Ends LLC)
  Bookmark Jessica’s site: http://www.bookends-inc.com/
  Agent’s blog: http://bookendslitagency.blogspot.com/

Critiquing Critiques – an excellent post to help anyone reviewing a fellow writer’s work on how to go about providing a constructive critique http://openquery.blogspot.com/2009/08/critiquing-critiques-revision-1.html

The Public Query Slushpile – a reader driven support site that helps fellow writers hone their query. Having trouble finding one you’ve submitted? Just type in a very specific phrase from your query into the search bar at the top left of the page and voila, you should find it in a snap! http://openquery.blogspot.com/

Contests: (Start by reading Dana K. Cassell’s article Writing Contest Cautions http://www.writers-editors.com/Writers/Contests/Contest_Tip_Sheet/contest_tip_sheet.htm#Cautions )

• http://www.writers-editors.com/Writers/Contests/contests.htm
• Duotrope’s: (http://duotrope.com/themecal.aspx) Here you’ll find hundreds of contests. Also over at http://duotrope.com/index.aspx you can search to your heart’s content to find literary publications accepting articles and stories. Definitely worth searching and definitely worth signing up for newsletters from as well as joining (which is free).
• California’s Writer’s Club Spring 2010 Writing Contest (due Jan. 15, 2010) Poetry and Short Story Winners Published and $500 Prize! Further information: http://centralcoastwriters.org/2010-contest-rules.htm
• Free Writing Contests for when your wallet is empty : http://www.writer-on-line.com/content/view/868/66/~Articles/Articles-About-Contests/Free-Writing-Contests-for-when-your-Wallet-is-Empty.html

Conferences:

• Writers’ Conferences & Centers – a resource for conferences and the like. Searchable. Not always up to date, however, so carefully check out all information, including the individual websites. http://writersconf.org/index.php
• San Francisco Writers Conference
  Website: http://sfwriters.org
  Dates: February 12-14, 2010, President’s Day Weekend
  Application deadline: February 12, 2010
  Tuition/Cost: sliding scale from $425 to $695
  Scholarships: Yes. For H.S. & MFA students and others
  Genres: Poetry, Fiction, Nonfiction, Children’s Literature
• Algonkian Writer Conferences – San Francisco / Corte Madera
  Upcoming dates: Write and Pitch in Corte Madera Feb. 19 – 21 and Fisherman’s Wharf Workshops (limited number – 15 people) May 12 – 16
  Website: http://algonkianconferences.com/
• Friday Seminars – California College of the Arts
  Website: http://www.cca.edu/academics/graduate/writing/writerseries
• Mendocino Coast Writers Conference
  Website: http://www.mcwc.org/
  Dates: July 29-31, 2010
  Application Deadline: June 15, 2010
  Tuition/Cost: $495 ($540 after June 15)
  Scholarships: Yes
  Genres: Poetry, Fiction, Nonfiction, Children’s Literature

Currently any Chico Writers Group member-in-good-standing is eligible to submit an article for newsletter publication consideration. There is no fee for this on either side. The writer will not be charged and the editor will not pay for any articles submitted. The copyright is retained by the author.

All content must be approved by the editor. Any edits to the submitted article will be returned to the author for the author’s approval. No article will be printed without the author’s consent when edits have been made to content.

Articles should be germane to the newsletter’s purpose: about the craft of writing. They must be tasteful, spell checked, and proofed prior to submission. Articles which do not adhere to this policy might not be considered if the editor is required to undertake fixing mechanics. Any article which provides information, including but not limited to facts, must be researched and evidence must be supplied with the submission.

Authors should submit a short biography along with their first submission. The bio should be at least 250 words in length but no more than 500. The same rules of edit apply to biographies as do article submissions. Authors are encouraged to provide a link to their web site, blog, and/or social networking accounts. A digital photograph of the author is encouraged. Author biographies will be maintained on a separate page and linked to all articles submitted and published from the point they are received, forward (in other words, should the author submit the biography after other articles have been submitted and published, the prior articles may not be edited to include the biography link).

Regrettably the YTBN Newsletter is unable to pay authors for the articles submitted as the Chico Writers Group is a no-fee, no membership dues group. However, a letter of reference is always available to the author at the author’s request. Please allow 10 business days to accommodate the request. A verification of the author’s submitted and published articles will be provided, links as appropriate, and any information regarding increased number of hits specifically to the article of mention, feedback received via the site, comments left, etc. will be included.

Suggested articles: Any element of the craft of writing, in depth, always with references; author/agent/editor/publisher interview; upcoming writing contests, writer workshops/symposiums/retreats/conferences (always with links directly to web site page with further information and preferably with detailed information including dates, fees, registration deadlines, etc.); short stories/poems/poetry/prose/essays up to 1500 words in length; writing prompts; photos for visual writing prompts; announcements of write-ins, readings, book signings, etc. All information should be tailored to the intended audience which are members of the Chico Writers Group, therefore local (conferences, workshops, symposiums, and online writing contests would be an obvious exception).

Letters to the editor are always welcome from anyone (regardless of membership, locale, experience). A biography is not required and will not be published along with the editorial pieces. Any letter to the editor which is defamatory, denigrating, slanderous, or otherwise derogatory in a way intended to inflict harm on another person will never be published. Letters up to 250 words will be considered.

Comments to posted articles are not considered “letters to the editor”. Comments submitted will be reviewed prior to being published in conjunction with the posted article. The editor reserves the right to not release comments. Allow up to 2 business days before inquiring about the status of your comment should it not appear within that time frame. Comments requesting information about the Chico Writers Group, membership, meetings, etc. may not be released to the site,

Deadlines: The following is a list of deadlines. Please consult this list prior to sending in an article as it may change as the newsletter continues to develop and grow. Please note that even if the article is submitted within these guidelines, this does not guarantee the piece will be published.

Announcements: For announcements of contests, upcoming workshops, conferences, etc. articles must be submitted by the fifteenth day of the month (or last business day prior should the 15th be on a weekend day) no later than 7 p.m. Pacific Time to appear in the upcoming issue. Announcements may be submitted up to six months in advance of the date of the event. However, the editor reserves the right, based upon space, not to publish the announcement until the one issue prior to the date of the event.

Informative Articles: Six-weeks prior to publication.

Human Interest Articles: Reviews, author interviews, etc. – two weeks prior to publication.

Fiction Stories/Prose/Poetry/Essays: Eight weeks prior to publication for 800 words or more. Three weeks prior to publication for 799 words or less.

Letters to the Editor: Two weeks prior to publication.

Classified/Personals: At this time we are not accepting classified advertisements or personal ads.

Format: Please refer to the following information on how to properly format your article.

Announcements:

Body of email must include -

• word count,
• copied text,
• full name of contact
• mailing address (physical)
• phone number, including area code if outside of 530 area
• best time to reach contact
• list of documents attached to email (just in case one doesn’t attach or is corrupted/infected)

Only *.rtf or *.txt are accepted. Graphics, html coded pages (*.asp, *.shtml, flash, *.swft files, etc. are never accepted) may be submitted as an attachment but only when accompanied by the aforementioned properly formatted file.

Informative Articles, Human Interest Articles, Fiction Stories/Prose/Poetry/Essays:

The body of email must include:

• word count
• full name of contact
• physical mailing address
• phone number, including area code if outside 530 area
• best time to reach contact
• list of documents attached to email (just in case one doesn’t attach or is corrupted/infected)

Articles/submissions of 799 or less words: also include in body of email – copied text.

All articles/submissions must be in *.rtf or *.txt format attached to the email.

Graphics must be in *.gif, *.jpg, or *.png format.

Written copy will never be accepted in graphic format.

No other types of files are accepted.

Letters to the Editor:

Only emails will be accepted, no attachments – ever.

Include in email:

• word count (up to 250 words will be published)
• full name
• name other than full name to be used (initials are allowed, nicknames/screennames/usernames, however, will not be)
• phone number, including area code if outside 530 area
• best time to contact (authentication and verification may be required)
• request not to have email address published in conjunction with posted letter

For further information or questions, please send an email to: TheChicoWritersGroup@gmail.com with the subject line: Article Submission Information. Please allow 2 business days for a response.

During a Craft Chat late 2009, we discussed some ways to get ideas for stories. One idea is to spend fifteen minutes a day using a writing prompt to get your muse fired up and ready to play. There are a number of resources on the Internet and we provided a few suggestions in a recent post (Idea Think Tank: http://ejourn.net/cwg/2009/12/10/idea-think-tank/).

Still craving some prompts? Look no further! We’ve put together 31 prompts, a prompt a day for the month of January to get you going. Like ‘em? Leave your comment or email us at: and maybe we’ll put together some more in our February issue!

1. Finish the sentence and then, the story: Seven minutes into my coffee break, the boss . . .

2. Write about the following characters at the location given with the following object that deals with the situation provided:
Doctor, middle-aged male, parking lot, unresolved issue

3. Word prompt – You may use the word or let the meaning spark your writing, but avoid using a bold font (or underlining/italicizing) whenever you use the word or the meaning (change it up and try using antonyms):  Iconic

4. Find an object and spend five minutes looking at it. If you can, pick it up and test the weight. Turn it over and inspect all sides. Become intimately familiar with the object during those five minutes. When your time is up, hide the object or move to where it is no longer visible to you. Set your time for fifteen minutes and begin writing. Your mission is to describe the object, using original similes, mixing it up with some analogies, but never should you actually say what the object was. When you’re done, test out your description by letting someone else read what you’ve written. Ask them to guess what the object is as they read it. How’d you do?

5. Gender changes: write from an opposing gender’s point of view. Some subjects you can try for this exercise:

mechanic, customer at a car repair garage, car sales person, car buyer, bank teller, bank customer, disgruntled shopper, customer service manager, lingerie sales clerk, lingerie shop customer, dentist, patient with a toothache, personal trainer at a gym, first time member at a gym, dog sitter, band leader, truck driver, maitre d’ at a classy restaurant, host/ess at a fast food restaurant (think Carl’s Jr), bartender, inebriated bar customer, carnival game hawker, ticket sales clerk, theater house employee,

6. Talk about your day from the point of view of a six-year old child.

7. Word prompt (see #3 for instructions): Immaculate Congestion (From Urban Dictionary: http://list.urbandictionary.com/t/8547176/59948095/26447/0/)

8. Finish the sentence, then the story: [Character's name] knew it was a bad idea when [gender] pitched forward and literally went…

9. Write about the following characters at the location given that deals with the following object that deals with the situation given:
Teen girl, mother (doesn’t have to be teen girl’s mother), airport, pen, unrequited love

10. Weave a tale about the following object, making it a central point: red shoe

11. Finish the following sentence: “[Character's Name]’s mother always…”

12. Finish the aforementioned sentence (#11) from a first person point of view.

13. Finish the following sentence: “[Character's Name]’s father would have…”

14. Change the point of view from number 13 and try it again.

15 – 17. Here’s a great prompt that comes from www.creative-writing-solutions.com: Mark is a thief, but after his third burglary, he is caught by police.
(15) Write his story in first person (from Mark’s point of view),
(16) omniscient point of view (the all knowing, all seeing “God-like” voice),
(17) from limited third person, switching between Mark and one of the police officers who arrest him.

18. And another from the same site: Describe a building from the point of view of a man who just lost his only son in war. Do it without mentioning death, war, his son, or himself. (This is a contrast exercise that should be done along with #19 to get the full affect.

19. Referring to #18: Describe that same building at the same time of day and weather conditions, from the point of view of a man who has just discovered he’s going to be a father. The same rules apply however, don’t mention birth, or babies. (If you feel more comfortable change it to a woman’s point of view.)

Note: The purpose of #18 and 19 is to challenge yourself to see through your character’s eyes. What is brutal and ugly to one person in one frame of mind, may not be to another.

20. Tell of something you experienced, but tell the story from another person’s point of view.

21. Write about the following characters at the location given that deals with the following object and situation given:
Elderly person (your choice gender), grade-school child, home of child, locket, life’s greatest lessons

22. Write a short story about the following object, making it a central point in the story: tennis ball

23. Word prompt (see #3 for instructions): Sojourn

24. Finish the following sentence, then the story: “Senior High Weekend would have been a whole hell of a lot better if…”

25. Read the following human interest story, and then write whatever comes to mind: (references and resources follow, but try not to go look until after you’ve completed this prompt)

She … showed me a tattoo on her back, a night butterfly with wide open wings, resting on her waist. She is a little older than my daughter, and she was explaining some facts of life to me that I could never have imagined before. She does not seem to have understood very well what has happened to her. She tried to smile from time to time, but then she would choke, and the smile would turn into a painful grimace. I blamed myself thinking that our discussion was causing her this pain. I did not dare ask many questions. I even made an attempt to get her mind off things she most likely wants to forget. But she would always come back to her story, as if she were reading a novel she could not bear to put down. ¹

26. Here’s your eavesdropping prompt (actual dialogue, you just figure out how to use it):

A. I don’t think we should actually drive all the way out there. It’s late and we have a gazillion things to do. Maybe we can do it this weekend.

B. Except that we never have time to do anything extra on the weekend, especially now that we have to be the entertainment committee.

A. Yeah. I know. But have you looked outside? It’s raining cats and dogs. We’ll be lucky to make it there before they close.

B. What time do they close?

A. I don’t know. Nine probably.

B. Even at this time of year? You know, Christmas hours and everything?

A. True. I dunno, maybe we should check.

B. We could. But look at what time it is.

A. Almost six. What’s your point?

B. Do you really think it will take us three hours to get there?

Want to try your own eavesdropping prompt? Just sit down and start writing every word of someone else’s conversation until you have five minutes or at least 4 lines of each person talking (total 8 lines, max 12). And then see what you come up with! This usually works best if you wait to do the prompt until the conversation is pretty much a distant memory. Another useful trick is to trade eavesdropping scripts with fellow writers. And if you decide to do the trade, be kind and share the story you come up with.

27. Here’s the first line, now write the story:

I had never seen such a magnificent production of The Nutcracker.

28. Word prompt (see #3 for instructions): malleable

29. Spend fifteen minutes writing about the color red. It could be about objects that are traditionally red (such as apples, fire trucks). It could be about a situation where the emotion is associated with the color red (anger). See if you’re able to convey the images without ever mentioning the actual word red. This could be an exercise in finding similes, metaphors, analogies or one that focuses on showing rather than telling. It’s up to you!

30. New Year’s resolutions. Bah humbug. Try your hand at an off-beat comedy about an ordinary resolution that someone took to the extreme.

31. Try your hand at writing a story about the following children’s lullaby: (lyrics found at http://parenting.ivillage.com/newborn/ncrying/0,,b6wt,00.html )

Rock-a-bye baby, in the treetop
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall
And down will come baby, cradle and allBaby is drowsing, cozy and fair
Mother sits near, in her rocking chair
Forward and back, the cradle she swings
And though baby sleeps, he hears what she sings

From the high rooftops, down to the sea
No one’s as dear, as baby to me
Wee little fingers, eyes wide and bright
Now sound asleep, until morning light.