Word Grrls

Your Naked Head

2008-05-15T08:32:00.002-04:00

You're having a really bad hair day. So bad... your hair gets all ticked off and goes on strike, walking right off your head and off to... somewhere. You try to follow your hair, try to grab it back and plead with it to give you a chance to make things better up there on top of your head. But, your hair just keeps moving until it slips around a corner and you lose sight of it.

So now you're bald. Not so bad, not the end of the world.

What does your naked head look like? All your life (the parts you can remember) your hair has covered and concealed your head. What does it really look like under there? Think of it as your own first walk on the moon... what does your head really look like?

Soaping Up for the Little Green Men

2008-05-14T10:09:00.005-04:00

The aliens have landed. They want you to create a new ad campaign for a new soap they invented. Supposedly it will make an Earth woman's skin very soft, remove unwanted body hair and it's anti-aging. The only drawback is that you have to spend a week completely naked in order for the first use of the soap to sink in. After that first week you just use as you usually would, like touch ups.

The aliens, being little green men after all, insist that every woman who uses their soap spends that week of being naked in a big compound they have set up where they can keep an eye on all the women, in case of any side effects... yeah, right. (What they really hope to get out of this is a lot of little green babies. Everyone knows aliens are easy and want to take over the world).

What kind of ad do you come up with to sell the alien soap? You can't skip over the whole week naked at the compound detail and showing pictures of the little green men won't help to sell it either. Green just isn't everyone's colour... and those weird scales and twitching eyes don't help much.

What's Your Name?

2008-05-13T10:05:00.002-04:00

What would you change your name to if you could rename yourself? Think about it. This will be your name when you're 80 or older. It will be the name future generations will know you by when the only thing they still know about you is your name. It will be the name on your ID. That same ID you have to show to the nice officer at spot checks or worse if you get into trouble. It will be the name your child introduces you with, to their teacher and later to their future inlaws. A name has to cover a lot of ground and at the same time be very personal.

Of Course you Win

2008-05-12T00:47:00.000-04:00

You made a deal with the devil (or something like it) and now you've got to play a card game, and win, to get your life/ soul back. What's your poison? What card game could you hope to win: euchre, poker, canasta, fish or maybe crazy eights?

Write about the card playing adventure and your great win at the end, cause of course you win. How else could you be writing the story?

Short, Readable and Eye Catching

2008-05-11T10:23:00.002-04:00

You've won a raffle and have been granted a free block of ad space on the front page of Google for one week. If you wanted traffic, you found it!

So what do you use the ad for: your home business, your personal blog. a friend's online business or something you create on the spur of the moment?

Now write your ad. Make really efficient use of the word space you have. You only get 150 x 150, a bit bigger than an EntreCard ad. Your text or graphic has to be readable and eye catching.

Design Your Fancy Event

2008-05-10T10:19:00.002-04:00

You're all dressed up, hair and make up done, the whole works. What event are you going to? Describe it, everything from the purpose of the event to the decorations, drinks and goodies served and your arm candy. Do you stay for the whole thing or sneak away to enjoy that arm candy in private awhile?

Fast Food Interview

2008-05-09T00:33:00.004-04:00

Just for practice... go to your local burger joint. Interview someone. Aim for five questions, ask the waitress, a customer or the guy cleaning floors. You pick someone, as long as you don't already know them. Don't cheat and ask the waitress five questions about the menu. You may think you're clever but you're only out witting yourself.

What can you find out about someone in five questions? You might tap into something really interesting and need to start up a whole conversation, go for it!

Your Best Greetings

2008-05-08T00:25:00.003-04:00

You've just been hired to write greeting cards. They expect you to come up with at least 10 good ideas and one great idea each day. Not easy. But, if you can come up with some unique or modern events and situations that might help.

What kind of greeting card could you come up with for a divorce? What about a third marriage? How about a greeting card for a couple who have just adopted a child, not a baby? There are a lot of situations not covered by the standard display of greeting cards. Write 10, and then one more. Pick your best, send it in to a greeting card company and get paid for your writing doodle.

Do It Yourself Romantic Hero

2008-05-07T00:21:00.002-04:00

You get an anonymous note, from a secret admirer... sexy you! Who do you hope it is? No real name, no real person. Make up someone based on the someone you would most like to meet. If you're already married or serious about someone... invent someone else.

Is he blonde and geeky? Is he tall, dark and obedient? Is he old fashioned, polite and romantic? Is he a bad boy with a heart of gold? What would the guy be like who you would like to sweep you away from it all?

Fortune... or Lack of It

2008-05-06T07:07:00.003-04:00

You're out for dinner, a Chinese restaurant. This restaurant is famous for it's fortune cookies. They write all their own fortunes, nothing stamped out of a machine here. The old Chinese woman writes them out as she watches each person come through the door. After dinner you're presented with her prediction, tailored for you personally.

So you're kind of excited to see what your fortune will be. How do you feel when your fortune cookie is cracked open and you find... nothing. It's empty, no little scrap of paper.

On your way out of the restaurant you pass by the old woman. She's still there, not suddenly called back to China, not passed out from too much free food, or any other weird reason you can think of for your fortune to be missed. She looks up as you walk by, stars into your eyes and shakes her head slightly. What does she mean by that!

Most importantly... was this a sign? What happens with the rest of your day, the next day, the next week...?

Worse than a Shrunken Head

2008-05-05T07:03:00.003-04:00

The world have just been turned into a mini-world, about the size of a really big peanut. You were away, off being a diplomat to the planet on the other side of the Milky Way. Now, coming back on the space shuttle you discover the world is, litterally, not enough. You can't even park your shuttle and get off. Do you just scoop up the planet and put it in your pocket, hoping to find a way to fix it or do you just leave it and see if you can shrink yourself down to match?

Yourself as the Villain

2008-05-04T06:57:00.003-04:00

Create yourself as the ultimate villain. How do you look? Where do you live? What do you drive or get around on if not using a vehicle? What's the backstory behind your wickedness and dark deeds? What kind of evil do you do?

A Gift from the Universe

2008-05-03T06:50:00.003-04:00

What gift would you like from the universe? Imagine a special visit from God, the Tooth Fairy, Mother Earth, which ever you prefer. They offer you a gift, not money or power but something less tangible. Maybe you can run faster, or spell better or have vision like a hawk. What gift would you ask for? How would you use this in your day to day life, what would be improved?

Pulled by the Scenery

2008-05-02T06:39:00.002-04:00

I like a story which draws you through the scene. Something like:

Lacey waved to the bus driver as the engine roared past her. The walk home was short, the night was velvet all around her, dark and smooth. Once the bus turned around the corner she was alone.

An hour later she was still alone, in her bed, thinking about life, work and everything when the last bus of the night went past the apartment.

Not the world's greatest example. I thought of something better last night but can't remember it now. Can you write something where the scene, the scenery, pulls you along from one place to the next in your story.

Cat Toes

2008-05-01T11:51:00.004-04:00

You have a dream where you are walking through a forest with bare feet. A lot of sharp twigs keep poking at your feet. Though you don't feel a huge amount of pain as it happens you look down and notice all your toes are now gone, just bleeding stumps remain.

When you wake up in sudden horror you discover a cat playing with your feet. Now, for the really big question... where did that damned cat come from?!!!

Five Minute Horror Writer

2008-04-30T00:01:00.003-04:00

A young woman is walking in a dark hallway, something reaches out from the dark, grabs her arm and pulls her into the darkness. At this part the movie cuts to the next scene and we wait to find out what happened to the her, if isn't just forgotten. She's just left as kind of anonymous or becomes a tragic figure later on.

Give the poor girl at least five minutes of your time. Write about what happens to her once she is yanked into mysterious darkness. Remember it's not Disney, it's horror. It's something unspeakable (yet not unwritable). She's just an ordinary girl, we don't know much about her. She's pretty, isn't guilty of anything that causes her to come to a horrible end... but that's just what happens. Now go ahead and write the awful truth.

ID Card Madness

2008-04-29T02:05:00.000-04:00

You have to wear an ID badge for your new job. But, you are allowed to decorate it any way you like as long as it doesn't cross the line for the professional atmosphere at work (no adult content or gum) and your ID (name, number and photo) have to be visible (otherwise you won't be allowed past security on your next day at work). How far do you go on decorating and what ideas come to mind to make your ID card stand out from the pack?

50 Bucks on a Good Day

2008-04-28T02:02:00.000-04:00

You win a contest, a $50 gift card for the local department store. If you're in Canada we'll say it's Hudson's Bay so you can shop in downtown style. You have to spend the whole $50 on one thing. Only a little less here or there for tax. What do you buy yourself? Is it luxury, practical or something you've been curious about (like a new hobby) and wanted to try for a long time?

A Pie in your Eye

2008-04-27T01:25:00.002-04:00

A delivery van pulls up to your door and the delivery boy is coming to your door! What a surprise, who could have sent you something and what did they send?! How exciting...

It's a box, with a pie inside. Who would have sent you a pie an what kind of pie is it?

The Day

2008-04-26T02:25:00.001-04:00

The United Nations officially names a day after you. Pretty impressive!

What date do they make your day, what do the reporters call the day (and yourself) and what did you do to get this day in your name (were you naughty or nice)?

Float, Sink or Swim

2008-04-25T02:22:00.000-04:00

It's been raining for over a month, almost without stopping. People in the town just south of you have already been washed away by flooding. Your neighbour's yard is a lake. At what point do you start thinking about building an ark?

Puffy and Pasty

2008-04-24T00:01:00.000-04:00

You've been made the new (and first) Health Ambassador on the planet Zerka. The aliens there all look like giant marshmallow dumpling creatures, all puffy and pasty. As much as you like marshmallows cooked over the campfire, none of these creatures look at all attractive, or particularly edible.

Still, the job pays well and all you have to do is get them into shape. Or, at least, less puffy and pasty looking. Go you! I bet you just can't wait to get started!

Of course, if you fail... well, let's not dwell on the endless pit of bacon grease they have in store for you... should you not succeed all that well.

Way Too Much Purpleness

2008-04-23T23:50:00.002-04:00

Everything in the world has suddenly turned shades of purple. Walking around is dangerous cause everything just blends in with every other purple thing.

How did this happen and what weird adventure do you go on to fix it? Most of all, write about the great giant celebration at the end when we get colours back.

Girl Band Drummer God

2008-04-22T00:24:00.001-04:00

You're the drummer in an all girl band. Life is great with fame and fortune and fun. Fan letters from guys, all claiming to be in love with you and the icky ones you just ignite in the fireplace and ignore. Best of all as a drummer with all that upper body regular work out, you have boobs of steel! You're only 20-something and having the greatest adventure in your life.

The only problem is the band. The other girls have had enough and want to quit, break up the band and go off and have babies and husbands and houses. Whatever order they end up with. You want at least one more year of being the girl band drummer god. It's just too soon to give it all up now. How can you convince them to stick with it, at least one more year?

Take off your Hat for a Cat

2008-04-21T12:15:00.003-04:00

You're a stray cat for a day. You wake up in a downtown city alley. It's kind of yucky to put it politely, not clean. You had a wake up call when a pack of teenaged boys tried to grab you. Now there seems to be some kind of sticky gunk in a clump on your fur. As a cat you can only hope it doesn't take gross or poison you.

How does your day go from here? Is there anything you can do to help improve the life of this city cat? Tomorrow when you are back to being your usual human self the cat will be back to foraging in the garbage, surviving another few months if it's lucky.