Creative Writing Exercises

You are lost in the woods at night. As you are trying to find your way out, your flashlight catches a glistening gold color in the hills to the north. You take two steps in the general direction of the hills. Suddenly, a burst of freezing cold air smacks you in the face. The air feels almost tangible.

Lost in the Woods

Write about what happens next.

Start with: Under normal circumstances, I …

Pick a number between 1 and 6. Go to the next page to find the last sentence of your story.

Lost in the Woods

1. And that’s how I ended up inventing compass-glasses.

2. Now you know why the smell of burning wood always evokes such mixed feelings in me.

3. It’s a bit creepy to know that what sounds like fiction is really true.

4. Thank goodness the realtor was a good sport.5. Next time, I will take the high road.6. The next time somebody tells you there’s

money in the hills, listen.

Lost in the Woods

Congratulations on your new job writing for an upstart supermarket tabloid! Unfortunately, your budget is limited. You only have a pen and a notebook. When you ask your boss how you are supposed to do research, he says, “Everything you need is already in your head. Just write.” Before he leaves you in the office, he gives you the headline for today’s feature story.

Pick a number between 1 and 6.

It’s All in Your Head

1. Woman Born with Wings Takes Flight2. Flute-Playing Mermaid Spotted in

Downtown Tucson Practicing Scales3. Mummified Man with Ten Thousand Bee

Stings Found in the Desert4. Boy with Static Electricity Disease Sparks

Major Fire5. Talking Horse Hoarse from Cheering at Ft.

Myers Racetrack6. Policeman Arrested for Posing as Person

Posing as Policeman

It’s All in Your Head

Jumble StoryChoose three numbers

from 1 to 10.

Your Character

1. a forest gnome2. a photographer 3. a high school student4. a restaurant owner or manager 5. an alien from outer space 6. a space scientist 7. a wizard8. a middle school teacher9. a kid10. a jazz musician

Your Setting1. the Grand Canyon2. a beach with high cliffs 3. a costume party 4. school playground 5. an antiques store 6. a city park 7. old farmhouse 8. a polluted stream 9. a library 10. a concert hall

Time1. during a snowball fight2. after a strange spacecraft landed

nearby3. on the night of the full moon in

October 4. during school vacation5. just before the Solar eclipse 6. late at night 7. after a big thunderstorm has passed 8. in early spring 9. first week of the school year 10.during a concert

Situation/Challenge1. an important decision needs to be made 2. a secret needs to be confessed to someone else 3. someone's pride has been injured 4. someone needs to make a choice 5. someone has found or lost something 6. someone has accused someone else of doing

something wrong 7. reminiscing on how things have changed 8. someone feels like giving up 9. something embarrassing has just happened 10. someone has just reached an important goal

You are on a long-distance bus ride. A few hours into your trip, a new person gets on and sits next to you. You are sure you’ll never see this person again, so you decide to confess something to this person.

Start with: A while back…

Pick a number between 1 and 6.

Confessions

1. counterfeit, chamber, Chinatown, cheated, chain

2. pirate, papers, permission, pickle, prohibited

3. accident, arson, arrest, afterthought, anxious

4. misunderstood, money, murder, memory, master plan

5. lawyer, lost, loot, lifted, love6. fog, forge, filth, fraud, forgotten

Confessions:Words to Use in Your Confession