Here are some ideas for jump-starting the creative juices:


1. Make a list of five writing goals.
2. If you could take an all-expense paid trip for one night to anywhere in the world, where would you choose?
3. Next time your walking the dogs around the neighborhood, take mental notes of the thoughts that cross your mind. When you return, recap the walk in writing.
4. When was the last time you laughed so hard that you cried? Write down the memory.
5. Write about something that frustrated you today.
6. Write a reflective piece about one of your pets.
7. Close your eyes and remember what summer feels like. Write what you feel, see, hear, smell and taste.
8. Make a list of obstacles that impede your writing. Next to each, write some ideas of how you can overcome it.
9. The next time you go to Borders or Barnes & Noble and get coffee, take your notebook and sit in the corner of the coffee area farthest from the door for half an hour. Watch who comes through to get coffee, who stays, what they wear, read or talk about. Write a description of this or of your thoughts. (You can also do this by sitting in one of the chairs in the book sections, like the area near the art books.)
10. Write about a lie you told. Did you fess up later? Get caught? What were the circumstances and consequences?
11. Free-write: keep your fingers on the keyboard, or pencil, until ten minutes are up. Don’t judge, just write.
List the top five or ten experiences in your life. Think about it for a moment, letting your mind roam, keeping your pencil on the page.
12. If you could live in any decade, which one would it be and why?
13. List ten things you want to accomplish in your life and why.
14. Remember Dr. Guin's poetry workshop and the assignment to write a description and then a poem from the details? Try to do the description of some situation or object around you.
15. Write about the most interesting or boring person you interacted with at work today.
16. Listen to one of your old tapes that you haven’t dug out in ages. While you listen, write about the memories that come back to you.
17. Write about a place you loved or hated. Incorporate all your senses in your description.
18. Write six ways to describe the smell of your incense or candles. Can you use any other senses to describe it?
19. Draw or visualize what chaos, anger, or depression feels like for you. Write a description.
20. Write about how frustrating writer's block is!
21. This is like Taboo, I think. Try to describe an apple without using the following words: red, shiny, fruit, and round.
22. Write a detailed description of where you are writing. How do you feel about the workplace?
23. Browse the personal ads in the paper or on The Onion. Based on the details provided, create an expanded profile of that person.
24. Practice the art of alliteration. Write a poem, or just for ten minutes, centering on a single sound.
25. Picture someone you just met describing you to a friend. Write down what they would say - not what you yourself would say.
26. Write a scene in which a character enjoys or suffers a public moment.
27. Fictionalize a memory you have. Stick to the facts but change minor details.
28. Write a monologue in which a character vents his rage. As the monologue develops, ad clues that suggest the character is more fearful than angry.
29. What would you never write about, and why?
30. Grab your dictionary and select five words at random. Use them in an opening paragraph to a possible short story.