Last Lines

On March 5, I wrote about First Lines. Scroll down to see that. Today we'll play around with the opposite: Last Lines.

This is a more challenging (and fun) writing exercise, because we need to think of a story that ends with a given line, instead of a story that starts with a given line. But we're all up for the challenge, right?

Here are some last lines from published books. Again, it's okay to copy a line from a writer's published work as long as we're using it as writing practice, not to publish it ourselves.

Take one of these last lines, and see if you can write about something that happens before this last line. Then finish your story with this line.

• The lighthouse was working. (Mooninpappa at Sea by Tove Jansson)

• His voice was soft, soft but strong, like a hummingbird wing, like spider-silk. (Green Boy by Susan Cooper)

• We lived happily ever after. (A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck)

• "The feast waits." (Runt by Marion Dane Bauer)

• Below him, the stars burst upward, back into the sky. (Trouble by Gary D. Schmidt)

• Richie took a deep breath and entered, walking with them into the darkness. (Demon Keeper by Royce Buckingham)

Okay, have these last lines set your imaginations stirring? Ready for the challenge? Try writing a story that ends with one of the lines above.

Go!

Rain, Rain Rainforest

It's raining today here on Bainbridge Island, and that reminds me of a great writing activity to do on a wet, blustery day. It's called, Rain Rain Rainforest. It's fun to do with other people, but you can play it by yourself, too.

Find several small pieces of paper in different colors. (Try going to your paper recycle bin.) On each piece of paper, write a word. You can choose words at random: bicycle, fudge, run, violin, taste, lamp, rock, spin, and so on.

When you have a nice batch of pieces of paper, wad them up in your hands to make "raindrops." Now create a rainstorm by throwing your raindrops up in the air. (Ask an adult first.) When you're done, pick up about 5 or 6 raindrops and unfold them.

In your notebook, write a story using those 5 or 6 words. Those words must appear in your story. For example, what kind of story plot would have a bicycle, a piece of fudge, someone running, a violin, someone tasting, and a lamp? See what your imagination can come up with.

And don't forget to pick up your extra raindrops from the floor!

First Lines

When we write stories for practice, sometimes it's fun to start a story with a first line from a published book.

Of course, in a story we plan to publish, we can't steal lines from another writer. (That's called plagiarism.) But when we write stories in our notebooks, and don't plan to publish them, it's okay to use a line from another writer as a starting point.

Here are some great first lines to get a story started.

• It was raining bullfrogs. (The Midnight Horse by Sid Fleischman)

• A small vagrant breeze came from nowhere and barely flicked the feather tips as the arrow sped on its way. (The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley)

• Move over, Dr. Dolittle. (Seaglass Summer by Anjali Banerjee)

• It was quite untrue that the Minnipins, or Small Ones, were a lost people, for they knew exactly where they were. (The Gammage Cup by Carol Kendall)

• One of my best dreams ever. (Listening for Crickets by David Gifaldi)

• Most boys his age had never touched paper. (First Light by Rebecca Stead)

Take one of these first lines, or another one you found in a published book, and write a story using it as your story opener. When you're done, you may want to read the published book to see what it was about. How was your story different? How was it the same?

Writing the Unexpected

I live on Bainbridge Island, Washington, where we don't get a lot of ice. But it's been in the 30s the last couple of mornings, and this morning I looked out our front window to see an icicle hanging from our gutter. I was seeing the unexpected.

Sometimes it's fun to add something unexpected--a sort of surprise--into our stories. It wakes our readers up (not that we want them falling asleep in the first place). It makes our readers say, "Ah. I didn't expect that!"

Of course, we don't want a jolt out of the blue. But something small and unexpected is like a gift to our readers. As the writer Garrison Keillor would say, it makes them sit up and take notice.

Try adding something unexpected to your story. Maybe the cat in your story eats dog food. Or your character likes to wear mismatched socks. Or your character wakes up to find an icicle hanging from the gutter --in the spring.

Play around with the unexpected, and expect to have fun!

Have Fun with Your Name

I was walking along the ship canal in Seattle the other day, and saw this red tugboat with my name: Margaret Ann. I rushed for my camera.

It's fun to find an object that has your name, and of course that leads to story ideas. I immediately wanted to write about a red tugboat named Margaret Ann. What kind of adventure would she go on as she pushed a barge down the canal?

If you don't see an object with your name (and we usual don't, do we?), look around for an object you like, and give it your name. Maybe it's a pencil you name Carson. Or a soccer ball you name Katie Grace.

Now imagine an adventure for your pencil or soccer ball. What kind of trouble can Carson or Katie Grace get into?

Have fun with your name and your story.

More on Writing 15 Minutes a Day

How did you do on writing 15 minutes a day? Pretty good? Wonderful!

I like to have one day a week where I don't do my usual day-to-day activities. I've made that day Sunday. On Sunday I'm flexible on whether I write for 15 minutes. If I do, great. If I don't, that's OK too.

What are ways to use your 15 minutes a day of writing? Here are some ideas:

1) Pick a character from a story you're writing, and interview your character. Your character "talking" may surprise you with something you want to add to your story.

2) Describe something you see each day but don't really "see." Do you have a clock in your bedroom? Describe it. What does it look like? Does it make a sound? Touch the clock. Is it cool or warm? The clock above has Chinese characters. If you don't have a clock in your room, describe this Chinese clock. How is it the same as American clocks? How is it different?

3) Write one long sentence for 15 minutes. That is a challenge, but I know we're up for it! Keep your pen or pencil moving (and use a lot of commas).

4) Write about the best thing that happened yesterday. You may think nothing "best" happened, but every day has something that makes us feel good.

5) Remember that character from #1 above? Describe that character's lunch. Does your character eat a McDonald's Big Mac with French fries? Or peanut butter and a banana on a bagel? Or a salad with beets and artichokes? Write in detail, describing the colors, taste, feel, and smell of your character's lunch.

Writing 15 Minutes a Day

Hello there! Do you have 15 minutes? Great! Then let's get writing.

Many authors promote the idea of writing each day. Your story or novel stays fresh in your mind, and you feel less rusty when you go back to your writing.

But let's face it. Some days are busy. We have trouble finding time to write. We may have a lot of homework, or we're visiting relatives, or there's a list of things to do and we'll get to our writing "later." Sometimes, "later" never comes. Sometimes, a few days or weeks go by, and "later" keeps getting pushed back. Before we know it, a month has flown passed us and we haven't found time to write.

A simple solution is to write for 15 minutes a day. It doesn't sound like a lot, does it? Think of it this way. If you write for 15 minutes a day x 30 days, at the end of a month you'll have 450 minutes of writing. That's 7 1/2 hours, or nearly a full work-day of writing.

Almost everyone has 15 minutes. Try carrying your notebook with you wherever you go. Write on the bus, in the car (not if you're driving!), before breakfast, or right after dinner. Write without stopping, letting your words get down on the page.

Try writing 15 minutes a day about anything you'd like. All writing is good. Next week, we'll talk about different ways to use your 15 minutes of writing.

Ready? The clock starts now!