Site contents copyright 2004-2005 Michelle Hakala except where otherwise noted.

Exercise #101

Exercise #101: Craft
Posted 4/1/05

Conflict is an essential element to any story. We want to hear about the hero's trouble, and then see him triumph. From something as small as having mice in the kitchen cabinets to battling an evil overlord for possession of the world, conflict interests the reader.

Characterization makes us care about the protag, but it's conflict that drives the story.

For this exercise, pick one of these and write to it, showing us the conflict. If possible, leave us with a cliffhanger. When we're done reading, we should want more!

Your choices:

 * A wife wants a divorce because of an indiscretion on her husband's part.
 * A man catches someone breaking into his car.
 * A child with a limp takes a school bus to school, and the other kids decide to have some "fun."
 * Two sisters squabble because one of them is wearing the other one's sweater.
 * Two brothers fall for the same girl.
 * An employee finally has enough of his/her boss's derogatory comments.
 * A minor automobile accident becomes a free-for-all fistfight.

Word limit: 1200
Please use the subject line
       SUB: Exercise #101/yourname

Back to:

[The Desk Drawer] [Exercise Menu] [Exercises By Type] [Exercises By Number] [Archived Exercises 1-50] [Archived Exercises 51-100] [FAQ] [Site Map] [Members' Links] [Members' Desks] [Contact Us] [About Us] [Privacy Policy]