LET'S WRITE: Day 7 - The Classroom Dugout

Writing when you don't feel like writing. That's what daily writing is about. Let's commit to 7 days of writing and finish!

LET'S WRITE: Day 7 - The Classroom Dugout

By Matthew L. Hart

Writer & Humorist

Author of:

Uncle Matty's Halloween: Jokes, Bits & Anecdotes

7 Day Writing Challenge:

Day 7 - Journal Entry

Well, we finally made it to the end of the week. Woohoo! I hope you were able to keep up your daily writing routine and not break the chain. Now that we've got one week in, you might want to keep going and capitalize on your momentum, or not. It's really all up to you. I feel like I've been writing more and more each day. I've really enjoyed writing the journal entries and I've been coming up with so many really interesting story concepts, characters, and at least some scenes from the writer's prompts I've been using out of The Writer's Toolbox. I think that I'll use them again today, just to button up this 7 Day Writing Challenge. I've also noticed, after going over my work for the week, I've made some really ugly characters! I'm laughing because, that's kind of what I feel like we should have at the start of a story. Ugly characters, especially those that are ugly on the inside, have so much potential for growth, that their stories are really compelling. There's a couple of scenes that I wrote this last week that I've been itching to do something bigger with. I'm not really sure though. But, hey. Isn't that the point? We started out with nothing and we made something. Any scene that we wrote this week could be developed into it's own novel, character or even story series. We could write them as completed short stories, full novels, screenplays, plays, or teleplays. The potential is there. I feel like, what we've been able to do was create a handful of seeds. Strange characters. Strange scenes. Strange conflicts. Each one almost screaming to be developed further. I might even use one of these scenes to prompt some more writing, and just expound on what's happening in the story. I hope you've experienced similar productivity yourself. I hope you share your work with me in the comments below. Happy writing!

Sixth-Sense Card:

"a chewed-on pencil"

The taste was divine. It just always was, since I was a kid. I grew up on standardized tests, and the #2 pencil naturally became one of the main food groups. I always had a box of them in my desk. I'd sniff them like the finest cigar. The rubber erasers have a kind of, oh, sweet odor. If I was needing a good distraction, I'd bite into the metal collar holding the eraser. What a shock! I liked the way the aluminum felt soft beneath the pressure of my canine. It just sort of, crimped between my teeth. It also felt like it gave me a little spark. A little shock. I don't know. It was really exciting. Like a shot of espresso for a teenager. But, every chewer knows that the wood was the real meat of the matter. It was soft and you got that fibrous crunch. So satisfying. I would sometimes catch myself gnawing away at it. Like I was a mischievous squirrel on a dried corn cob. Crunch, crunch, crunch. If I chewed too much, say, around the three hundredth question or so, the outer paint of the pencil would flake off and I'd have to spit them out like sunflower seeds. I have to laugh because, about two hours into testing, the classroom sounded more like a baseball dugout. 

I'll primarily be using The Writer's Toolbox by Jamie Cat Callan to prompt my 7 day writing challenge but feel free to do yours however you'd like.

Writing everyday is a great step towards becoming a Master Storyteller.

Do you want to share your own writing during this 7 day writing challenge?

ADD YOUR BLOG ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Continue your journey:

This Wireless Keyboard Just Topped My Wish List (blog post)

Learn To Write Funny (Blog Posts)

Or, hop over to my YouTube Coin Channel:

Matthew The Great Coin Roll Hunter

*I am an Amazon Affiliate
and this blog uses Amazon Affiliate links.

LET'S WRITE: Day 6 - Flipping the Bill (Warning: Adult Language)

Writing when you don't feel like writing. That's what daily writing is about. Let's commit to 7 days of writing and finish!

LET'S WRITE: Day 6 - Flipping the Bill (Warning: Adult Language)

By Matthew L. Hart

Writer & Humorist

Author of:

Uncle Matty's Halloween: Jokes, Bits & Anecdotes

7 Day Writing Challenge:

Day 6 - Journal Entry

I can't believe it's already day 6! I feel like I've just gotten started. Especially with this blog. It's still early in its creation and I've been flirting with the format a bit. I definitely recommend starting a blog if you want to write every day. The accountability of it has really pulled me through this 7 day challenge. Also, I think that it's important to see me doing the things I suggest. It's easy to read a book, watch a video or come up with some tips on how you can do the thing but, now you can see that I actually do the things that I teach. Most of my inspiration comes out of how to writing books which are full of useful exercises. I sincerely believe that by practacing with these exercises, my writing has become a lot better. Also, by writing every day, it is becoming a lot easier to sit down and focus. This blog has been essential for that. I hope you are enjoying what I'm doing here and I invite you to be a part of it. Start your own blog and share your work. I'd love to read what you're working on as well. Let's start a conversation.

First Sentence Stick:

"On Tuesday, Margaret told me she liked the little oranges with the seeds better than the ones I bought. I hated her for that."

      On Tuesday, Margaret told me she liked the little oranges with the seeds better than the ones I bought. I hated her for that. Nobody really likes being told what to do. It's even worse when they disguise it as a favor. I think that's why most people don't like their Boss.
      Now, it's Friday. I've been suspended from work and was talking to my Anger Management counselor. It was only our second session but, I just went with it. I'm so tired of fighting. Besides, I'm not flipping the bill so, who cares, right?

      "So, then, Margaret asks me, 'Do me a favor. Buy some of those little oranges for the meeting at three,' "
      I crossed the room. Very modern. Clean. I sat on the couch.
      "So, now, I'm like, her little fucking errand boy, or something." I said.

      "I see." The woman said. She jotted a quick note on her legal pad.

      I laid down on the couch.
      "So, I go down the elevator. Twelve floors. Across the street. In the rain. And, I grab a bag of those um, little oranges? Tangerines. And, of course, they're in a bin at the back of the store."
      I sit up again, twisting around to talk over my shoulder.
      "And, it's not like there's any other choice, right? There's only one kind of little oranges back there. And, I'm like, 'I don't have time for this shit! I need to be preparing for my presentation. Not getting these damn oranges!' "

      I'm slapping the back of my hand into my other palm. Maybe I am angry. Is this what I've been missing? Someone just to talk to. I'm exhausted.

      "Oh, and what's worse? I have to pay with my own money. Not cash. Not debt. But, with my own fucking credit card."
      I lay back down on the couch.
      "And, I won't get reimbursed, either. And, all I'm thinking is, 'I really need this fucking promotion. Like, now!' "
      "Then what happened?" The woman asked.
      "So, then my phone vibrates. It's like, 2:55, and I'm like, 'Shit! Now I'm gonna be late.'  And, the elevator makes like, half a dozen stops on my way back up, and I realize, 'That bitch set me up.' "

I punched the couch cushion and crossed my arms. I really needed this.

      "And, now I know for sure, I'm not going anywhere. Fuck, Margaret. Fuck the promotion. Fuck me! I'm just so sick and tired of it all."

Non Sequitur Stick:

"We were drinking champagne and losing our shirts."

      "Okay. Let's slow down. Tell me what happened when you got to the meeting?"
      I took a deep breath.
      "I had to deliver the charts from Accounting. I came into the conference room and Margaret gave me that stupid fuck you grin of hers, and she says,"

      "It's nice of you to join us." Margaret crossed her arms.

      "I come bearing gifts." I deflected.
      Margaret glanced at the label.

      "Oh. I only eat the one's with the little seeds." 

      "Fucking, bitch!"
      I balled my fists on the couch.

      Yeah, that one set me off. I should have know it was a trap. That's what happens when you don't question why you're doing something.

      My counselor flipped her hair.
     "Now, lets move past that. What happened during your presentation?"

      She actually sounded genuinely concerned. Did she really care about me? Probably just her training. Anyway, I'm here. Who gives a shit?

      "Well,"
      I started to relax again.
      "That was the best part."

      "I hope you're ready to present." Margaret jabbed. "You've already cost us ten minutes."

   
      Now I'm flinging my arms out in front of me. I'm in trouble.

      "And, I was like, 'Fuck you!' I mean. I didn't say it, but, I was really going to enjoy this."
      I adjusted myself to get more comfortable. My heart pounded as I relived the moment.
      "I plugged my laptop into the podium and fired up my slide show. I won't bore you with the details, but basically, I told those stiff collared assholes that we where drinking champagne and losing our shirts."
      "And, did you call them, Assholes?"
      The woman shifted in her seat.
      "In no uncertain terms." I said. "But, I think I got my point across. And, the look on Margaret's face. That made it so worth it."
      I glanced over my shoulder at the woman behind me.
      "And, that bitch didn't know what hit her."

      Margaret contained her rage behind a toothy smile. "Thank you, Bill, for that pointed presentation." She walked around the table to meet me at the podium. With her hand on my shoulder, she ushered me towards the door. "I'll need to discuss the details of your presentation with you, after the meeting. If you would wait for me in my office, please."
      "Sure thing, Boss." I said "Enjoy those oranges. Only six ninety nine a bag, across the street."
      Margaret closed the door behind me.

I'll primarily be using The Writer's Toolbox by Jamie Cat Callan to prompt my 7 day writing challenge but feel free to do yours however you'd like.

Writing everyday is a great step towards becoming a Master Storyteller.

Do you want to share your own writing during this 7 day writing challenge?

ADD YOUR BLOG ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Continue your journey:

This Wireless Keyboard Just Topped My Wish List (blog post)

Learn To Write Funny (Blog Posts)

Or, hop over to my YouTube Coin Channel:

Matthew The Great Coin Roll Hunter

*I am an Amazon Affiliate
and this blog uses Amazon Affiliate links.

LET'S WRITE: Day 5 - Something Homemade

Writing when you don't feel like writing. That's what daily writing is about. Let's commit to 7 days of writing and finish!

LET'S WRITE: Day 5 - Something Homemade

By Matthew L. Hart

Writer & Humorist

Author of:

Uncle Matty's Halloween: Jokes, Bits & Anecdotes

7 Day Writing Challenge:

Day 5 - Journal Entry

So, just an interesting observation for today. After reading my writing journal from yesterday, I realized that on the day that I didn't actually feel like writing, I ended up writing the most I've done during this entire challenge. I thought that was funny. Well, weird, at least. I really am happy to add this journal section to the blog, because it's kind of nice to capture how I'm actually feeling during this whole 7 day writing challenge process. Also, I think that writing the journal entry first has helped me to start writing. By that, I simply mean, there's no writer's block because I already know what I'm going to write about. And, the most satisfying part of doing this journal entry is just letting my fingers fly over the keyboard. I know this is starting to get a little repetitive from yesterday, but I can't stress enough how good it feels to just let loose and go. I would definitely encourage this. I also am trying to limit my time on this section. I think that I could definitely get long winded because I'm just typing everything that's going through my head and kind of challenging myself to type it out as fast as I can. I'm actually racing to get as many words down as fast as possible before my three minute timer is up. Right, about, now...Okay. That actually was fun. I think I'm ready to write. 

Sixth-Sense Card:

"pink fuzzy lint"

Three minutes on what comes to mind when I think of "pink fuzzy lint"...

As I'm thinking about pink fuzzy lint, two thoughts come to mind immediately. My first thought was, "Where did this pink fuzzy lint come from?" My answer was, that it came from a woman's scarf. Then I thought, "Where is the lint?" I answered my mind, "On my blue sweater." How did the lint get there? "She hugged me." But, then I had a second thought. And, I was thinking about lint as physical evidence. Trace evidence. The forensic team could have found pink fuzzy lint somewhere. What would that mean? Where was the lint? How did it get there? Who was it from? So, these questions were obviously much more interesting to me. The first idea alluded to some intimate lovey-dovey date scene. The other idea could be a mystery...

Fifteen minutes to write about pink fuzzy lint.

      The sound was similar to tearing Velcro apart in rapid, one inch segments. Rip. Rip. Rip. Tarry knelt on the hot concrete driveway and bent over the passenger seat of the silver, Toyota Carolla. Rip. Rip. Rip. Rip. He gave special attention at keeping to an unseen gird pattern, and patted the looped tape on his hand against the tan fibers of the fabric upholstery. Rip. Rip. Rip. Rip. Rip. 

      He paused for a moment to examine the tacky surface of the repurposed packaging material. Amongst the tan crumpled fibers, specs of dirt and what looked like cigarette ashes, was a spot of color. Pink fuzzy lint. He considered his finding for a moment.

     The lint contained several thin fibers similar to each other, lumped up or rolled into a ball. Each end of the round fibers protruded out at random angles, giving the lint its fuzzy appearance. Probably wool, Tarry mused. The kind you would see from store bought yarn. Maybe something used in a knitting or crocheting project. 

      The lint was found low on the backrest of the seat. Too low for gloves, Tarry thought. Not high enough to be from a hat. Maybe a sweater? Or a scarf? He pictured a pink, crocheted scarf. Something hand made. The pill, as it's called, probably balled up from being constantly rubbed against objects in the environment. 

      Tarry deemed it reasonable that the tails of a scarf would be sat upon in the car, thus coming into contact against the lower backrest of the seat and entangled with the tan fibers of the upholstery under pressure. This scenario could leave trace evidence of this sort. "Hey, Hobart! I've got something." Tarry called, as he carefully bagged and tagged his evidence. 

      The Detective's cornflower tie fluttered to one side as he made large strides towards Tarry's position. "What've you got for me. Please, tell me you've got something good."

      Tarry passed him the bagged tape. Hobart squinted for a look. Tarry pointed at the pink speck. "Tell the team they're looking for something pink and knit. A sweater or a scarf. Something homemade." Hobart exhaled with relief. "That's it. We got him."

I'll primarily be using The Writer's Toolbox by Jamie Cat Callan to prompt my 7 day writing challenge but feel free to do yours however you'd like.

Writing everyday is a great step towards becoming a Master Storyteller.

Do you want to share your own writing during this 7 day writing challenge?

ADD YOUR BLOG ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Continue your journey:

This Wireless Keyboard Just Topped My Wish List (blog post)

Learn To Write Funny (Blog Posts)

Or, hop over to my YouTube Coin Channel:

Matthew The Great Coin Roll Hunter

*I am an Amazon Affiliate
and this blog uses Amazon Affiliate links.

LET'S WRITE: Day 4 - Behind a Yellow Bus

Writing daily is hard. But, this is the advice we are consistently told. Let's commit to 7 days of writing and finish!

LET'S WRITE: Day 4 - Behind a Yellow Bus

By Matthew L. Hart

Writer & Humorist

Author of:

Uncle Matty's Halloween: Jokes, Bits & Anecdotes

7 Day Writing Challenge:

Day 4 - Journal Entry

I'm tired. I've been working early shifts at my job and now, I'm actually feeling like I'm not going to do this. I opened up this blog to write and for the first time I'm feeling like, I don't want to write. I pulled a Sixth-Sense Card out of The Writer's Toolbox and just couldn't get the words to flow. So, I started this journal entry. But, I didn't realize, until just now, how interesting this part of the journey might actually be. Up until now, I had a plan. I would just do a simple writing exercise and 7 days of writing could be done, no problem. That's not the real world. Today represents the beginning of what this writing challenge really is. It's writing, when you don't feel like writing. How am I going to do this? Well, I flipped my sand timer to write this journal entry for about three to five minutes. Just letting the words flow from the top of my mind. If feels good. Just the act of writing. My fingers are racing across the keyboard, almost at the speed of thought, and I'm thinking that maybe I can do this after all. I'm also thinking that this journal entry is getting a little long and the timer is basically done now. Am I primed to write? Well, ready or not, here I go, I guess. Let's take another shot at that Sixth-Sense Card.

Sixth-Sense Card:

"a yellow bus"

     School. That's what the yellow bus reminds me of. Did I care for school? I don't know. I think that most of us just try to move past it. Funny thing about yellow school buses and moving past them. You can't move past them when there's children crossing. A yellow bus. A yellow school bus. It's our adolescent trauma. Some people can move past it. Others, just get stuck behind it. Especially when children cross their path. Your life's path. Don't let your yellow bus prevent you from moving forward. What is all this, rambling on? Let's try this again...

      Everything was going fine. The woman next to me turned up the radio. I put the windows down and we let our hair tangle together in the passionate breeze of Spring. My foot was on the gas and my hands were on the wheel. I didn't know where we were going, but we were getting there fast. Then, red.
      Red break lights. A red, flashing stop sign. It swung out, threatening to swat me right off the road, should I dare to ignore it? One moment, I was unstoppable. The next, I wasn't going anywhere.
      Stuck behind a yellow bus. The children waved and made faces on the glass. A projector for my youthful memories. My insecurities. Rejection. Anxieties. It all filled that yellow bus.
      What was once a smooth ride became stop and go. Stuck behind a yellow bus with no space between us. I struggled to build momentum. Desperate to overcome it but, no. I settled in for a long road ahead. Stop. Go. Red light. Green light. Railroad. On this day, she told me she was pregnant. I chose to become a father.

I'll primarily be using The Writer's Toolbox by Jamie Cat Callan to prompt my 7 day writing challenge but feel free to do yours however you'd like.

Writing everyday is a great step towards becoming a Master Storyteller.

Do you want to share your own writing during this 7 day writing challenge?

ADD YOUR BLOG ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Continue your journey:

This Wireless Keyboard Just Topped My Wish List (blog post)

Learn To Write Funny (Blog Posts)

Or, hop over to my YouTube Coin Channel:

Matthew The Great Coin Roll Hunter

*I am an Amazon Affiliate
and this blog uses Amazon Affiliate links.

LET'S WRITE: Day 3 - There's Always a Way

Building a writing habit requires you to sit down and write everyday. What should you write? Use writing prompts to find out!

LET'S WRITE: Day 3 - There's Always a Way

By Matthew L. Hart

Writer & Humorist

Author of:

Uncle Matty's Halloween: Jokes, Bits & Anecdotes

MatthewHartComedy.blogspot.com

FIRST SENTENCE STICK: 

"The only way John could pass the exam was by cheating."

      The only way John could pass the exam was by cheating. From that moment on, his career was cattle branded. Of course, he would have no problem passing the obstacle course or the physical exams. He played football in high school but, just wasn't good enough to get a scholarship. Nor was he bright enough to attend college without one.
      One particular officer conducted a non-lethal weapons training class. She recognized some subtle, apprehensive quality in John. A base level insecurity. She approached him privately after class with a solution.
      During the day of the written exam, John visited the men's room. He used the third stall marked, "Out of Order." Inside, he checked under the porcelain. The answer sheet. Just as promised. Her voice echoed in his ear, "There's always a way for those willing to take it." John took the bait and attached to himself, the first apathetic string.
      Three weeks later, he became a boiling furnace, stoked by a rejection letter from the Police Academy. It took fifty thousand volts of electricity from this particular officer, now his handler, before John understood. He had failed the exam but had passed the test. "Congratulations." His handler said, while John convulsed on the floor in a puddle of his warm piss. "You'll be running for Sheriff of Wendover, Nevada."

I'll primarily be using The Writer's Toolbox by Jamie Cat Callan to prompt my 7 day writing challenge but feel free to do yours however you'd like.

Writing everyday is a great step towards becoming a Master Storyteller.

Do you want to share your own writing during this 7 day writing challenge?

ADD YOUR BLOG ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Continue your journey:

This Wireless Keyboard Just Topped My Wish List (blog post)

Learn To Write Funny (Blog Posts)

Or, hop over to my YouTube Coin Channel:

Matthew The Great Coin Roll Hunter

*I am an Amazon Affiliate
and this blog uses Amazon Affiliate links.