Getting to Know You: Back to School!

If school didn't start last week where you live, it's about to start soon. So tell us, what's your favorite school memory? Did you look forward to the beginning of the school year, with its new school supplies, new clothes, and opportunities to make new friends and rekindle old acquaintances? Or was the start of the school year just an end to your summer freedom and a great big nuisance?

Tell us what you think about "back to school!"

First Line Challenge

Are you ready to get your creative juices flowing?

I'll give you the first sentence or passage of a famous novel, and your job is to turn it into a paragraph that is totally unique, and totally you!

Authors and characters are all welcome to attempt this little exercise. Let's see how many different perspectives we can create. As a bonus, try to guess the book that's being quoted.

(Incidentally, the last opener was from Atonement by Ian McEwan.)

Okay, are you ready? Here we go!

I am an invisible man. No, I am not a spook like those who haunted Edgar Allan Poe; nor am I one of your Hollywood-movie ectoplasms...

What's Happening Now?

My, my, where has the time gone? Why, it seems only yesterday that we were sharing our latest goings-on. Well, here it is again – time for our midweek update – a chance for characters to reveal their current, or at least most recent, whereabouts. In this way, authors can share what's happening within their stories by speaking through their characters' unique voices.

So, let's hear it, guys, gals, and creatures! What have you done over the past seven days? Experienced any stupendous places? Battled any horrendous beasts? Found yourself in a spot of trouble, supernatural or otherwise?

Feel free to spill any and all of your latest adventures, and hopefully, by revealing where you are in your story, you'll help inspire your authors to keep moving forward with theirs.

Remember, this is for characters only!

Getting to Know You: Dog Days

Well, friends, we're headed into the last full week of August, with September and Autumn just around the corner.

If you're in the Northern Hemisphere, that means the dog days of summer are almost over, so tell us how you've coped with the heat and the inevitable doldrums? Did you take a vacation? Go swimming? Eat lots of ice cream and drink cold beverages?

Do the final weeks of summer put you in a funk, or are they more of a last hurrah?

First Line Challenge

Are you ready to get your creative juices flowing?

I'll give you the first sentence or passage of a famous novel, and your job is to turn it into a paragraph that is totally unique, and totally you!

Authors and characters are all welcome to attempt this little exercise. Let's see how many different perspectives we can create. As a bonus, try to guess the book that's being quoted.

(Incidentally, the last opener was from The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.)

Okay, are you ready? Here we go!

The play – for which Briony had designed the posters, programs and tickets, constructed the sales booth out of a folding screen tipped on its side, and lined the collection box in red crêpe paper – was written by her in a two-day tempest of composition, causing her to miss a breakfast and a lunch...

What's Happening Now?

Two weeks have passed since our last “What's Happening Now?” discussion, and I'm curious about what our characters have been up to lately.

Well, here it is – a chance for characters to reveal their current, or at least most recent, whereabouts. In this way, authors can share what's happening within their stories by speaking through their characters' unique voices.

So, let's hear it, guys, gals, and creatures! What have you done in the past two weeks? Experienced any stupendous places? Battled any horrendous beasts? Found yourself in a spot of trouble, supernatural or otherwise?

Feel free to spill any and all of your latest adventures, and hopefully, by revealing where you are in your story, you'll help inspire your authors to keep moving forward with theirs.

Remember, this is for characters only!

Emote This: Bad Day

We've all had bad days, haven't we? What do you do when life seems to be giving you lemons instead of lemonade? Do you seek distractions, solace, peace of mind? Or do you rant and plot revenge? Perhaps you call up a friend and pour out your feelings, or do you put on a brave face and pretend like everything is just fine?

Tell us, Characters, how do you handle a bad day?

First Line Challenge

Are you ready to get your creative juices flowing?

I'll give you the first sentence or passage of a famous novel, and your job is to turn it into a paragraph that is totally unique, and totally you!

Authors and characters are all welcome to attempt this little exercise. Let's see how many different perspectives we can create. As a bonus, try to guess the book that's being quoted.

(Incidentally, the last opener was from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Congrats to David, Candy, and Christine for guessing correctly!)

Okay, are you ready? Here we go!

A throng of bearded men, in sad-coloured garments and grey steeple-crowned hats, inter-mixed with women, some wearing hoods, and others bareheaded, was assembled in front of a wooden edifice, the door of which was heavily timbered with oak, and studded with iron spikes...

Emote This: Paranoia

Many people think that paranoia is merely an excessive suspicion of other folks' motives. Other people believe something completely different. The author William S. Burroughs, for instance, once said, “sometimes paranoia's just having all the facts.”

However you define it, the truth is that all of us – men, women, demons, and other creatures – have probably experienced a touch of paranoia at one time or another.

Some of us are paranoid about gaining weight, no matter how delicious that key lime pie might taste.





Some of us are paranoid about leaving a drink unattended, for fear that a nefarious entity might try to poison us.




Some of us are paranoid about venturing into open water, where shark attacks and unexpected drownings are daily possibilities.




Some of us might even be paranoid about the strange and lethal beasts that dwell in the oddest of places...

So, what are you paranoid about? Or does nothing scare you at all?

Authors and characters are all welcome to share their deepest feelings of paranoia. After all, we're here to help... or are we?

Getting to Know You: Virtue

They say virtue is its own reward, but is it really? What does virtue mean to you? Are there any particular virtues you're most proud of? What admirable traits do you feel you lack or need to work on?

Would you bother being virtuous if no one were around to notice? What are your thoughts on virtue?

First Line Challenge

Are you ready to get your creative juices flowing?

I'll give you the first sentence or passage of a famous novel, and your job is to turn it into a paragraph that is totally unique, and totally you!

Authors and characters are all welcome to attempt this little exercise. Let's see how many different perspectives we can create. As a bonus, try to guess the book that's being quoted.

(Incidentally, the last opener was from Charlotte's Web by E. B. White. Congrats to David Jace's pal for guessing correctly!)

Okay, are you ready? Here we go!

"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo, lying on the rug...

What's Happening Now?

Two weeks have passed since our last “What's Happening Now?” discussion, and I'm curious about what our characters have been up to lately.

So, here it is – a chance for characters to reveal their current, or at least most recent, whereabouts. In this way, authors can share what's happening within their stories by speaking through their characters' unique voices.

Well, let's hear it, guys, gals, and creatures! What have you done in the past two weeks? Encountered any stunning places? Met any terrible demons? Stumbled into a spot of trouble, supernatural or otherwise?

Feel free to spill any and all of your latest adventures, and hopefully, by revealing where you are in your story, you'll help inspire your authors to keep moving forward with theirs.

Remember, this is for characters only!

Emote This: Nostalgia

Ah, nostalgia! That sense that time is passing and what is gone was somehow better than the here and now!

When you get nostalgic, what do you think of? Better food, like Grandma used to make? Lovelier fashions and higher quality? Gentler manners? Do you sometimes find yourself reminiscing about days gone by, or is the best still yet to come?

Today, let's get nostalgic!

First Line Challenge

Are you ready to get your creative juices flowing?

I'll give you the first sentence or passage of a famous novel, and your job is to turn it into a paragraph that is totally unique, and totally you!

Authors and characters are all welcome to attempt this little exercise. Let's see how many different perspectives we can create. As a bonus, try to guess the book that's being quoted.

(Incidentally, the last opener was from The Color Purple by Alice Walker.)

Okay, are you ready? Here we go!

”Where's Papa going with that ax?” said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast...

Group Story: Urban Legend

Over the past few months, Wednesdays here at CIC have been reserved for our midweek character update – otherwise known as “What's Happening Now?” - but I realize that we might all be a little weary of the routine.

So, I think it's high time we return to our creative roots and compose a story together. In fact, it's hard to believe that our last attempt was back in early February when we created a group romance.

Although we seemed to have fun that day, I thought it might be cool to try a new genre. Now, while we've covered plenty of genres in the past, from classic literature to science fiction, I was surprised to realize that we've never done an urban legend before.

Since there's no time like the present, I'll kick it off with a classic... the tale of the flushed baby alligator who grows up in the sewers of an urban metropolis. Remember, all authors and characters are welcome to participate.

Once, there was a little Cajun alligator named Boudreaux who went on a trip with his human family to the Windy City, where he was accidentally flushed down a hotel toilet...

You and Your World: The Afterlife

Happy Monday, Characters! Today, let's talk about something that might be a sensitive subject for some of you: The Afterlife.

Does your culture believe in an afterlife? Do you? If so, what is it like and do you have to do anything special to get there (other than die, of course)?

Tell us all about what you think happens when we pass on.

First Line Challenge

Are you ready to get your creative juices flowing?

I'll give you the first sentence or passage of a famous novel, and your job is to turn it into a paragraph that is totally unique, and totally you!

Authors and characters are all welcome to attempt this little exercise. Let's see how many different perspectives we can create. As a bonus, try to guess the book that's being quoted.

(Incidentally, the last opener was from Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Good job, Christine, for guessing it correctly!)

Okay, are you ready? Here we go!

You better not never tell nobody but God. It'd kill your mammy...

What's Happening Now?

Given our “What's New?” chat on Monday, I hesitated to post such a similar prompt today, but it's actually been two weeks since our last “What's Happening Now?” discussion. Remember, last Wednesday, we chatted about our favorite foods instead! (Not that I'm complaining, of course.)

So, I guess that means it's time for our midweek update – a chance for characters to reveal their current, or at least most recent, whereabouts. In this way, authors can share what's happening within their stories by speaking through their characters' unique voices.

Well, let's hear it, guys, gals, and creatures! What have you been up to lately? Seen any interesting hot spots? Encountered any wicked monsters? Found yourself in a spot of trouble, supernatural or otherwise?

Feel free to spill any and all of your latest adventures, and hopefully, by revealing where you are in your story, you'll help inspire your authors to keep moving forward with theirs.

Remember, this is for characters only!

You Tell Me: What's New?

I know we have a weekly "What are you doing now?" discussion, but let's do something slightly different. Today, let's share the new things in our lives.

Do you have a new friend? A new pair of shoes? A new idea or plan?

Is there something new you're searching for, like a new job or a new outfit for an upcoming special occasion?

Tell us what's new so we can share the fun!

First Line Challenge

Are you ready to get your creative juices flowing?

I'll give you the first sentence or passage of a famous novel, and your job is to turn it into a paragraph that is totally unique, and totally you!

Authors and characters are all welcome to attempt this little exercise. Let's see how many different perspectives we can create. As a bonus, try to guess the book that's being quoted.

(Incidentally, the last opener was from The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.)

Okay, are you ready? Here we go!

You will rejoice to hear that no disaster has accompanied the commencement of an enterprise which you have regarded with such evil forebodings. I arrived here yesterday, and my first task is to assure my dear sister of my welfare and increasing confidence in the success of my undertaking...