Write a short story or poem describing a December day without using the words: "December" "snow" or "holiday".
 

Fairy tales have happy endings. All of us know what happened in that mushy fairy tale, Cinderella. Yeah, it's romantic, the prince actually finding Cinderella. They lived happily ever after. But happy endings can sometimes be, well...boring. No zing. So predictable. So...happy. What if the shoe fit one of the sisters? What happens then? Play with your imagination here. Be funny if you like. Or serious if you feel like it. Or be an Alfred Hitchcock. Whatever you are into, write your ending to the Cinderella story -- but this time, make it so that the shoe fit one of the icky sisters. What does Prince Charming do? How does Cinderella cope with it? And what about the Fairy Godmother? Start your story there.
 

Create a story based on this personification: love hesitates.
 

"Why do you have ten cans of Easy Cheese in your cart?"
 

Re-write the fairy tale, Snow White, from the point of view of Bashful, one of the 7 dwarves.
 

Your writing prompt: fertility

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Write a letter to Santa from either you or your character. Tell him about the good things you/he/she have/has done since last Christmas. Include a list of ten specific items you/he/she would like to find under the tree and/or in a stocking. If your character has been bad or is evil, try to convince Santa to remove him/her from the naughty list.

Then write the Christmas Day scene. Did you/he/she get some or all of what was requested? How did the day and gift giving/opening proceed and who else was there? Was there a Christmas Day feast?
 

Retell the Nativity story in modern-day language.

It is discovered that the pie in a small town diner has curative properties.

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Create a character who is trying to gain access to a private club or organization.
 

Imagine what life would be like if you had the occupation you'd wanted as a child.
 

Invent a character who sees a phone number on a restroom wall. Describe what happens when he or she dials it.
 

List the top 10 things you (or your character) will always say yes to.
 

Trace the journey of a five dollar bill through the lives of five different owners. What was exchanged during the transactions? How much (or how little) did the transactions mean to each of the people involved?

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During her first trip to Las Vegas, a woman experiences the luckiest night of her life.
 

"Ten bucks say you can't go a week."
 

Since 1980, more than fifty forgeries have been discovered at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. Write about one of them.

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What would you find in an accountant's garbage bin?
 

Weave a story around a 60-year old photograph.
 

Write a fictional news story based on this headline: Elvis clones taking over the world.
 

Visit a nearby cemetery--the older, the better. Sit down beside the most unusual tombstone you can find, and write about the person lying underneath you.

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You put a rented DVD into your machine and hit 'play.' Instead of the expected menu, a man in white appears, tells you a potentially life-altering secret, then disappears from the screen.
 

"What the hell do you know about anything? I mean, seriously, you're just a cat."
 

The owner of a drycleaner discovers something unusual in the coat pocket of one of his regular customers.
Write about what happens when this discovery is:
    -A plastic bag of illegal drugs
    -A love letter
    -A package of photos
    -A treasure map
 

After waking from a coma, a woman discovers that she can smell fear.
 

Your writing prompt: greed

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List 15 simple pleasures. Pick one and write about it.
 

What would you (or your character) do with three wishes?
 

Create a story, poem or any piece based on this metaphor: "a minute of failure."
 

An accountant believes that his "sick" co-worker has been killed by her husband.