1-MINUTE PROMPT:
Lots of kids are afraid of the dark—and plenty of adults too. For a change of pace, let’s personify darkness and write about what it’s afraid of.
5-MINUTE PROMPT:
The idea of robbers can captivate and scare a kid. Create the concept of a children’s picture book that includes a robber. Is it a well-intentioned robber like Robin Hood, a bad guy robber that needs to learn a lesson, or something else entirely?
10-MINUTE PROMPT:
Ever worry about something being under the bed? What if someone pulled up the bed skirt and actually saw something there? Pick a genre—drama, comedy, horror, sci-fi, mystery, romance, and so on—then write a scene in that genre’s tone about someone who’s discovered something—or someone—under the bed.
20-MINUTE PROMPT:
What was your most intense childhood fear? Maybe it was something statistically unlikely like getting kidnapped by a stranger with a van, or maybe it was something unavoidable like embarrassing yourself in front of your peers. Whatever it was, use that fear as character motivation in a scene you might find in a novel with a teenage protagonist.