Collecting Mysterious Clues: A Worksheet

 

1) Notice some “ordinary” object or sound (eg, a rustling noise in a tree, or a shoe lying on the floor of your room.)

2) Think of this object or noise as a writer might—to give you a story idea. Ask these four questions about the object or sound, using your wildest imagination:

 

What might be funny about this?

What might be scary about it?

What might be unexpected?

What might be magical about it?

 

3) Choose one or more of your ideas to write down in your notebook as a mysterious clue to start a story (or to include in the story you’re working on now.)

 

Here is an example

 

• I notice a big branch lying on my front lawn after the storm
• I use my imagination and ask myself what might be funny, scary, unexpected or magical about this branch.

 

Funny: The branch is really an unusual umbrella and when I push the little bump at the bottom of the branch it opens up with a big leafy umbrella shape.

 

Scary : The branch has just fallen from a huge tree that is shaking hard—it’s an earthquake and the huge tree is about to fall on me!

 

Unexpected: The branch is from a strange and exotic tree, thought to be extinct. When I stick it in a pot of dirt, it begins to grow and produces a strange glowing fruit that looks like little pineapples, only they are a luscious purple and delicious!

 

Magical: When I pick up the branch, I lift off the ground and the branch carries me, like some odd flying machine to a world I never knew existed.

 

• I choose one (or more) of my examples and write it into my Mysterious Clue Notebook, to save for future story ideas. This is what I write:

 

I see a branch

 

Mysterious Clue. An odd-shaped branch magically carries me to a strange world where I have an exciting adventure.

 

Okay Folks! Now it’s your turn! Start your Mysterious Clue notebook today!