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Writing dare: Your characters stop what they are doing to go inside and get a nice warm cup of coffee

It is cold outside. You characters decide to take a break and go inside to warm up. They enjoy a nice hot cup of coffee as they talk…

Writing Dare: Write an entire chapter describing complex events that turn out to be from fifty years ago

Write an entire chapter describing complex events that turn out to be from fifty years ago. Bonus points if vampires are involved you make this chapter relevant by…

IRL writing dare: Write on a bus

We dare you to write part of your story while riding on a bus.

Writing dare: An argument over biscuits (cookies)

Events in your story have to stop while two or more characters get into an argument over who gets to eat the last biscuit (cookie).

IRL writing dare: Write while listening to this white noise on loud

We dare you to write while listening to this white noise track loudly. (Maybe use headphones).

Writing dare: As your previous chapter ends, a time loop causes your characters to live through those events a second time

Due to advanced magic or poorly understood technology, time rewinds and your characters must live through the events of the last chapter a second time. Maybe they change…

IRL writing dare: Dress for success

We dare you to dress in your smartest or most outrageous clothes as if you were about to receive the Book of the Year award for your novel….

Writing dare: Your character reveals a huge secret

Perhaps they were not thinking. Maybe they did not realise it was a secret. Maybe their mouth started before their brain. It could be that they say the…

IRL writing dare: In the garden, at night, in your pyjamas

We dare you to write at least 500 words at night in the garden while wearing pyjamas. Bonus points if you only use a pencil, paper, and a…

Writing Dare: Where you are up to add a character called Dan who is bad news

With no fanfare or warning, right where you are up to now, add in a character called Dan. Dan is a bad influence on everyone. Bonus points if…

IRL writing dare: Bowl of melting ice cream sprint

Get yourself a bowl of ice cream. Put it next to where you write. Start writing. You cannot eat the ice cream until you reach your daily word…

Writing dare: Everything up to now has been a fairly prophetic hallucination

This is a bold and challenging dare – throw out everything that has happened as a hallucination and then re-tell what actually happened (with many details different). How…

IRL writing dare: Sneak off for a quick loo break and sneak in some writing

We dare you to take a five-minute loo break and use that time to write (using the loo optional).

IRL writing dare: Write in the bath using only charcoal

Write at least a page while soaking in a hot bath. Write only using a stick of charcoal. You can get charcoal from Amazon or a local art…

Writing dare: Someone saves a bad situation with the timely gift of coffee

Maybe your character is too tired to work. Perhaps there has been a minor argument. It might be that a character is cold and wet. Whatever the reason,…

IRL writing dare: Bowl of fruit

Get yourself a bowl of fruit. Get as many different fruits as you can – apples (one red, one green), a banana, a plumb, a peach, and so…

Writing dare: Someone gets five wishes but there is a catch

One of your characters is given five colourful stones. Each one will grant a single wish. One grants the wish perfectly as imagined by the wisher. Three grant…

IRL writing dare: Sing in the shower about your plot ideas

We dare you to sing (as loudly as you can) in the shower or bath about your upcoming plot ideas.

Writing dare: Incorporate as many headlines from the fantasy news generator as you can

The fantasy news generator is a blog that I created which takes real headlines and does a bunch of word replacements to make news from the world of…

#NaNoWriMo tip: Sprinkle in a little ironic misunderstanding

Here is a tip to pad out your word count and make your plot a little longer. Have your protagonist misunderstand an instruction or a situation. Have them…

Writing dare: Everything is put on hold by a massive bunch of keys

To progress, your characters need to use a key to open something. The key they need is part of a massive collection of keys. Everything grinds to a…

#NaNoWriMo padding: Debate the pros and cons

Have your characters debate the pros and cons of a number of possible options. Have them explore the topic so completely that they chose an unexpected option.

Writing dare: Use one or more words from The Fictional Dictionary of Bad Language

Use one or more of the inventive words from The Fictional Dictionary of Bad Language. The fictional dictionary is available in ebook form on Amazon. Below is a…

IRL writing dare: Write under a table

Write at least 500 words while under a table. Bonus points if this is in a public place.