Yn Nor Workshop
By Vitora
Whenever I’m
looking through the Writer’s Digest Book Club catalogue or scrolling through
the library’s listing of writer’s books, I’m always a little upset. Not because of a lack of selection—there’s a
heck of a lot more out there for writers than you might think—or lack of
quality—these books get pretty detailed, and some are even ones I’d consider
reading for pleasure—but because of the lack of activity books. Books that detail, step by step, exercises
for generating ideas, characters, names, locations, everything.
And while
I don’t plan on adding to the few that are out there at any point in the near
future, I think I’ll make it a little easier on those who feel the same. Every month, expect a new activity in the Yn Nor Workshop series to help you come up with interesting new
scraps for your writing life.
September—Patchwork Character
You’ve
seen them—the LiveJournal or email quizzes that get passed around that you fill
out to let everyone know little-known facts about you. Here’s your chance to create a character
using the same technique—an odd quiz of sorts.
Name:
[First
word you see to your right] – [the first vowel and
consonant combination in the word] – [the last letter] + [your two favorite
letters of your first name, inserted wherever you’d like] + [the second last
name you randomly see in your phone book].
Example:
Schedule – he = Scdule + as = Scasdule + Tanner = Scasdule Tanner
Age:
[The
number of pets you’ve had over the course of your life] x [your age] – [the
number of siblings you have] / [the first number you see above you], rounded to
the nearest integer.
Example:
5 x 15 = 75 – 2 = 73 / 6 = 12.
Gender:
[The gender of the first character that comes to mind].
Example:
Spongebob = male.
Eye Color:
[The
color of your bedspread] + [the color of the sky at the time] (check crayons
for the color name).
Example:
Green + blue = greenish-blue/aqua.
Hair Color:
[The color of the closest tree’s bark].
Example:
Gray-brown.
Height:
[The
first number you see to your left] + [5] / [the number of computers you own +
1], in feet.
Example:
7 + 5 = 12 / 2 = 6 feet.
Parents’ Name (you have to choose, as some will come out sounding male
and some female):
[First
word you see below you] + [first word you see to your left] – [3 consonants and
2 vowels] + [your last name backwards] – [all of the
first letter of your mother’s name].
Example:
Stuff + audiovox = Stuffaudiovox – f,v,x,u,o = Stufadiox
+ Smailliw – L = Stufadiox Smaiiw.
(Hey,
it needs adjustment, but so does everything else.)
Birthplace:
[Location
in book you’re currently reading].
Example:
Coruscant (Star Wars world).
Motivation:
[To]
+ [first handwritten verb you see, present tense] + [his/her/its, whichever is
appropriate] + [first plural noun you see].
Example:
To govern his dragons.
…time for WACKY
STUFF! Yay.
Favorite Food:
[Best
thing you had for dinner last night] + [worst thing you’ve ever eaten] + [what
you’ll have for your next late-night snack].
Example:
Chicken with Circle D’s salsa and cereal.
Most Prized Possession:
[First
adjective you see] + [first object you see to your upper right].
Example:
An iron poster.
Title of Favorite Song:
[The]
+ [first adjective that comes to mind] + [first color you see] + [first object
you see] + [by the] + [second adjective that comes to mind] + [first animal you
see, plural].
Example:
The Broken White Pillow, by the Fluffy Lions.
If this does nothing more than
make you laugh, I still will have accomplished my goal—getting your ideas
flowing. Yes, the names are silly…yes, the favorite things are pretty stupid… But hey. Maybe you’ll end up with at least a name and
age to base a character on.