What if your brain was up for auction?

This writing activity was inspired by Dido's song, Life for Rent. The song's chorus goes:

    If my life is for rent and I don't learn to buy
    Well I deserve nothing more than I get
    'Cause nothing that I have is truly mine

[ Complete lyrics at http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/dido/lifeforrent.html ]

*If the link above doesn't work, try going to Google and searching for "life for rent dido lyrics" (without the quotes). You'll find plenty of sites that have the lyrics.

Read the chorus a few more times before continuing with this article. It'll get you in the mood :o)

One...
Two...
Three...

Done? Let's forge on.

It's pretty straightforward imagery -- Life is likened to a commodity, one that's for rent, and that premise (or metaphor) is supported by the last line: thus, saying that if one's life is for rent (and one doesn't learn how to buy things), then nothing he (she) has is really his (hers).

When we break it down, it's cause and effect, or an if...then relationship. One thing causes something to happen. Or this is the reason that thing happened. If you do this, then that is the result. You get the drift :o)

Now, here's what you're going to do. You'll play the "if-then" game. The resulting "if-then" fragments will be the basis of your creative pieces today. You can take them anywhere you want them to go. Consider this simple writing activity the sparkplug that inspired the lift-off, the conductor's baton that got the orchestra playing, the little grenade pin that slipped... Ok, I'm sure you get the drift ;o)


First, pick a number between 1 and 10:

1. eyes
2. vocal chord
3. brain
4. thumbs
5. skin
6. toenails
7. heart
8. lungs
9. legs
10. ears

Got a number picked? Good! Now, apply any or all of these to the body part that you picked:

- lease, auction, bargain/sale, barter, evaluation, adoption

You'll come up with something like these:

- If my brain was up for adoption...
- If my brain was up for auction...
- If I were to barter my brain...
- If I were to lease my brain...
- If anyone could get my brain at bargain price...

Next, add the second part -- the "then". What happens? To you? To the body part? To Donald Trump? To life on earth? Come up with not just one reason; come up with many! Preposterous reasons, serious reasons, wacky reasons, out-of-this-world reasons.

If your brain was up for auction,

- What would happen to you?
- What would happen to the person who'll own it?
- What would happen to the people who may or may not value
    the things (memories) in your brain?
- What would happen to your memories?
- What would happen if none of the bidders met your
    minimum price or reserve?

Too weird for you? OK, then give this one a go. Pick a number from 1 to 10:

1. loyalty
2. honesty
3. summer
4. weekends
5. name
6. ambition
7. career
8. love
9. job
10. bachelorhood

Again, apply any or all of these to whatever you picked:

- lease, auction, bargain/sale, barter, evaluation, adoption

And you'll come up with:

- If my loyalty was up for sale...
- If I were to barter my loyalty...
- If my loyalty is up for evaluation...
- If I were to have my loyalty adopted...
- If I could lease my loyalty...
- If my loyalty was up for auction...

You know what to do next ;o)

That's it. Have fun auctioning off those body parts! :o)


Copyright (c) 2004 Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ
Shery created WriteSparks! - a software that generates over 10
*million* Story Sparkers for Writers. Download WriteSparks! Lite
for fr*e - http://writesparks.com

Special World Of Ink Show - What we should know about Dyslexia

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Dyslexia Discussion - you won't want to miss!

 
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WOI - Special - A Brothers Badge - Host - Marsha Casper Cook

LINK TO THE LIVE SHOW AND DEMAND SHOW

Detective Michael Glade, with the San Antonio police department, has wandered onto the dark side and has run afoul of the Mexican Mafia. He battles his family and feelings while riding his collision course to its ultimate outcome.

A Good Story Is Good Story- It's all about Romance

Please welcome Marsha's guests JENNIFER STEVENS, KATHERINE RHODES and ISOBELLE CATE on Tuesday August 9 at 4PM EST 3 PM CST 2 PM MT 1 PM PST.

Successful authors discuss writing in a very lively discussion.

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 http://www.blogtalkradio.com/worldofinknetwork/2016/08/09/a-good-story-is-good-story--its-all-about-romance

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For more info - http://www.worldofinknetwork.com
http://www.marshacaspercook.com

Follow the World of Ink Network at http://worldofinknetwork.com, or on our blog http://worldofinknetwork.blogspot.com, and you can find us on Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ and Twitter.

As always you can listen to any of our shows live or on demand, at any time you'd like here on Blog Talk Radio, Facebook or iTunes. If you would like to chat with the host or our guests today, you can call in, the phone number is (714) 242-5259 or post your questions and comments in our live chatroom or on Facebook or Twitter using #WorldofInk.

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Tempting Matters

Temptation is so much a part of daily life. It started in the Garden of Eden and is constantly being dealt with by every person today.

Never been tempted, you say? Think more deeply and you'll come up with more than a handful of times you were tempted.

Temptation doesn't have to have the magnitude of a nuclear bomb. It can be a teaspoon of ice cream for a diabetic, a sip of beer for a 14-year old who's under peer pressure, a love affair with a married man/woman.

Temptation is a desire, a feeling. In Ronald Tobias' book, Twenty Master Plots, to be tempted is "to be induced or persuaded to do something that is either unwise, wrong or immoral."

There are 3 ways we can handle temptation:

- indulge it (and regret giving in to it later)
- resist it (and give in to it eventually)
- think deeply about why we shouldn't do it (and come to the conclusion that it's either something we really want or really don't want anyway)

However way we choose to handle a temptation, there is always a consequence.

Based on what you've read above, create 3 versions for any (or all) of the given situations below -- one where the character gives in to the temptation, one where he/she resists it, and one where he/she thinks deeply about why he/she shouldn't give in to it. What happens? How does each story version go?

a. A woman is promoted to manager. On her first top-level meeting, the owner wants his pet project approved. The other managers agree, but the new manager has reservations. She thinks it will cause the company financial problems in the long run. She is pressured by the other managers to "go with the flow," approve the project and deal with any consequences later.

b. A college student crams for a crucial exam. He is tempted to cheat on examination day. He cannot afford to fail the exam because his scholarship depends on it.

c. A 10-year old is tempted to "invent" a best friend she left in her old school when she goes to a new school. She thinks she'll fit in more quickly if she tells stories about the "cool" things she and her best friend did.

d. A father, after his wife dies from giving birth, is lost and doesn't know how he'll take care of his child. He is tempted to leave the baby in an orphanage.

e. A coach conducts a trial for new team members. One of them is the son/daughter of the coach's long-time enemy. The coach sees this opportunity to get back at his/her enemy by rejecting the son/daughter even if he/she is one of the best among those who tried out.

If fiction isn't your style, try listing 5-7 temptations you faced last month. Explore what might have happened if you did the opposite. (If you gave in to the temptation, what might have happened if you had resisted it?)


Copyright (c) 2004 Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ

Shery created WriteSparks! - a software that generates over 10*million* Story Sparkers for Writers. Download WriteSparks! Lite for fr*e - http://writesparks.com
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