Of course, it was inevitable.

[gridlore]

That the moment I resolve to start writing, I get the worst case of writer's block ever.

Which leads me to ask for your help.

Suggest a topic for me to write 500 words on. It could be a setting, a character, or even a simple emotion, noun, or one-wpord description. Be as precise or as vague as you want to be. I only ask that if I do your suggestion, you give me feedback.

Thanks.

Comments

[fearsclave.livejournal.com]

Redslayer.

Topics

[lostwanderfound.livejournal.com]

Future implications of mechanical mindreading technology, in relation to either artistic creation (what use for artists when anyone can literally videotape their own imagination?) or interrogation. See:

Kay, K.N., Naselaris, T., Prenger, R.J. & Gallant, J.L. (2008) Identifying natural images from human brain activity. Nature, 452(20), 352-356.

Stanley, G. B., Li, F. F. & Dan, Y. (1999) Reconstruction of natural scenes from ensemble responses in the lateral geniculate nucleus. J. Neurosci. 19, 8036–8042.

Thirion, B., Duchesnay, E., Hubbard, E., Dubois, J. Poline, J., Lebihan, D. & Dehaened, S. (2006) Inverse retinotopy: Inferring the visual content of images from brain activation patterns. NeuroImage 33, 1104–1116.

[melchar.livejournal.com]

Simplest thing evar ^_^ ... write up a table game experience with a game system you like and just TRY to stop at 500 words [evil chuckle]

[eleri.livejournal.com]

What if there was a colour only you could see...everyone else saw it as a shade of grey.

[caerbannogbunny.livejournal.com]

An academic or other expert whose entire talent is based on the ability to identify other people's current financial value by looking them over.

Now, imagine he... or she... has the duty of determining who is allowed to enter through a particular airport or spaceport or other portal.

The expert also has access to financial records...

Gee, I was thinking of my pet theory.

[capplor.livejournal.com]

A young idealist decides to play a public prank, and gets some kind of commentator job, say like in talk radio. He creates this persona, very conservative, but makes him such a buffoon that he can't imagine anybody taking him seriously, or at least not for very long. But he can't make the character absurd enough. He's considered a leader and his most absurd pronouncements are treated like great wisdom. Finally he's afraid that if he admits to the joke, disgruntled dittoheads would tear him apart.

[twfarlan.livejournal.com]

Thoughts of an infantry grunt on a hostile alien world during a lull between actions.

[guppiecat]

Superhero team that couldn't make it in the big cities, has to fight crime in Boise. Have appropriately pathetic powers, but use them in creative ways.

[john-appel.livejournal.com]

BAYONETS!

[kengr]

Grandfather's kids.

[crankyoldgoat.livejournal.com]

Strephon & Ilian's wrestling match at the Academy.

You alluded to it in the piece you've already posted.

I've more than once taken something that is part of the background of one story and expanded it into its own story. A reference to an assasination attempt in my Empress story has become about 3K words in itself.

[darthgeek.livejournal.com]

Evil lessons to pass on to your nieces and nephews.

[seawasp]

Daleks.

[buzzgunner.livejournal.com]

Draw from your OWN material, Doug: brain-stealing penguins!

Skipper: "OK, we're going in, boys. Kowalski, stand by with the anesthetic. Rico, stop playing with the scalpels. Once we're finished with the incision, the private is going to dash in, grab the hippocampus, and RUN!"

Organizational tech in a FRP world.

[speaker2packets.livejournal.com]

Think of challenges that reflect modern organization or thinking, not just hardware implemented by magic. (that's a separate topic; I once drove the DM nuts by using EW/ELINT ideas for spells). Example: the DM decided to have a war. I had a cleric entitled to followers. I asked permission to roll stats for each, and that I could use the adverturer-grade ones. Took a few months out of game time, and used the high-level to distribute the equivalent of Special Forces split-A detachments to villages. Baddie king started getting ambushed outside villages. He summoned demons to go with his heavy units. My guerillas pulled ambushes -- only on the pack animals and fade away. Demons started eating his troops. That kind of sneaky.