Today I was deleting spam email that ended up in my Junk box. I was amusing myself by thinking about the email and I came up with a few writing prompts.
1. “Enlarge Your Manhood by Three Whole Inches” This advertisement definitely makes me giggle everytime I get it in my junk folder. I am not a man. Does this mean that if I took this supplement I would become a hermaphrodite? Also if I were a man the ad is not specific about which direction the manhood would grow three inches larger. What if it grew three inches thicker? This started me thinking about such supplements and what if they did these remarkable things. What if a pill could make someone a hermaphrodite? What if it became a trend? What story could be generated from these general ideas?
2. “I am contacting you because you are the beneficiary of Mr. Blankety-Blanks estate.” I have had some wild adventures but I seriously doubt anything that I have done would merit me being the beneficiary of anyone’s estate– particularly if I could not remember the name. Well, on second thought… Anyway, write a story where the point of view character finds out that they are the beneficiary of a wealthy person’s estate who they met and had a fling with several years before.
3. “I am an African princess who is being oppressed and I need your help moving my vast wealth out of my country so that I can escape.” What if this is legitimate and the point of view character trustingly helps the “African princess”?
4. “Best gadget on the planet, order yours today!” I get a variety of these in my junk box everyday for everything from solar televisions to orthotic shoes to heal plantar fasciitis. Make up a gadget and describe what it does. Maybe the point of view character could be a salesperson. Maybe this person buys one of the gadget that seems like a fake ad or too good to be true and the gadget really does something fantastical.
5. “Easy credit for people with a bad credit history– apply today!” So, maybe there is a catch. Maybe they will give anyone credit– as long as they sign over their soul, first born child, etc. What would be something new to hold as collateral and make this fresh and have a new twist?
Just a few writing prompts.