Writing Prompt: Cliches

I'm the Friday Editor for gather.com's official writing group, Writing Essentials. I'm in charge of content for Friday, along with posting a writing prompt every week. The responses are a lot of fun to read - there are some great writers on that site - and I've enjoyed getting to know everyone.

Using writing prompts as a way to further our skills is an excellent idea - especially if those prompts were made up by someone else. (This prevents choosing the "easy way out." :-))

I'm going to post my prompts on this blog as well. If you'd like to join in, simply write a post on your blog in response to the prompt, following the rules I mention, then come back here and comment on this post with a link to your blog. Then readers can follow along, seeing which direction you took.

Today's Prompt:

I'm obsessed with all sorts of dos and don'ts, especially those involving the written word. During the past week or so, I've mulled over cliches. Most editors will tell their authors never, ever to use them, and the reason is that they weaken the writing. Readers glaze over those phrases, never internalizing them.

This isn't good.

Of course, how do we know we're using cliches? They tend to slip in when we're least expecting them, when we're not paying attention. I propose we force ourselves to recognize these phrases. :-)

My challenge:
Write a poem/short story/memoir/essay/advertisement/novel/whatever else you feel like writing (fiction and non-fiction). It can be humorous or serious.

Rules:

• You must use three cliches.
• You must start out your writing with "It was a dark and stormy night," which counts as one of the three clichés.

And that's it! Good luck!

You have until Thursday, August 18, 2011 at midnight. (Yes, I'm giving you a deadline. Isn't that awful of me? Muwahahah!!!)

Don't forget to put a link to your blog in a comment when you've completed the challenge!