Roll a die three times and jot down the three results. (If you don’t have a die to hand, pick three numbers between 1 and 6 without looking at the choices below.) Rewrite a short version of the story in the genre and with the requirement that match your numbers.

STORY

1. Oliver Twist
2. Romeo & Juliet
3. The Wind in the Willows
4. Jane Eyre
5. Charlotte’s Web
6. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

GENRE

1. Horror
2. Romantic Comedy
3. Science Fiction
4. Mystery/Suspense
5. Young Adult
6. Western

REQUIREMENT

1. Original protagonist is now the villain
2. A pineapple is the key to resolving the conflict
3. One of the main characters is a ghost
4. At some point a chicken must be involved
5. A minor character is a mind reader
6. The main character is deathly afraid of spiders

So if I rolled a 5, 2, and 6, I would be rewriting Charlotte’s Web as a romantic comedy in which the main character is deathly afraid of spiders. Yup, that should get my brain working…