Each day has the potential to be great. And for writers that greatness all begins in our heads.  I’ve decided to post a brainstorm this morning.  Perhaps you can add to it, comment on it, or just enjoy it.  This is a list of how writers can make every day a great day. If you’re a reader and not a writer, it doesn’t matter.  Perhaps something on this list will help you smile,think, plan, hope, act, or just enjoy your life too.

Brainstorming the writer’s life.

Ready? Set your timer for 15 minutes, and list how you’ll make today great:

• Today, the sun has come up and I’m at my desk, with all I need to write–keyboard, notepad, pen, and a great attitude.
• The Internet is a constant source of information and inspiration.  I can’t imagine how Jane Austen or Charles Dickens found all they needed in terms of information.  How lucky I am to be a writer in this day and age!
• Who needs one more mystery? We all do!  I write mysteries because I never grow tired of playing with clues and puzzles.  They keep the brain active.  So, whether I read them and try to figure out who did it, or I’m writing one where I’m playing hide and seek with clues, mysteries keep us sharp!
• Writers can make ANYTHING happen.  Give me a phone, a bee, and a little girl, and I’ll give you and adventure where she has to make a life-saving call, while under attack from that bee–and she’s allergic!  Now you play with this, and give me a story.
• Stories!  We as connected human beings need them.  The most popular book of all time–the Bible–is full of them.  Stories thrill us, teach us, give us hope, and connect our very humanity.  As a writer, it is an honor to join the chorus of storytellers across the world.
• Today is the day a writer will journal, will play with memories, and create new challenges–then use his or her imagination to overcome those challenges, and we as readers, will get to come along on the journey.
• Today, I will read an article.  It may be on the Internet, it may be in my writer’s magazine, it may be something scientific or something about homemaking.  The articles keep my brain filled with images, and when someone asks me what I’m doing?  I can say, guilt-free, that I’m working. How cool is that?
• Any experience I have today is something that may fit into a story.  I just have to be aware of what makes me laugh, cry, or learn.  Experience mixed with emotion leads to good story.
• Daydreaming is the realm of writing.  As children in school we’re scolded for daydreaming, as workers on a factory line or in an office we may risk being fired for daydreaming.  But as writers, daydreaming is essential, and no one can fault a writer for daydreaming. It’s part of the essential story stew.
• Killing off people you don’t like.  Ooh, how fun is that!  The old boss who fired you? Gone. The colleague who stabbed you in the back at work? Nothing like a good knifing on paper to get even. This is the MOST FUN!  And when do other people get to say their work is fun?
• Helping others. Yes, we writers help those around us.  The stories we share help them see things in a new light.  We help them escape from unbearable surroundings.  We inspire people to action.  We make words matter.

And with the last bullet point, my timer rang.  How did you do with this exercise?  What kind of day will you make today?

Wishing you every reading and writing happiness.