Purple Pencil Ice Cream Adventure

July is National Ice Cream Month! There's nothing like a refreshing ice cream cone or a milkshake, especially in this hot summer weather ...

What is your favorite flavor of ice cream, the best way to eat it, the most delicious toppings? Describe your favorite ice cream dish - using your senses, especially taste, touch and sight. Be sure to include how eating it makes you feel. Feel free to do research - eat ice cream - for the most accurate description.

Write about your Ice Cream Adventure in the comments.

Purple Pencil Food Holiday Adventure

Today is National Doughnut Day! Krispy Kreme is giving away free doughnuts at participating locations and Dunkin Donuts is giving away a free donut with beverage purchase.

What food do you think deserves it's own holiday? Why? How would you celebrate it? And what restaurant is most likely to do a giveaway?

Write about your ideal food holiday in the comments.

Purple Pencil Screenwriters Adventure

Last night, I saw Writers Guild of America and Academy Award nominated screenwriters speak on the art and craft of writing on the WGA panel: Beyond Words.

The panel included WGA-award nominees: Annie Mumolo, who wrote Bridesmaids with Kristen Wiig; Alexander Payne, The Descendants, John Logan, Hugo; Steven Zaillian - who also adapted The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - and Aaron Sorkin and Stan Chervin, Moneyball; Tate Taylor, The Help; and Will Reiser, 50/50.

What was your favorite movie of last year? If given the opportunity, what questions would you ask the writer? Was there a scene that didn't make sense? Was there a character you wanted to get more - or less - screen-time? Do you have an idea for a sequal?

Write your questions for which screenwriters/films in the comments.

Check out the Writers Guild, Academy Award and Spirit Award writing nominees?

Purple Pencil Gift Adventure

It's holiday time, and people are all looking for the best gifts to get for their favorite people.

What is the best gift you ever received? Why? Who gave it to you?

Write about your favorite gift in the comments.

Purple Pencil Halloween Adventure

Happy Halloween!

How are you celebrating the holiday? Are you dressing up? As what? Did you make your own costume? What inspired you to dress up this way?

Have fun!

Write about your Halloween Adventure in the comments section below.

Purple Pencil Dictionary Adventure

October 16th is National Dictionary Day! Here's a great way to celebrate:

- Go to the dictionary - or go to dictionary.com.

- Find 5 words you don't already know. Or you can pick 5 unfamiliar words from a book and look them up.

- Write down each word and its definition. Then, write five sentences; use one new word in each sentence.

- Challenge your friends and family to do the same.

This is a fabulous way to expand your vocabulary!

Write about your Dictionary Adventure in the comments section below. Bonus points for using one of your new words.

Purple Pencil Field Trip Adventure

October is National Field Trip Month. Have you been on any field trips yet this school year? Do you have any field trips coming up soon?

If you could plan your own field trip, where would you go? What would you do? Be creative. The sky's the limit!

Write up your ideal field trip in the comments section below.

Purple Pencil Party Adventure

Plan a party where your guests are fictional characters from some of your favorite books. Then write all about it. Who attended? What did you eat? What did you talk about? How did you decorate? What games did you play?

Write about your party adventure in the comments.

Ice Cream Adventure

July is National Ice Cream Month! There's nothing like a cool treat on a hot summer day!

What's your favorite flavor? What's your favorite topping? Do you have the perfect scrumptious combination that no one knows about yet? Create your own special ice cream dessert. Then write about it ... don't just write up your special recipe, also reveal your experience making it and eating it.

Share your Ice Cream Adventure in the comments.

Audiobook Adventure

June is Audiobook Awareness Month. So, make an audiobook!

Just write a short story, practice reading it aloud, and record it. It'll be fun. Plus, you will have a new appreciation of your words when you hear them being read.

Write about your Audiobook Adventure in the comments section.

Friday the 13th Adventure

It’s Friday the 13th! What are you superstitious about? In what ways are your friends, classmates, and characters superstitious?

This is a fun exercise in people-watching and character development.

Post your answers in the comments section below.

Comic Book Adventure

Saturday, May 7, is Free Comic Book Day!

Every year, participating comic book shops give away comic books on the first Saturday in May. Ask your local store for their rules/participation guidelines.

Have you ever thought about writing your own comic book? Who would be the main character? On what adventures would you send him or her?

Write about your Comic Book Adventure in the comments section.

Earth Day Adventure

Earth Day is April 22. More than 1 billion people participate in Earth Day activities. How are you going to celebrate?

Write about your Earth Day Adventure in the comments section below.

April Challenge Adventure

It's April! And that means there are some awesome opportunities! You can write a screenplay in a month for Script Frenzy (there's a kids version), take the Poem a Day Challenge for National Poetry Month (or join One Billion Poets.com, which is a poetry site for teens around thw world), or come up with something spectacular and ongoing to do during the month of April.

You can win a prize just for declaring Your April Challenge!

Here's how it works:

1. Post in comments to the April Challenge Post what you will be participating in during the month of April: Script Frenzy, the Writers Digest Poem-A-Day Challenge, or declare another "challenge," such as writing a blog post a day, a submission a day, a book, etc.

2. Go for it!

3. Keep the Write On! Community posted by responding to requests for progress on Write On! Online and on the Facebook page ... this also serves as a way we can continue to cheer each other on!*

4. Write! And have fun!

5. Four winners will be chosen at random to receive a book thanks to Michael Wiese Productions.

* Plus: Every time you post, during a call for updates, you will receive another entry in the drawing! Keep your eye on the Facebook page for bonus entry opportunities!

Each of the four winners will choose a books from Michael Wiese Productions as their prize.

Post the way in which you will Challenge Yourself in April here. Don't forget to check back in throughout and at the end of the month, too. Four winners will be chosen at random. Winners will be announced on Tuesday, May 10, on Write On! Online and in the May Write On! Newsletter.

Write On!

Spring Adventure

Spring arrived last Sunday. The weather will start getting nicer ... if it hasn't already ... leading to a season of lots of fun outdoor activities.

How are you celebrating the beginning of Spring?

Write about your Spring Adventure in the comments section below.

Marathon Adventure

The Los Angeles Marathon is this Sunday, March 20. The New York Half Marathon is also on Sunday.

Since writing ... just like running ... is exercise, why not write about the other kinds of exercise you enjoy. Are you a runner? Do you like individual or team sports? Martial arts?

Write about your Marathon Adventure in the comments section below.

Winter Escape Adventure

As we head into March, there's still plenty of winter weather left, especially if you live in the East Coast or Midwest.

If you could go anywhere or do anything, what would it be?

Write about your Winter Escape "Adventure" in the comments section below.

Writing Prompt Adventure

Writing Prompts are great for jump-starting your writing. Each week, I give you topics to write about. This week, it's your turn.

Come up with your own writing prompt. It can be a location, an object, a word you pick out of a book. It can be a noun, verb, or adjective that will inspire you to get your writing going.

Once you have this writing prompt, use it!

As always, be creative and have fun!

Post your writing prompt and a few lines from your Writing Prompt Adventure in the comments section below. Who knows? You may see your writing prompt in an upcoming Purple Pencil Adventure!

Musical Adventure

This Sunday is the Super Bowl, followed by a new episode of Glee. Are you musical? Do you sing or play an instrument? Do you enjoy listening to music? What's your favorite kind of music? How does music make you feel?

When you are a writer, it's important to tune into all of your senses.

Please write about how you feel about music in the comments section below.

Note: For more about young people who love music, check out my video profile on The Ghouls, made up of elementary school students, Leo (9) and Ezra (7) Golub and Logan Fischer (9) on Mar Vista Patch.

Talk Show Adventure

On this day in 1952 The Today Show premiered on NBC.

If you were to have a talk show, what would it be? What's your title, subject, and format? Daytime or late night? Would you have a co-host or co-hosts? Who is your dream team?

As always, be creative and have fun!

Please post your Talk Show pitch in the comments section below.