A figure artist I know once told me that when she needs to get back to learning the basics, she goes back to eggs, sketching them to learn anew form and shadow and shape. 'An egg a day.' I like that idea.

Writers may not be able to draw eggs, but we can write about them. 

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Egg #60: The Last Egg

Part of the unnerving beauty of being human is that there is always a last time for every activity. Sometimes we know when it is, like the last day of school, or the last time we walk out of the door of a job we have resigned from. Other times, we don't know. We don't always know the last time we will kiss someone before the relationship ends, or the last time we will see someone before they die an untimely death. Of course, part of this is that we, ourselves, being mortal, do not know the last time we will perform any specific activity. For instance, we do not know the last time we hear the song 'Stormy Weather,' or the last time we will eat a peach. 

With this in mind, write a passage that begins 'Although I did not know it at the time, it was to be the last egg I would ever eat.' 

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Egg #59: Eggs, Holes, Bones

In his novel, "Await Your Rely," Dan Chaon writes this passage about a character who has lost a hand and is living in a country where he must learn to speak Spanish:

     The keen sense of loss had faded, and these days he found that he stumbled less and less over that absence. He could dress and even tie his shoes without much trouble. He could make toast and coffee, crack an egg into a skillet, all one-handed, and some days he wouldn't even bother to wear his prosthesis.
    "Eggs" was one of the words that he sometimes stumbled over.
    Huevos? Huecos? Huesos? Eggs, holes, bones.


Write a passage in which a character stumbles over the word 'egg' with other
 words that sound similar. Use the example of the Spanish, or another language, if you wish. You can even make up a language. The idea is to play with the language a bit and to create parallels that evoke the emotions the character is experiencing.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Egg #58: Gallery Eggs

An art gallery has an exhibit of eggs drawn by a local artist, and it is opening night. Record a few lines of conversation by a couple who attend the show, a few lines between the woman who works at the gallery and a friend of hers, and a few lines that are exchanged between the artist and his or her significant other. This is all about perspective--looking at the same event from a few different viewpoints.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Egg #57 : Death Row Egg

The short story "Last Requests," by Giles Smith, is told from the point of view of a woman who prepares the final meals for prisoners on Death Row. While some of the prisoners have simple requests, such as a meal from McDonald's or a take-out curry, other requests are more specific, such as the inmate who desires "two guinea fowl, wrapped in bacon and roasted, with buttered green beans and mashed celeriac."

Write a last meal request for a prisoner who wants an egg. How does he or she want it prepared? Do they request anything else with the meal? What crime landed the prisoner on Death Row?

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Egg #56 : Still Life With Egg and Gin

Write a scene which includes an egg, a bottle of gin, a cigar, a sidewalk hopscotch game, a canary and a cold bean burrito.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Egg #55 : All You Ever Wanted to Know About Eggs

For 10 minutes, write down, without stopping, everything you know about eggs. If it goes off subject, that's okay - the important thing is to just keep writing.

Circle 4 of the things and incorporate them into the conversation of a man on a first date who is so nervous, he can't stop babbling about eggs.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Egg #54 : The Dangerous Egg

Write a brief scene that begins with the line "The egg didn't look dangerous."

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