From: Round em up Raw Words To: time to STRETCH Subject: EXERCISE: Whirrrrrrrrrr... [maybe I can give up sleeping? sure, that would get me at least an hour or two more each day...] In my magic mirror, I see lots of shiny new faces...and plenty of grimy little repeat offenders, too. Hello to one and all, welcome to the list where words never stop, although they may limp a little. Sometimes. Shall we see what we can do today, class? Suppose we started with this little bitty piece of prose: They looked in the window, choked, and hurried away in shock. Now, you might have some notions about who "they" are. You might even have an idea what kind of window it is. And I'm sure you have some fiendishly wicked notions of what is inside that makes them choke and run... So, take a little bit of time and expand the tale. Don't forget to build in all the pits and beaches that make up a grand tale--characterization, conflict, dramatic personification of inanimus, perhaps a flair for the absurd? Anyway, make it a tale full of marvels! [you say you want to know what's buried in the closet? are you sure you are ready? really? positively? well, you think about it, okay?] Write! tink