You don't have to stop at just one sentence, see how much you can wring from these one to three word prompts. Go beyond the dictionary with the word(s)---tap into how these words make you feel, what sorts of emotions they elicit. There's more to words than the letters that spell them. By going beyond the superficial and obvious, you'll add depth and texture to your writing. Have fun!
Autumn leaves, woodsmoke
Rainbow(s)
Ice skating, hot chocolate, music
M & M's, beach
Waterfall
Eerie, fog, river
The fun thing about these is there's a bit more to work with, and three different people can do the same one and come up with three totally unique paragraphs/scenes. I always find that so fascinating---what diversity springs from the same source. Isn't imagination a wonderful thing?
A quick aside: cliches are cliches for obvious reasons, but I always find it fun to see what new life I can breathe into the oldies---probably moldies---but goldies. I've included a couple that I'm fond of, just for the halibut. It's all perspective and we're all gifted with unique viewpoints, and when our own individual styles and voices come into play, suddenly a cliche doesn't seem so, well, cliche-y.
Another quick aside: Because I hesitate to name characters for other people to use, the key here is as follows: 'H' = Hero and 'h' = heroine where I haven't used the appropriate pronouns. Take a moment to claim the characters as your own by naming them.
She spotted him across the crowded room, her eyes drawn to him by the breadth of his shoulders and the height that put him a good two to three inches taller than the other men at the party. More than that, though, he looked familiar to 'h'---hauntingly familiar along the periphery of her memories. Intrigued, she couldn't help but seek him out...
'H' stood in the middle of the street, turning in a slow circle as he looked into the inky darkness for any sign of the woman he'd just kissed...
The silver of the mirror enveloped 'h'---impossible, her mind argued---but eyes couldn't lie, and standing right before her, plain as day and as solid as could be, was a...
Okay, so the day in the life of a superhero wasn't exactly what comic books or Hollywood portrayed. Where was the fun and romance in continually saving Metropolis from evil giant robots? Oh, and contrary to the popular media's portrayal of superheros somehow finding one another and forming a supportive community? That so didn't happen. No, you got some big deal---to his way of thinking---hero who thought he was God's Gift, with the matching ego to go with---who thought *girls* couldn't possibly be up for the "strenuous work required of today's modern superhero" who tried to come in and take over your territory. But she wasn't going to stand for that. Oh, hell no...
The backflashes often overwhelmed 'h', especially in ancient cities and old streets. At times in these fugue states she couldn't discern between what was real and what was a vision. Even as the modern buildings faded into the mist, replaced by the visage of a more primal, harder time, she wondered what would happen if she just reached out to touch one? What harm could come from rubbing her hand over the rough texture of what looked to be a public house...?
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