Build a character's traits based on the meaning of their first or last name. You may have to consult a baby name website or Ancestry.com. Write a scene or story starring your new character.

Visit a park, coffee shop, or another public place that is buzzing with activity. Take note of what you hear the people around you say. Begin an original scene or story that includes something you overheard.

Write a scene or story that includes a character fulfilling someone's dying wish.

Write a scene or story that includes a character confronting the decision to make a big change in their life.

Write a scene or story in which a character receives an unusual gift.

Write a scene or story that involves a dream. It could be a character waking up from a dream, describing a dream they had to another person, realizing they are in a strange dream, etc.

Write a scene or story in which someone acts outside of their normal behavior.

Write a scene or story that explores your character's most embarrassing moment.

Write a scene or story that includes a character being thankful for something unusual.

Write a scene or story that includes a character either taking a dare, or revealing a secret about themselves.

Write a scene or story that includes a simile. Try to create a simile that has never been written before—no "it was warm as an oven"s. 

A knock on your door reveals a stranger who hands you their business card, claiming they are The Lesser of Two Evils. Write a scene or story that reveals what happens next. 

You are a ghost or demon who is about to be exorcised. How will you avoid this horrid fate?

Write a scene or story that includes a piece of candy.

Imagine your character is a child or camp counselor at a summer camp that is the setting of a horror-comedy movie. Write a letter home to family or friends from your character's perspective, telling your family about the strange happenings at camp.

Write a scene or story that includes a monster or another character from a horror movie.

Write a scene or story that includes a character wearing a disguise or costume.

Write a story or scene in which your protagonist faces an obstacle. What is this obstacle? How does it stand in the way of your character and what they desire? How does your character respond to this obstacle?

Write a scene or story that includes a character receiving an invitation, or showing up to an event that they were invited to. What was the invitation for? What ensues after the invitation is accepted? Does the character feel like a fish out of water when they attend the event?

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human characteristics to something that isn't human, such as animal or object. Write a scene or story that includes anthropomorphism. 

Begin with something familiar from your own life—such as a past event, something you know how to do, a character inspired by someone you know, or a place from your life—and put it in a fictionalized scene or story.