About this tool

This generator throws one object into the mix — the stranger the better — and challenges students to find a way to write it into their story. It's a simple constraint that does a lot of work: instead of staring at a blank page, students are suddenly solving a small puzzle, which tends to loosen up even reluctant writers. Try pairing it with the story dice or the character generator so students have to reconcile an odd object with an existing plot and cast. Generate a new object for every table or every draft, and let the mismatches lead somewhere funny.