As a huge fan of Jeopardy, and a lover of research, I decided to take a break from creative writing prompts today and instead offer an exercise that involves swift research and succinct wording.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Jeopardy (perhaps you live outside of the States or somehow manage to block out all quiz shows?), it is a TV game show where three contestants face off to answer clues. There are three rounds - two rounds of 30 clues, divided evenly into six categories with a monetary value proportionate to the difficulty of the clue, and one final jeopardy round where contestants hedge their bets on a single clue in a single category. Contestants give answers in the form of a question. (i.e. Category: Colors in Nature. Clue: Chlorophyl is this color, almost universal in the plant kingdom. Answer: What is green?)
Naturally, winners must be knowledgeable, but also lucky in the categories and quick with the buzzer. I believe I would have made a fabulous contestant back in high school, but sadly my memory of literature, American history and religious texts would now leave me mediocre at best.
writing exercise: Create Jeopardy clues within a single category for the following answers:
What is ... Amsterdam, Boston, Cairo, London, Tokyo?
Assign each clue one of the following monetary values according to the level of difficulty:
$400, $800, $1200, $1600, $2000
Do your research before you post your clues to make sure they are accurate and only lead to the response you seek!
(Click "read more" to see writercizer sample response.)
writercizer response:
Category: World Cities
Clues:
Monetary Value - Clue - Answer
$400 - Host of the 2012 Summer Olympics - What is London?
$800 - It's State House was coined "Hub of the Solar System" by Oliver Wendall Holmes - What is Boston?
$1200 - European city known for its 100+ km of canals and 1200+ bridges - What is Amsterdam?
$1600 - This "City of 1000 Minarets" is home to the Khan el-Khalili, a bazaar dating back to 1382 - What is Cairo?
$2000 - Edo, meaning "estuary," was the former name of this capital city
exercises to inspire word play, hone the craft of the written word and bulldoze writer's block for authors, bloggers, poets, freelancers, teachers, students, dreamers and writers of all kind
Capital of the Netherlands - What is Amsterdam? $400.00
ReplyDeleteFounded on September 17, 1630 - What is Boston? $800.00
Founded by the Fatimid dynasty in the 10th Century - What is Cairo? $1200
In 2009, this city recorded the heaviest snowfall in 18 years - What is London? $1600
This city has 23 wards - What is Tokyo? $2000
I don't know if these were very challenging, but it was a fun exercise!
Hi! Just stopping by from the A to Z Challenge!
ReplyDeletegigglelaughcry.blogspot.com
Your recent exercises for the "He Said She Said" and "Imagine If" have been a little challenging but instead of skipping too many of them, I really like this one and decided to use it as a writing prompt for my post for the letter "K" today.
ReplyDeleteI put a spin on your spin though, lol, for my post and instead of the cities being the answers, I used them as part of the clues. However, one of the answers to my clues are directly related to your answers here.
Thanks for the writing exercises. Your blog is a really useful tool....not only just for novel writers but also for bloggers who may be stuck on ideas or structure for what they want to write about next!
I'm so glad to have found your blog during this monthly challenge and while I may have mentioned this already in a previous comment on one of your posts, it's worth repeating :)
The Madlab Post
Potpourri, $1000. The answer is: The lack of the ability to provide a clue pertaining to your writing exercise proves the existence and nature of this phenomenon.
ReplyDeleteThe question: What is I couldn't come up with any good question on the spur of the moment?
Excellent challenge! And it's a pleasure to meet you via A-Z!
Brianna - that totally works!
ReplyDeleteGiggle, Laugh, Cry - thanks for stopping by. :)
Nicole - thank you again! Love your spin on it too ... I'm off to do my research and post an answer on your site. Very creative way to incorporate the cities, Jeopardy, some cultural knowledge and a research twist.
Jeffrey - Funny. Thanks for checking out my site - I hope you'll comment frequently! Nice to meet you as well. :) I'll head over to your blog to see how you're interpreting A-Z too!!