Write a story in exactly 80 words. Not 79 or 81, but exactly 80. Titles don’t count against the word count but have to be reasonable. This was a challenge I started doing on an airplane when I wrote the story that inspired “The 2nd Best Story I Ever Wrote” below. That story really was the best story I ever wrote, and I lost it somewhere between the plane and baggage claim. I was devastated, but am working towards recovery.*
What I learned: I continue to use this challenge as a reminder to efficiently use all the words in my stories. Why is each word chosen, and what impact will it have? It also motivates me to use those short moments between things to do something creative.