Friday Fun Challenge: The "One Word, Five Ways" Writing Exercise

Writing doesn’t have to feel like work all the time. This fun Friday exercise will help you loosen up, stretch your creativity, and rediscover the joy of playing with words.

This week, we’ve practiced tightening our writing by cutting vague words, choosing stronger verbs, and making every sentence more vivid. But writing isn’t just about precision. It’s also about play.

When you spend so much time trying to get things right—hitting word counts, meeting deadlines, crafting the perfect pitch—it’s easy to forget the joy of simply exploring language.

Today, as we do every Friday in the Writers’ Den, we’re setting aside the rules and stretching our creativity in a way that feels fresh, fun, and maybe even a little weird.

Your challenge: Take one word and describe it using all five senses.

How does cold sound? How does bright taste? What does sharp feel like beyond the obvious? Push past the first thing that comes to mind. Make it unexpected, fresh, and layered.

Try it with one of these words:

• Cold

• Bright

• Heavy

• Sharp

• Bitter

Example: Sharp

• Sight: A blade catches the light, silver slicing through shadow.

• Sound: Ice cracking underfoot, a sudden snap in the stillness.

• Taste: The first bite of grapefruit, sour and electric on the tongue.

• Touch: A paper cut you don’t notice until the sting blooms seconds later.

• Smell: The clean, metallic tang of fresh-cut lemons.

Set a timer for 15 minutes and go all in. Choose one word and stretch it in every possible direction. No overthinking—just write.

You might surprise yourself with what comes out. And who knows? You might stumble on the spark of a new story.

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