The assignment for today is based on the idea of starting to think about the story by finding a starting point. The truth is, we only tell a small section of someone's life, most of the time, when writing a story. We pick a starting point, go from there, then find a place to stop. Lives would go on before and after but we can't write everything in a single book, so find a spot to mark as a start for a novel in this assignment. If you end up using it as the start of chapter 1 great and if not, that is just fine too. Prep will help the story develop and things change over time, so don't worry if things change during prep. On the other hand, if things go well with the assignment today, you might have something to reference on Day 1 of November, when you start writing.

Anyone who has taken part in "Chapter One"  [18+] might have an advantage here.

Assignment details: (1) Describe your protagonist's life in the beginning (Ordinary World or Stasis) of the story. Brainstorm ways you could establish normality through action and dialog to avoid boring your reader.
(2) Describe the inciting incident or trigger (Call to Adventure) that prompts your protagonist(s) to embark on this story's journey (whether literal or metaphorical) and face the conflict. This incident could be large and obvious like a death or disaster, or it could be seemingly insignificant, such as an offhand comment by another character.

(1) Life as it stands.

This part of the assignment we get to consider what the character was doing before things started changing, before they get the invitation to train for magic, before a murder is discovered... whatever happens to put things in motion, we don't need to worry about that in this part of the story. It's also not all going to go in the novel but it's good for the reader to know, just like the backstory from day 4. We can get details and have a little fun even. Are they working? Are they having a lazy weekend at home? There are so many options to consider and unlike most stories we need to write, in this very moment, no conflict is needed.

Example: They might be going to the kitchen to make coffee or gather things to go out for breakfast and they notice something shiny. On the floor, near the dish washer, a small butterfly shape is discovered that is reflective. Downstairs, on the walls, are shiny decorations. Nearby, a cat looks on then licks her paw. How did the cat get a sticky butterfly decal off the wall and upstairs? What a silly cat.

Yes... this is true and her name is JiJi.

That was just an example but for fiction, I have characters going about their usual work days. One owns a metaphysical story so he's selling crystals, tarot cards, metaphysical books and incense. The other is a cop or detective (I'm not certain on how things work so it could be either title at this point) that likes donuts. He often gets them with his partner and they have a set type they get depending on how their week is going. They are getting ready for another day at work, another case. Nothing big. In the romance, flamboyant Christian is getting ready for a date with an older man, though not the oldest he has gone out with but he also doesn't know the guys side jobs that would get him arrested. Those are two of the three that I'm working on now, if that helps.

If you don't know where your story starts exactly, then I suggest doing a free write. Think of the main character or characters that you have found thus far and the word normality. Now, start writing whatever comes to mind for what they are doing on a normal day. See where it takes you and even if you get distractions, write those out too. Maybe your character then is just getting distracted by a pet or work bothering them yet again because someone called out. Let your mid free to wander on these ideas and the writing will help.

(2) Now that you've got them just doing what they always do, now it's time to make a change. If you can figure out what sparks the change, what leads them into a story, that will mean you have what you need to write chapter one. This part is where you consider what could happen to move the character from a normal day to something different. This is the spot where the unlikely to succeed character gets the invitation to go learn magic. This is where the body with yellow socks is discovered in the tub. This is where the trollocs attack the village or the house of one main character, forcing him to act and defend himself when his father can't.

Like the assignment says, this spark that creates the fire (story) can be anything, big or small. The big is more obvious but not every story is that big and not every battle is to fight off the end of the world. Some might be a comment that sparks a character to suddenly leave their job or to start considering something different or notice the person that will change their lives. This should help lead the way to the next assignments too. We start to see hints of problems. It might not even be what will constitute as the main plot/conflict but it's something that gets things going towards that path. In essence, what changes?

What comes to mind? If you don't know, try couple of things out. Test the character and consider what way they might act when face with the situation. That is the point for today. Enjoy!