A Story Idea Each Day for a Month — Day 6
This is the 15th year in a row I’ve run this series in April. Why a story idea each day for the month? Several reasons which I’ll work my…
This is the 15th year in a row I’ve run this series in April. Why a story idea each day for the month? Several reasons which I’ll work my through during this series of posts. Here’s another one:
Around 1990, writer Stephen Brill came up with this idea: “A self-centered lawyer is sentenced to community service coaching a rag tag youth hockey team.” That eventually became the movie The Mighty Ducks. That seemingly innocuous family comedy grossed $51M, not bad for a movie with a reported $10M budget.
Then came D2: The Mighty Ducks. Then D3: The Mighty Ducks. Then “Mighty Ducks”, a TV series. Then Mighty Ducks the Movie: The First Face-Off, a DTV animated movie. And then came this:
The Anaheim Ducks [formerly the Anaheim Mighty Ducks]. An NHL franchise. A professional franchise worth an estimated $188M.
All based on the fact that one day, a writer was walking around and came up with a story idea about a youth hockey team named the Mighty Ducks.
As I said… in Hollywood, story ideas are worth gold.
Today’s story idea: “I Worked One Day and Quit.”
Starting a new job can be exciting — or an absolute nightmare. Sometimes, the red flags start waving the moment you step through the door, and for these 18 people, the warning signs were too glaring to ignore. From toxic management to disgusting work environments, they decided one day was more than enough.
This is an easy one. The article provides 18 reasons why people quit their job after a single day of employment. Some choice reasons:
- Locked Inside the Office
- The Mystery Job Scam
- Toilet Break Time Limits
- A Temp Job Turned Dangerous
- Knife-Wielding Customers
You get the picture. Imagine our Protagonist (Juliette). 23 years old and has been struggling to find employment in her field of university studies (marketing). Finally, after endless rounds of interviews, she lands a gig at what appears to be a promising business.
It’s not. After establishing her life filled with financial insecurity and career anxiety, by the Act One midpoint, she begins her job. The movie covers a time period of 7:00am when she wakes up until 11:00pm when she quits.
Everything that can go wrong does go wrong with one calamity after another, each one worse than the other.
It’s Office Space …
… meets After Hours.
There’s my 6th story idea this month. What would you do with this concept?
Previous articles in this year’s series:
Here are links to previous series:
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2017)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2018)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2019)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2020)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2021)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2022)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2023)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month (2024)
Note: The articles from 2010–2016 have corrupted URLs. I am in the process of cleaning those up.
Each day in April, I invite you to join me in comments to do some brainstorming. Take each day’s story idea and see what it can become when we play around with it. These are valuable skills for a writer to develop.
See you in RESPONSES to hear YOUR take on this story idea. And come back tomorrow for another Story Idea Each Day For A Month.