Story Bells

      Sometimes as I'm reading, a certain word or phrase stops me, because it gives me a glimpse of a story. It's a nice feeling, like watching a single firework. I call those things story bells because they're like the echoes of stories that haven't been written yet. I've started a list of them in my writing notebook, and just yesterday I rediscovered an exercise that goes perfectly with them. I think I got it out of a how-to-write book. This is the prompt:

"What images do certain words evoke?"

 It's simple but so fun! Here are two of mine:

The word penciled makes me imagine

The standard yellow notebook

And a plain brown wooden #2 pencil

Sharpened to a fine point

Hovering over a beautifully written

Sentence in small, neat cursive

The word marine makes me imagine

Rocky shoals and otters surrounded

By kelp, and aquariums full of air bubbles

It makes me imagine rocks under my feet

And the wind whipping dress and hair

The cry of seagulls not far off

Now you try it! Here are some words from my list: rambunctious, lichen, chess, glittering, burnished (but if those don't strike any story bells, use words that do).