The Typewriter Game

Last month I shared this idea on my Today Show segment on how to bring the generations together on Thanksgiving Day. By far it was everyone’s favorite idea. I got loads of emails, FB messages, tweets, and texts describing how my friends and followers were dragging out their old type writers, bidding on used ones on ebay, or asking great Aunt Sally if she still had hers in the attic, so they could introduce this game to their clans.

It’s an activity my husband and I introduced at a family gathering we had at our Michigan cottage last summer, and well, it was the hit of the party.

We call it “The type writer game”  (oh, the originality).

Here’s how it works:

Set up a type writer loaded with paper.

Begin the collective story writing with one intriguing line….

“It was a summer they would never forget”

Then ask your guests to visit the type writer throughout the day as many times as they wish, but each time only adding one line to what’s already been written. One line.

It’s the simplest of games, but to do it well requires imagination, originality, and the ability to analyze what’s already been written and add something that fits next. It can be silly, off-the-wall, or bizarre, but still must move the story forward.

Then, at a designated time the story is removed and read out loud to the group. We like doing this over dessert. The presentation of the collective piece of literary genius is ALWAYS hilarious, odd, and quickly evokes the guessing of who wrote what.

I’m sure it’s almost as much fun on a lap top, but if you can conjure up a type writer, it adds a certain vintage bit of awesome.

So, if you are looking for a fun and dare I say it “educational” way to get your guests playing together this holiday break, this story writing game could be just your “type”. Sorry it begged for it.