This was suggested by Matthew Zapruder, who read his poetry Wednesday night for the Juniper Institute SWI. He uses this exercise for his poetry classes, but I think it works just as easily with prose poems, short shorts, and fiction in general.

The writing exercise is thus: write 50 titles. Then, if you're with another person, switch lists and write poems for their titles. If by yourself, just use your own. Being by yourself is incentive to go crazy and write titles that come uncensored to mind without fear others will see them. Being with another person makes it a challenge to see what kind of wacky titles you can come up with that they'll have to write about.

It's a game, but good stuff can come out of it.

Have fun, ne?