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So every once and a while my writing group will do a writing exercise together. I think these are great because they produce surprises. Lots of times lazy me writes things that I can use in my current book project (why waste effort? why not be surprised with usable material?), but occasionally I just have fun. These entries were from a prompt on getting rich quick. When my group member read the prompt, she said, “Number 168, get rich quick.” I heard the “Number 168” as part of the prompt, which is why I ended up writing fake, numbered, get-rich-quick tips. Apparently, though, 168 was just the number of the prompt.

Hey, who cares as long as some play or writing comes out of the exercise?

Get Rich Quick #168. Wealth is a habit of mind—collect bottle caps, cover them with a handkerchief, and will them to be gold pieces.

Get Rich Quick #418. Have piles of phone books? Think of all those yellow pages as free toilet paper. Money you don’t send is money in the bank. Quick is relative.

Get Rich Quick #1328. Get a job as a bellhop so you can spend your days opening doors for strangers. Karma will be on your side.

Get Rich Quick #46. Join a pyramid scheme, being sure to join it at the top.

Get Rich Quick #232. Discover gold, oil, or the lost pet of a tycoon.

Get Rich Quick #111. Volunteer to take the collection at your church, and then do so.