Writing with my students

My Creative Nonfiction students are doing some free-writing in class and I ought to be joining them but I forgot to bring a pen. Me! An English professor! With no pen! I wouldn't blame my students if they stood up and pointed their fingers at me and said, "What kind of person comes to a writing class without a writing implement? Writing is what we do! Every day!" But they are kind and gracious people so they overlook my error.

And they keep writing. Writing and writing and writing. They're not allowed to stop until I tell them. "This will disempower the little voices in your head that tell you to stop, go back, fix things," I promise them. "You have to keep writing until I tell you to stop, so the little voices in your head eventually stomp off in a huff and sulk." 

I also promised them that I'd give them five minutes and then tell them to stop, but there's no clock in the room so they won't know whether I keep my promise. I could let them keep writing right through the lunch hour and they wouldn't complain, at least right at first. Eventually they might notice that they've turned the page a few too many times or their wrists will get sore and they'll shoot me some pleading looks.

Give them a break and let them quit or make them keep writing forever? I'm feeling lunchish. Time's up!