Tuesday, July 31, 2007

People-watching

My second short story writing class is tomorrow evening, and I fear that I won't be able to finish the homework assignment we were given last week. What we were asked to do, was to note down some observations of strangers - the way they looked, moved, spoke etc. I'm finding it hard to do, not just because I'm one of the most absent-minded people I know, but because opportunities to people-watch don't easily present themselves to me.

Because, in order to observe people's physical characteristics, I have to be sitting around in a public space, with no toddler-related distractions and nothing much to do. Now I know why people have to quit their jobs in order to write their novels.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Can you watch the traffic cameras on http://citylink.co.nz/services/webcam/ ? The Courtenay Place one can have good people-watching value - I once watched a group of guys, they were probably 20 years old or so, playing cops-n-robbers around the advertising pillar thing.

There must be something at YouTube you could watch instead.

Watson Woodworth said...

Once I get a laptop I want to start tailgating your creative writing again. That was heaps of fun.

Angela said...

In college I was asked to also people watch. This was difficult because I am legally blind. I had to sit down with my friends and they had to tell me what people were doing. What a pain! My instructor did not care. I could people listen but that is not what she wanted.

Violet said...

cathi: what a novel idea!

nigel: your enthusiasm makes me want to write another story...

angela: that's pretty mean, to expect you to watch when you can't see.