Thursday, August 02, 2007

Character-driving

Last night's writing class was so much fun. We each had to pick a person we'd people-watched previously, and make up a whole life for him or her - educational background, relationship history, mental and physical health, even the first time they had sex! Then, in groups of three, we had to devise a story which involved our characters.

The most enlightening thing for me was that, whenever we were stuck with our story development, it only took a few well-thought questions from the tutor to get it going again. Like, what's my beanie-wearing middle-aged Indian salesman doing talking to that blond hippie chick, and how the hell did the elderly ex-professor get involved in all this?

You know, I think I really can write a whole short story.

9 comments:

Unknown said...

Yay! I'd love to, thank you! (In non-post-related response to your non-post-related comment on my blog!)

Violet said...

the editter: excellent! It's a bit Seinfeld, isn't it?

Lumpyheadsmom said...

I want to know where the Indian salesman bought that sweet-looking beanie. It rocks.

Violet said...

lumpyheadsmom: well I'm thinking he bought his entire outfit at an op shop, and they didn't have any mirrors in their dressing rooms 'cos the beanie doesn't go with his worn 80's-style steel grey suit.

Watson Woodworth said...

What's an Op Shop?
I wish I was taking this class.

Violet said...

angela and nigel: it's tons of fun, even for someone like me who's never had an itch to write fiction. An op shop is a charity-run shop that sells donated second-hand goods. What do you call 'em in the States?

Watson Woodworth said...

"Resale", "Thrift Store" or name branded like "Goodwill","Vincent de Paul" or "Salvation Army".
But Prince called it a "Second Hand Store" like the kind you'd get a rasberry berret at.

Anonymous said...

I make up entire histories for people on the train into work every morning. All you needs is 2 mins to get started and it is quite addictive. As for the tangled past I have weaved for the BBC evening news newsreaders and their pet donkey, it would make you blush..... :)

This class sounds like great fun. Now take some fish oil with your food as well, unused parts of the brain start to creak when suddleny made active as I discovered when I went back to work.

:)
E.

Violet said...

nigel: I've yet to find any item in one of those shops, worthy of a song...

elizaf: that won't happen to me. Those unused brain cells have all died off and been canabalised by the parenting brain cells.