Writing Excuses Master Class - Intrigue
Before I get into this prompt, I realize that I never gave another update on the Feina-kitten! So, after the vet gave her the fluids and shots, he told us that she would do better for a day or two, and would probably crash after that. We waited...and waited...and that crash just wasn't coming. After a few days, I got an appointment with a specialist to see what the heck was going on now. He looked her over, asked a lot of questions (which the other vet hadn't really done), and re-ran her blood tests. They came back as normal as is possible with a 15-year-old cat. Never have I heaved a bigger sigh of relief. She's still doing great, as are the other two cats. All is well in the Franklin kingdom.
On to the writing! I've been holding off on this prompt for a bit, because I was having a devil of a time figuring out what I wanted to write. Now that I've got an idea for this year's Nanowrimo, I think this will work well. The prompt:
Write dialog in which each of the speakers has a different subtext and motive. Without explicitly stating those, try and make them clear to the reader.
Eliza settled the bag on Colin's desk then sat in his guest chair, notebook at the ready. Colin reached for the bag, pulling out his sushi as he started to direct his comments to the assistant. "Eliza, we need help getting our ad campaign together. You haven't worked with our team much, but I've heard you're the best."
Eliza smiled to herself, straightening up. "Well, I do my best," she said demurely. "What kind of ad campaign are you talking about, and what kind of time frame are you looking at?"
Colin began scraping his chopsticks against each other as he looked into space. "We need something to help heal the damage some recent...events...have done to our image." He looked her directly in the eye. "You know about the events?"
Eliza thought rapidly before tentatively guessing, "Do you mean the issues with the shipping fleet?"
Colin responded with a broad grin and pulled the lid off his sushi tray. "I knew you would understand. So, we need something that will make sure people know that we're fast, responsible, and reliable, while not sounding too, you know, goodie-two-shoes or anything."
Eliza scribbled rapidly, already brainstorming ideas. "We could do a few images of the trucks driving somewhere clean and pretty, maybe outside of town somewhere? Something that gives the image of speed and being clean. You know. After the incident, and all."
Colin nodded, his mouth full of spicy tuna roll, and chewed thoughtfully for a moment before responding. "I like it. But let's not make it too clean, you know. We have to make sure that people don't think we're perfect or anything. The last thing we need is for people to think that we're supported by the Consortium of Law, or anything."
Eliza resisted the urge to ask why that would be such a bad thing and simply made a note - "Don't make it look like we're the good guys." She frowned at her notebook and looked up to Colin again. "Anything else?"
Colin held up a finger in a "wait" gesture as he wolfed down another piece of sushi, then swallowed audibly. "No, I think that should do it. Get to brainstorming, and let me know about some of your ideas. The sooner the better, because the faster we get people to forget about recent events, the more we'll be able to bring them around to our way of thinking." He gave her a broad wink, then shooed her out the door.
On to the writing! I've been holding off on this prompt for a bit, because I was having a devil of a time figuring out what I wanted to write. Now that I've got an idea for this year's Nanowrimo, I think this will work well. The prompt:
Write dialog in which each of the speakers has a different subtext and motive. Without explicitly stating those, try and make them clear to the reader.
Eliza settled the bag on Colin's desk then sat in his guest chair, notebook at the ready. Colin reached for the bag, pulling out his sushi as he started to direct his comments to the assistant. "Eliza, we need help getting our ad campaign together. You haven't worked with our team much, but I've heard you're the best."
Eliza smiled to herself, straightening up. "Well, I do my best," she said demurely. "What kind of ad campaign are you talking about, and what kind of time frame are you looking at?"
Colin began scraping his chopsticks against each other as he looked into space. "We need something to help heal the damage some recent...events...have done to our image." He looked her directly in the eye. "You know about the events?"
Eliza thought rapidly before tentatively guessing, "Do you mean the issues with the shipping fleet?"
Colin responded with a broad grin and pulled the lid off his sushi tray. "I knew you would understand. So, we need something that will make sure people know that we're fast, responsible, and reliable, while not sounding too, you know, goodie-two-shoes or anything."
Eliza scribbled rapidly, already brainstorming ideas. "We could do a few images of the trucks driving somewhere clean and pretty, maybe outside of town somewhere? Something that gives the image of speed and being clean. You know. After the incident, and all."
Colin nodded, his mouth full of spicy tuna roll, and chewed thoughtfully for a moment before responding. "I like it. But let's not make it too clean, you know. We have to make sure that people don't think we're perfect or anything. The last thing we need is for people to think that we're supported by the Consortium of Law, or anything."
Eliza resisted the urge to ask why that would be such a bad thing and simply made a note - "Don't make it look like we're the good guys." She frowned at her notebook and looked up to Colin again. "Anything else?"
Colin held up a finger in a "wait" gesture as he wolfed down another piece of sushi, then swallowed audibly. "No, I think that should do it. Get to brainstorming, and let me know about some of your ideas. The sooner the better, because the faster we get people to forget about recent events, the more we'll be able to bring them around to our way of thinking." He gave her a broad wink, then shooed her out the door.
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