Friday, January 21, 2011

Title One: Oh Boy Title Two: This One's For Tara

This week's prompt from The Red Dress Club is to write something using only dialogue. 

When I have taken writing classes, the rule number one is to not explain anything before you share your work with others.  Just read it, or let others read it, but don't say, "This really stinks." Or, "I want to come across as funny."  The people reading your work will come to those conclusions themselves. 

I'm breaking the rule.  I've been working on a short story for a couple of years now, and it involves an incident between my cousin Tara and myself.  If I had to make a Top 10 List of favorite childhood memories, this would rank up there as one of them.  I won't explain anything else except to say that I had little dialogue in the story, and completing this exercise was fun because I got to listen what these characters had to say.

Here goes:

"Let's ride down the driveway on Jack's skateboard." Sawyer said.

"Huh? No way." Thatcher said.

"Yea.  Let's do it."

"Sawyer, your driveway is like, an anoconda.  I'm not sitting on a skateboard and riding down it.  We'll be going 45,000 miles an hour!  Are you insane?"

"We're doin' it!"

"Put that skateboard down!  I'm not getting on it with you, Sawyer!"

"Yea ya are.  And you'll LOVE it.  We're gonna go so fast!" Sawyer said.

"That's what I'm afraid of."

"I'll be in front and you can sit behind me.  C'mon, sit down....COME ON, Thatcher!  What's the worst that could happen?  We fall off the skateboard?  We'll be inches from the ground.  No big deal.  Get on!"

"Fine." Thatcher said.

"Yesssss!"

"Ew!  The top of the board is all gritty.  Gross." Thatcher complained.

"Gritty's good! Our butts are gonna stay on better.  We don't want to be slipping around while we ride down the....what'd you call my driveway?"  Sawyer asked.

"An anaconda.  It's the largest snake there is."  Thatcher said.

"Anacondaaaaaaa.  I like it."

"OK.  I'm on.  I feel like a dork, and I'm scared to death, but I'm on." Thatcher said.

"We're not doing this to be cool, we're doing this because it's gonna be AWESOME!  Now listen: we'll need to lean left right away so we stay on the driveway when it turns." 

"Uh huh.  Does your heart feel like it's going to beat out of your chest?"

"Yea!  I love that feeling!" Sawyer said.

"I'm not really enjoying it." Thatcher said.

"OK!  Here we goooooooo!"

5 comments:

Cheryl said...

I can feel that gritty skateboard. I hope they survive the anacondaaaaaa!

Leslie Harris said...

My heart's pounding in my chest and I'm not even on the skateboard. Sounds fun, though! :)

Texas Type A Mom said...

What a fun concept!

Thanks for the follow - following back from Bloggy Moms!

{Stephanie}The Drama Mama said...

I can totally feel that skateboard too! ANd the rush of the race down the driveway. I love it! Great dialogue.

Tara Shuple said...

I can go back to that day with such VIVID memories!!! Love it.