Story Telling Crash Course - Session Six: Perspective Games

dragosroua (74)in #challenge30 • 8 years ago (edited)

Today we're gonna play a short game. It's a game of perspectives. Or how we can look at things from various angles.

Although it's unlikely you will use this exact way of describing events in your writing, this exercise is very useful. It helps you understand different points of views and to articulate the story in a more meaningful way.

The game consists in setting up a scene, with a few characters, and describe a certain sequence of events from all the perspectives.

Scene: a park in Bucharest, on a springy evening. An old couple sits on a bench, while a runner is passing them by a few times.

The Woman:

I remember this smell. It's a flower. I know it's a flower. But I don't remember the name. Strangely enough, I do remember a few places where I smelled this, but not the name. Maybe I should ask him. He seems a bit tired, but maybe it will give him something to think about. I will ask him.

Honey, do you remember when we went in Greece, 40 years ago? Or it was 42?
39, he responded. I know we were exactly 39 years ago. Of course I remember. The house where we stayed in Athens, with big blue hyacinths on the porch?
Hyacinths, yes, that was the smell. He remembered. So it was good that I asked him. Hyacinth.

The Man:

I wish I could run again. Like this young guy who's circling the park. I wouldn't run as much as he does, though. It's too much. Maybe a lap. Or two. Or maybe I will just do some power walking. Like we did on those beaches in Greece. That was very nice, this summer in Greece. I wonder if she still remembers that.

Honey, do you remember when we went in Greece, 40 years ago? Or it was 42?
Of course I do. And, once again, we think at the same thing. After 50 years of marriage, that's not even surprising. But it was 39 years ago. Let's be precise. I will tell her that it was 39 years ago, not 40, not 42.
1. I know we were exactly 39 years ago. Of course I remember. The house where we stayed in Athens, with big blue hyacinths on the porch?
  Yes, we think at the same things, after 50 years of marriage. And I'm gently happy about this.

The Runner (me)

As I was passing by this bench I couldn't help but notice a very old couple. They were holding hands and they were looking in the same direction, in silence, but smiling. During one of the laps, I heard them talking, but I couldn't understand much. Maybe a word: Athens.

I smiled, thinking how the Universe is sending me signs. I was training for a race in Athens.

This is a very simple scene, but it gives enough "meat" to create a short slice of life and to build on top of it.

Different perspectives are useful especially in fiction, where you have to consistently manage many characters but it may also be useful in non-fiction books where you have to analyze different concepts or you need to do some simulations.

Assignment: write a very short story in which you have to present at least two different perspectives. Be creative. Hint: it may be the same person's perspective, but at different ages. Don't forget to leave me a comment here, as I may overlook the article if you're just tagging it with `challenge30` and `story`. You have 24 hours.

Looking forward to read your stories!

This is a 15 sessions story telling crash-course I'm doing on Steemit, the goal being to improve the writing skills of all members of this community. You can see the launch post and a curricula including all sessions here. Each session contains an assignment for which you have 24 hours. I will read and review all the assignments, and award a symbolic prize of 1SBD to the "winner".

Links to previous sessions:

Let's tell some stories and have some fun!

image source - Pixabay

I'm a serial entrepreneur, blogger and ultrarunner. You can find me mainly on my blog at Dragos Roua where I write about productivity, business, relationships and running. Here on Steemit you may stay updated by following me @dragosroua.