All for a Sip of Hot Chocolate // The Penprints Flash Fiction Dash

Flash fiction has always intrigued me. Being able to make an audience feel or being able to capture them in your words seems to be ten times harder when you have so few of them. So when I saw that Rosalie Valentine was hosting a Flash Fiction Dash, I was intrigued.

The Flash Fiction Dash is a challenge where Rosalie gives you either a picture prompt or a words prompt (I can't remember if I chose a words prompt or picture prompt, but since I got an image file with words on it, I'm guessing it was a words prompt), and you write a story from that prompt in under 1,000 words. Here's my prompt:

When I saw the prompt, I was so excited because - guys, it mentions Shakespeare. The theater geek in me was over the moon. I wasn't originally going to make the story actually about theater, but this little sprite got ahold of me a few months ago and has been begging to actually being put down on paper. The prompt had his personality written all over it, so after a lot of resisting I let him run with it. And here's the product. 

     “Hello?”

     As I walked onto the middle of the stage, grasping my thermos of hot chocolate, it felt like invisible eyes were scrutinizing my every move. When an actress is alone onstage, she is meant to be stared at. Now, with no one there to watch me, it felt as if I was defying the rules of theater - or like some unseen person was watching me after all.

     When Uncle Alex said to let myself in through the stage door if Max was late picking me up, I’d thought it would be simple. Stay out of the cold, wait for my chronically-late cousin, and leave. I just didn’t expect my uncle to be serious when he warned me about ghosts.

     Three minutes after I’d settled myself at the edge of the stage and opened my thermos to warm up, the first crash came. I jumped, almost spilling the hot chocolate on myself. Something had fallen, somewhere backstage.

     I got more unsettled as three more things crashed in the next three minutes. When the speakers above me unexpectedly screeched with feedback, I let out a small scream, and looked around wildly.

     “Who’s there?” I tried to sound brave; but no one answered. I took a deep breath, then took a sip of chocolate to calm my nerves. Max couldn’t be much later, and I could leave.

     My heart was still pounding when the speakers screamed again and something landed at my feet with a clatter. One of the whiteboards that Uncle Alex liked to use, with writing on it. Can I have some chocolate?

     Someone was watching me. My nerves, the shivering, building mass of them that were threatening to overflow, snapped a second later when another whiteboard came flying from nowhere - Pretty please?

     “No!” the words escaped me before I could think. “No, you sneaking, wide-eyed, cowardly sprite - I’d let you turn to ice cream before you’d get some!”

     The echo hung over the auditorium, which seemed to scream its silence back at me. And then -

     “Shakespeare would be proud.” The voice came from above me, and I froze.

     It continued. “Maybe. I mean, I don’t know him personally.” I inched my head up, and almost screamed again.

     Sitting on a beam high above was a boy hardly older than me. As I watched, he stood - and hovered roughly twenty feet in the air. I could almost see through him.

     “But I mean - poisonous bunch-backed toads, cream-faced loon - the guy’s a master of insults. I think yours fits right in.”

     He floated between the rafters, not even looking at me. He spied a board on the scaffold across the stage, and a wicked grin appeared on his face.

     The crash the board made when it hit the ground was only half as loud as the beating of my heart.

     The thing turned around, laughing. “Did that scare you, little g-” Blue eyes met mine and his smile faltered. The theater must have gone silent again, but my heartbeat could have been magnified in the hall for all I knew.

     Then it spoke again, a slow smirk forming on its face. “You can see me.” When I didn’t move, it floated towards me. “You can see me, can’t you?”

     Eyes wide, I nodded.

     It let out sudden whoop that made me flinch, and did a flip in the air. “I knew it! Finally - someone new to talk to. You have no idea what a bore Alex can be-”

     “What are you?” Again, the words tumbled out unplanned.

     It - he - cocked an eyebrow at me, unfazed. “Well, every good theater needs a ghost, wouldn’t you say?”

     I stared at him, unable to connect the dots. “You’re a ghost.”

     “Spirit, haunt, spook, monster, devil, handsome - whatever you want to call me. But yes, I’ve been called ghost most often in the past ten years.”

     I remembered my uncle’s warning. I’d thought he was joking. “Ten years?”

    He glided over to me and sat down, cross-legged. “July 14th. Car crash. Screech of tires, metal and - boom - end of Theo Lancaster. I wake up here and barely anyone can see me.”

     “I’m sorry.” My heartbeat was starting to return to normal, and I relaxed a little.

     He waved his hand. “There’s worse that could have happened - and apparently I don’t age, so I’ll stay handsome forever!”

     I laughed, then cocked my head, studying him. “Were you an actor here?”

     Theo nodded. “Nine shows in a row. But I’ve learned to do pretty much everything backstage now. Too much free time.”

     “Do you still act?” I motioned at the empty stage. “I mean, you have the whole theater to yourself.”

     He shrugged. “Not really. What’s the point of acting if no one can see you?”

     I didn’t know what to say to that, and sipped my hot chocolate. Then I glanced up at him. “Well, you have an audience now.”

     He stared at me. “You want me to act?”

     “Why not? It’s not everyday I get to see a theater ghost perform.”

     Theo eyed the thermos in my hands. “I was serious when I asked for hot chocolate, you know.”

     I laughed. “Alright, you can have some. But I get to see you act first.”

     “You’re bribing me?”

     I grinned, and held thermos in front of him. “It’s working, isn’t it?”

     He glared, but grinned as he floated to his feet. “You’ve known me for less than an hour and you’ve already found my weakness.” He took a position in the middle of the stage. “My performance is dedicated to the hostage hot chocolate.”

     Anyone else would have thought I was alone in the theater. They wouldn’t be been able to see the performance of a lifetime. 

     Overall, I had so much fun writing this, and I think that it was a great exercise. I'm generally a rambler and struggle to stop myself from writing just a little more. This story was no exception: at 951 words, I'm just there at the 1,000 word limit. But the challenge was so much fun, and it definitely made me want to explore flash fiction some more. 

What do you think? Have you ever written flash fiction before? Are you interested in writing some now?

The Get to Know Me Tag - Writer's Edition

Savannah tagged me for this ages ago, and I've been dying to do it because it looked like so much fun! And - finally - I did! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Get to Know Me Tag, Writer's Edition. 

Savannah, thank you so much for this awesome tag - and to those of you who haven't seen her blog before, it is gorgeous and inspiring and you must go explore it. 

link back to the person who created the tag (check!)
thank the person who tagged you (Said it already, but thank you Savannah!! check!)
share the tag graphic (check!)
tag eleven bloggers (erm . . . let's see about that)

(pen)Name: True. Sometimes I go by Vera, when I’m not 100% comfortable with using my real name, or when my real name isn’t an option (the joys and horror of having a word as a name - I love it, but some people or algorithms can’t recognize it as a name) 

Nicknames: None? Most people call me True - I can’t really recall answering to much else. 

Birthday: Sometime near Thanksgiving. 

Hair color and length: Brown and should length!! (I finally cut it after 2 1/2 years of not cutting it, and I am still excited about it.) 

Eye color: Brown. Deep, dark brown. 

Braces/piercings/tattoos: Earrings, one in each ear. No inked art other than the ball-point pen I scribble on my hands or legs when I’m bored. 

Righty or lefty: Righty! 

Ethnicity: Half fairy, half book dragon. Seriously, I’m half Japanese and half “American” (which I’ve traced back to England, Ireland, Scotland, Canada, Italy, Germany, and Scandinavia, to start). 

First novel written: I was 10. It started from this long, made-up story that I was telling my younger sister and ended in this small white and red notebook, complete with maps and character sketches.

First novel completed: I was 11. It was my Nano for the year, and I finished the “last draft” in June. It was kind of a mixture of Magic Tree House and . . . general fantasy? Yeah, it was *heavily based* off of Magic Tree House, though I didn't realize it then. It was as cringe-worthy as it sounds. 

Award for writing: First place and then tying for first in a minuscule one-minute one-act playwriting competition. Second place in a Cricket poetry contest when I was 12. A few other little things like that. 

First publication: The first time I was published for something I had written was the poem for Cricket (see above). The first time I published something of my own was the first Nano novel that only got three drafts (but that was completely self-published and spur of the moment, and a story all on its own). 

Conference: None - but I would love to try one sometime soon! 

Query/Pitch: Ditto that - nothing yet. 

Novel (that you wrote): My current 100 for 100 project, or the rough  draft that sparked it, probably. It's the one that I'm working on most, that I am most excited about. A fantasy, either YA or middle grade, that's kind of an Inkheart/Coraline feel to it. 

Genre: Fantasy. That’s my favorite genre to write, and my favorite genre to read. But I also love historical, mystery, and some contemporary/realistic. 

Author: No. This question should be banned from existence because how could anyone ever choose a favorite author? I’ll compromise and give a few different authors who have inspired me. Gal Carson Levine. J.K. Rowling. Shannon Messenger. Patricia MacLachlan. 

Writing Music: Usually instrumental, so something like The Piano Guys or some Celtic music. I've also enjoyed writing to soundtracks from movies such as Your Name and The Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter. 

Time To Write: Anytime I can get to a paper, pen, or pencil, or computer. I’ve learned not to be that picky - but I think if I had a preference, I would choose early mornings or late evenings. 

Writing Snack/Drink: I actually don’t often eat or drink when I’m writing - when I’m handwriting, it’s just that I normally don’t snack between meals. When I’m on a laptop it’s because I’m afraid of getting my fingers messy or don’t want to break the rhythm of typing. 

Movie: I actually don't watch a ton of movies, but that doesn't make it easier for me to choose a favorite! Maybe Lord of the Rings, the first movie. And if we're talking Disney movies (like my sisters and I were talking about the other day), then Zootopia, which is adorable and I swear I could watch it a hundred times. 

Writing Memory: Oooh, favorite writing memory. Hmm . . . telling stories to my younger sister late at night? We had “serials” that we would make up, that could continue for weeks. Whispering under the warm blankets in the darkness of our bedroom, and creating improbable but highly entertaining scenarios that included inside jokes that we still might reference from time to time. 

Childhood Book: Depends on what point of childhood. One from my early childhood was Little Pea by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. A little older, and Little Hose on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 

Reading: In between “main” books. I just finished Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, and my family is going through Mrs. Frisbee and the Rats of NIMH together.

Writing: Summer is letting me spread my wings a little. I’m polishing a one-minute script for the small contest I mentioned above, as well as an entry for the Penprints Flash Fiction Dash (read: trimming words for the flash fiction dash). I’m also working on my 100for100 project, but have been sidetracked by another little plot bunny that won’t leave me alone (and who am I to refuse it?). 

Listening to: This very second, I'm listening to "The Music of the Night" from Phantom of the Opera because I just discovered it and it's ben stuck in my head. In general, I'm mostly listening to various musical soundtracks again. 

Watching: I think the last thing I watched was Tangled with my sisters the other day (I was slightly underwhelmed). And in the next few days, we’ll watch Moana for the first time, and The King’s Speech with all of my family. 

Learning: So much about my own writing style and about scheduling and pacing. Also, in general, that I have to take action and work in order to make things happen - sitting passively won’t do me any favors. 

Want To Be Published: Yes - eventually. Not right now, but I’m steadily working towards getting some of my WIPs ready for publication. 

Indie or Traditional: Probably traditional - but I’m learning a lot about indie publishing that you wouldn’t know at first glance, and it’s not off the table yet. But for now, my main focus is the manuscript. 

Wildest Goal: World-famous bestseller? Haha - a bit past the stars right there. But the wildest short-term goal would be to try editing or beta-ing some more and learn more about that. 

And I'm going to cheat just a little and leave this tag open to anyone who wants to. Or anyone who can't chose a favorite author - consider yourself tagged. ;) 

Who is your favorite author? What is your wildest goal? And what was your first novel (started or completed)? 

3.5 Things You Learn from Writing Scripts

Summer is a great opportunity to further your writing and experiment a bit off the beaten path. It's a little less structured, and (I, at least) have a little more free time that I can devote to trying new things. One of these new things is Go Teen Writer’s 100-for-100 challenge and the Penprints Flash Fiction Dash is another that I am super excited for.

Another upcoming event I am super excited about is a local youth conference where participants write and perform ten-minute plays over three days. The conference also allows us to individually write one minute, one act plays for a small contest. 

When I participated in this two years ago, it was the first time I'd ever even tried to write a play. But writing a script is something that I’ve come to enjoy, and I've found that it's a great exercise. As fiction writers, there are so many things that we can learn from playwriting - and today I'm going to share three and a half reasons why.

If you look at a script, you might notice that there is a lot of white space. Formatting rules have come to mean that a “cluttered” script is equivalent to an ancient, technical medical textbook: few people enjoy reading it. Scripts remind you that “good” doesn’t necessarily mean “full,” a concept that is important in the fiction world as well.

Scripts are made to be read aloud, and to be performed. And that means that they need to be concise. Every word needs to move the scene along because if it doesn’t, it’s going to stick out and/or bore your audience to death. A ninety-minute play doesn’t have time to talk about the weather or how the main character hate gummy worms - unless it’s important to the plot. Instead, it’s going to have to spend that time furthering the plot.

Omitting these unnecessary details applies to fiction writing, too. When writing novels or short stories might allow more leeway with “unnecessary” description, but you still don’t want to devote too much of your time to it. The plot can’t be jumping every which way with fifteen bajillion little side plots. You need to know what needs to happen and how to make it happen, and what things are necessary to make them come alive, and you get a lot of practice with it in scripts.

 

Another thing you'll notice about scripts is that 95% of a script is dialogue. There is virtually no description: it is up to the actor and director to decide if a specific line is going to be “said happily” or “shouted as Max bangs his fist on the table.” Stage direction is used sparingly - about two or three times a page - and is generally short and technical as possible.

This lack of description means that your ability to write dialogue will improve a lot. Scripts are made to be read aloud, so you will be able to tell if your dialogue is unnatural. Scripts allow you to focus on your dialogue and improve it - and this will do so much for your fiction writing. Likewise, the dialogue is going to have to do its job without description or prose to move it along - it has to be strong on its own.

And because the script is 95% dialogue, it carries so much weight with your characterization. Dialogue is your medium to show the audience - or the actor, who will in turn show the audience - what each character is like. A nervous character might stammer, stumble over their words, or might barely speak at all and retreat. Before an actor brings them to life, a character is created by dialogue.

And this carries over well to fiction writing. The character can’t give us a huge info dump without it sounding really really cringy, because everything’s read aloud. Scripts teach you how to show instead of tell. You have to show through dialogue - is this character stiff, or is she generally energetic or naive? (I will admit that because of time constraints, the audience will sometimes forgive you for telling so long as you do it well, like readers may at the beginning of a book).

This reason applies to so many other types of art, too, but completely works for scripts. Writing a script after only writing prose for so long takes a little bit of mental gymnastics, as you try to understand what works and what doesn’t. It makes you study what you’re doing as a fiction writer and then apply that or change it when you write in this new form - and that by itself is a valuable experience.

  While writing a play is a unique art form in itself, there are so many things in is that carry over to fiction writing. Script-writing is a fun diversion from "usual" writing, and it's a great exercise in general. And scripts can be so much fun to read, to write, and to perform. One thing about a script is that while it's an expression of the writer's inner vision, scripts are really "bridge works," and are meant to be interpreted not just by the reader, but also by directors, actors, and crew members, to bring the story in a different form to a new audience. And that's one reason why I find scripts so neat.

Have you ever written a script, or would you be interested in writing one? What are your summer writing plans?