Wednesday, April 08, 2009

It's Not Funny


Today's prompt is an exercise in creating tension and building conflict through an unlikely agent: laughing.

Have you ever laughed because you were nervous or scared...or just at an inappropriate time? I remember collecting frogs for my biology teacher for extra credit. A friend and I waded around in the muck and I decided to climb into a tree to see if I could spot any frogs from the air. I pointed here and there while my friend sloshed around...and then it happened. She lost her balance and landed in that slimy water! What did I do? I laughed. The more I laughed the angrier my friend became. "It's not funny!" She screamed it, but the more she said it, the more I laughed, even though my brain told me she was right. It wasn't funny.

Pumping Your Muse Prompt

For today's prompt create a scene involving two to three main characters. One of those characters will laugh at an inappropriate time that causes others to react in a way that raises conflict and tension. If you feel a little stuck, here are a few scenario suggestions to pump your muse:

*Giving birth
*Attending church
*On the job
*Run out of gas
* * *

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2 comments:

LA Nickers said...

I changed it up a bit . . . but used your prompt as a springboard. Hope that's OK.

National Poetry Month - April 8th -

IT’S NOT FUNNY . . . OR IS IT?

Donna Sundblad said...

Hi Linda,

That's great. The idea is to get you writing! I'll I've to head over and take a look!

Donna