Today’s prompt is Light and I wanted to experiment with dialogue. I wanted to see if it was possible to tell a story with multiple characters and just using dialogue, no other identifiable characteristics except for the characters names said by others throughout the story. I don’t know if I was successful or if it’s even possible to do, but it was fun either way.
“She is looking ill.”
…
“You have to repeat after me.”
“I don’t like this Shay.”
“It’s only a game.”
“I don’t want to pretend that Emma is dying.”
“It’s a game it’s the only way this will work.”
“Stop being a baby Laura.”
“I’m not a baby!”
“Shhh, be quiet you’ll wake my mom!”
“We’re not being that loud Christine calm down. Now, if we want this to work you have to repeat after me. She is looking ill.”
“She is looking ill.
“She is looking ill.”
“She is looking ill.”
…
“What about Emma?”
“You can’t expect a dying person to talk Mel.”
“But she’s not actually dying.”
“I’m fine Laura.”
“Shhh Emma.”
“Can’t we turn some lights on?”
“No, it works better this way. Now focus and repeat after me again. She is looking worse.”
“She is looking worse.”
“She is looking worse.”
“She is looking worse.”
“She is dying.”
“She is dying.”
“She is dying.”
“She is dying.”
“She is dead.”
“She is dead.”
“She is dead.”
…
“She is dead.”
“Now we have to tell you how you died.”
“Shh dead people don’t laugh!”
“So Emma was just minding her business and walking around when suddenly just as she was crossing the street to school she was hit by a bus and died!”
“That’s just like in Mean Girls, you’re just copying that.”
“Shut up no I’m not lots of people get hit by busses.”
“Name five people.”
“You don’t know five people hit by a bus.”
“Yeah neither do you.”
“Shhh you guys my mom’s going to wake up!”
“We’re not being loud!”
“Maybe we don’t have to say how Emma died.”
“Can I have died from falling off a cliff?”
“Emma stop talking!”
Christine: “Like you killed yourself?”
Laura: “I don’t like that.”
Shay: “It’s just a game, jeez.”
“Not like suicide, like I was standing at the edge of a cliff looking at the ocean and the wind knocked me over it and I died.”
“Emma stop talking!”
“Fine whatever! Emma died falling off a cliff, everyone happy? Alright so Emma is dead and now that she’s dead and we know why she’s dead it will be easier to lift her.”
“I still don’t understand why she has to be dead.”
“Chill out Laura!”
“Guys seriously my mom will be so pissed-”
“The four of us are here today to life Emma to the next life. Repeat after me as we lift Emma onward. Light as a feather, stiff as a board.”
“Light as a feather, stiff as a board.”
“Light as a feather, stiff as a board.”
“Light as a feather, stiff as a board.”
…
Christine: “Nothing happened.”
Emma: “But I want to float!”
“Emma stop you’re supposed to be dead!”
“Maybe we should play a different game.”
“We need to be united! Just everyone shut up and focus. Repeat after me again.
“Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Light as a feather, stiff as a board.”
“And on the count of three we all lift her. One, two, three.”
“Laura stop screaming!”
“Did I actually float?”
“I told you we could do it!”
“Sorry mom, we’ll be quiet!”
Sarah O'Connor 