High School Reunion, A Saturday Centus

We've made it to week 12 of the Saturday Centus, that madcap literary romp hosted by Jenny Matlock at her blog, Jenny Matlock…off on my tangent... 

So what is this Saturday Centus thingy that you keep hearing about in the media?   Fox News calls it “the next phase in the socialist indoctrination of America, right before they begin executing us.”  Sarah Palin said of it, “I’m not sure what I think of it. Nobody has told me yet.”  And our old friend Rush Limbaugh said it was “a subversive, left-wing government plot to electronically control your mind through your computer and turn you into a fanatical terrorist suicide bomber who supports health care reform and gay marriage.”  

But here, in a little place I like to call reality, the Saturday Centus is just an entertaining and thought-provoking writing exercise where Jenny posts a “prompt," a phrase that must be included as written, and the rest of us have one week to craft a story around it with no more than 100 additional words.  The whole point of this meme is to challenge yourself to explore just how well you can tell a complete story when you only have a very limited number of words with which to do so.

As some of you know, it's unbelievable how fast 100 words can fly by!

This is a particularly difficult task for me because I tend to ramble a lot, both in my writing and everyday conversation.  Yes, I could probably go on for hours.  Why, I remember when I was just thirteen years old and all full of these crazy hormones and just beginning to explore my...um..see, there I go again!

As I was saying, this meme forces you to look beyond the superfluous, artistic flourishes and schmaltzy imagery and focus on building a tight, succinct story where every word counts.  It’s really hard!  You have to chop your babies edit something fierce!  But it’s cool when you finally get your word count down to 100 and see all the excess words you found you could live without.  (Oh WordCalc, sometimes you can be a harsh taskmaster!)

Here’s an example of what I mean.  Most of you are familiar with the famous poem, “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe.  It begins with “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary, over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore…”    What follows are stanza after stanza of a very flowery and descriptive narrative that drones on with sumptuous symbolism and profuse drama.

   

That, and apparently he had a fondness for the word, "Nevermore."  (I have a similar fondness for the word "rutabaga," but I somehow manage to keep it in check.)

In contrast, the “Saturday Centus” version would read, “One night while reading, an annoying talking bird kept tapping on my door.”  See how much better that is!  No wonder Poe went insane.  Think of all the time and effort he could have saved!

After you finish your 100-word epic, you need to stop on by Jenny’s blog and link up with the Saturday Centus meme post so that we can check out each other’s treatment on the prompt.  Every week we have some really wonderful writers who regularly contribute, as well as new, talented writers who decide to take the leap and join in to share their take on the prompt.  And just so you know, there’s always room for one more!  (Subtle, I know.)

Are you up to the challenge?

This week the prompt was written by a special guest writer.  I’m thinking that means he is “special” as in “Olympics” rather than “distinguished,” but what do I know.  I forget his name, but I’m told he knows his way around a waffle, is generally considered a wise ass, looks a lot like Tom Selleck in a crazed, carnival-mirror sort of way, and knows how to order a drink in Comanche (It’s a city in Oklahoma.)  Here is this week’s prompt:

Driving six hours is a long time on the road.  Six hours spent singing car-aoke and taking in the picturesque scenery, but mostly reminiscing about the good times.  But those days were long gone and my mind was in a different place now.  Or was it?  My pulse quickened as I passed the road sign which read "Medford 27 miles."

And here is my 100-word effort this week.  I think I’ll call it:

High School Reunion

Crossing the border into Oregon, I gaze at the beautiful spectacle of the Rogue River Valley.  A song comes on the radio and in moments I’m doing my best Peter Cetera impression…with feeling.

"Everybody needs a little time away," I heard her say, "from each other." 

Does she ever think about me?  I wonder.

“Hold me now. It's hard for me to say I'm sorry. I just want you to stay.”

She was my soulmate.

“After all that we've been through, I will make it up to you. I promise to.”

Maybe she can be again. 

Driving six hours is a long time on the road.  Six hours spent singing car-aoke and taking in the picturesque scenery, but mostly reminiscing about the good times.  But those days were long gone and my mind was in a different place now.  Or was it?  My pulse quickened as I passed the road sign which read "Medford 27 miles."

Almost there.

Don't be a foppotee!  Join in the fun!

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