Building upon yesterday’s lesson that focused on us, today we turned that lens around to create characters and monologues using a unique method: examining receipts!
We first explored things we notice about people when we first meet them and what we might infer about their personalities or interests. We transferred that same focus to various receipts that were passed out to the tables. We had to decide a lot about our characters from what they bought at the store. For example, what can you infer about a person who buys a $7 bottle of wine, crème brûlée, glade candles, and dog food? We wrote monologues (a piece written from a character’s personal perspective) based on the items on the receipts. It seemed everyone was whipping up all sorts of personalities, and almost everyone wanted to read from the author’s chair today.
In the afternoon, we flipped the perspective and wrote from another character’s point of view. The cashier’s monologue in the one story now became the customer’s monologue. Everyone’s inner humor and voice emerged from monologuing. We wrapped up the day by revising and began typing up some of our favorite pieces for our anthology.
Lesson Learned: “Monologues are putting yourself in someone else’s shoes, making your voice show.”
Quote of the Day: “My bland yellow shirt and beige pants screamed middle age.”