Prompt: From Where I'm Standing

[Prof. Sky Alton]

As a rule, we’re used to seeing a situation from one person’s point of view. As omniscient narration (where we get a glimpse into every characters head in one scene) has declined in popularity, authors tend to have to make a call about who gets to narrate a particular important event. It’s usually seen as a bad idea to include the same event several times in a story just so everyone gets their say. Sometimes we get to hear about other characters feelings later on when the point of view transfers to them or when they tell us about it in dialogue but that’s not always the case.

For writers, it’s sometimes useful to write out a scene multiple times, even if only one version will make it into a book; that way, you know how your secondary characters are feeling about matters and how that might come out in the story later on. So, this month, I want you to break the rules and narrate an event from several people’s points of view (in 200 words or more). Try and make it interesting and make sure that everyone has at least one key piece of information that the others don’t have about what they’re experiencing. Think about how these individual people would interpret and react to what’s going on. It might be drastically different or very similar, with a few key differences. Remember that how they perceive things might have a ripple effect later on.

You’ll earn 20 beans for completing this prompt as well as it counting towards the chance to snag our shiny Quill and Ink award.

There is no deadline as such for these prompts but if you’d like it to count towards your chance of earning the award for a specific year, we’ll need it by the end of that school year. If you’re comfortable sharing, then post below. If not, email your story to us via hol.bookclub @ gmail.com (without the spaces). Oh and remember it’s a good idea to check through your piece carefully for spelling and grammatical errors as they make it harder for people to properly enjoy your work.

[Iverian Gnash]

Iverian and her siblings are playing their version of Capture the Flag on a stormy night:

Iverian: "One dark and stormy night, yes, that's what this was," Iverian thought as she raced through the bushes towards the destination where the flag was that they were supposed to grab. "Why did they have to play on this night out of all the others? It was pitch black and pouring rain, plus I can barely hear where anyone else is over this rain. When I play this on a normal night, I can easily use my sense of hearing to figure out where my siblings are in the field/woods." Ivey fell over a tree branch on the ground and landed hard. She quickly jumped up and continued on. The rain blew her short and choppy blonde hair in her face as she quickly brushed it away. They knew where the flag was, at least she assumed they all did. At the beginning of the game, her older sister had handed everyone a clue to the flag's location. Immediately, they had all run off in the same direction. However, somewhere along the way, with all the rain and trees, they had separated. "Hopefully," she thought, "I'm the only one who knows where this flag is hidden." Iverian stepped to the outskirts of a small clearing.

Samuel: "Ugh, this rain. Wait, I love the rain! This is perfect, everyone else will have no idea where to go with this downpour, but my sense of direction is perfect," Samuel (made up name XD) decided. He slowly picked his way through the trees with the smuggled flashlight he had stolen from his brother's, Maxwell's, pocket. "Maxwell doesn't stand a chance unless he's running, I could hear him coming from a mile. He hasn't mastered stealth yet," Samuel assured himself. The boys were always at competition with each other. Turning the flashlight on dimly and covering the light partially with his hand, he came upon the clearing he was sure that clue had referred to. Suddenly, he saw, through the downpour, someone bolt into the clearing.

Maxwell: "Walking speed, that's the way to go. While everyone else is tripping through the bushes, I'll be safely going along and silently capture this flag without anyone knowing," Maxwell figured. Maxwell thought of himself as the stealthiest man alive, as he stepped on a large tree limb and cracked it right in half. The wind and rain was making him cold and wet, though he wouldn't allow that to bother him of course. Finally, he had reached the clearing where he assumed the flag was hidden. Listening hard, he waited for the right moment to run in and retrieve the flag from where he assumed it was hidden.

Ilayda: "Refereeing this was such a great idea on my part. Instead of picking my way along through the thorns, I get to relax for a bit and wait for the drama to unfold as the younger siblings argue over who rightfully retrieved the flag first." Ilayda had a seat on the porch away from the rain.

Diamond: "I can't believe they didn't allow me to play. Of course, I am younger, but that doesn't mean I can't do what everyone else can. Good thing I still heard the clue and know a safe way out of the house and to the flag. I mean, it's not like anyone will expect me to be there holding it when they stumble to the destination."

Iverian: "3, 2, on one run and snatch that flag, securing my victory, 1!" Iverian darted towards the middle of the clearing where a short tree stood. But wait, there was no flag on it O_O She was sure this was the place the clue was pointing towards. They often hung out here. What if someone caught it before she did! Hurriedly, she looked around to see her brothers emerge from the clearing. "Hey! Did either of you capture the flag?" Both of her brothers shouted back that they didn't. Suddenly, they heard a cackling sort of laughter. Turning, they realized it was their baby brother, ok, younger brother, the youngest, therefore the baby, hop out of the bushes waving the flag triumphantly.

Thomas: *cackling laughter* "This game was rigged the whole time! Ilayda told me where the flag was and sent me out before you three had even assembled on the porch to listen for the instructions," Thomas proudly announced. The shocked looks of his siblings was enough to give him over-abounding joy as he started running back to the cabin.

Maxwell: "Well, this is embarrassing." Someone bumped into him as he stood there in shock staring at Samuel and Iverian. Jumping around, startled, he discovered Diamond darting around him and making her way towards the tree. "It's not there genius!" He yelled after her.

Diamond: "How could the flag not be there!" she pouted as she followed her siblings back to the house where her brother stood on the steps triumphantly and her sister laughed mockingly.

Ilayda: "You three fell for it so easily and Diamond followed right along!" Ilayda keeled over in laughter.

Iverian: *stomps into the house* "That was a waste of time and now I'm soaking wet for nothing."

[Adaleine Shuster]

Adaleine: "Today is my birthday! Yay! Guess who can finally say that they are not the youngest of their friends! I'm so excited, I haven't seen Mabel in 20 years! It was so nice of her to come visit on this big birthday. I'm surprised I even had her address! I remember when we use to go out for dinner together and just talk, talk, talk until the early hours of the morning." I thought to myself. With that thought about my time with Mabel still in my mind I set off to get ready for the day.

Brooke: "Ow!" I scream. I turn around to see what I've tripped on, just to see that it was my brothers shoe. "I hate it when Bob comes to visit, its like he is a little 10 year old or something!" I think to myself. At least today is Adas birthday. I heard Mabel is going to be there, I haven't seen her in years. It is a very special birthday this year, and I told everybody I would make the cake. I rush to the kitchen, and find the ingredients put on the counter already. I start to bake, and pretty quickly I am pulled into a world of mixing, cracking eggs, and sifting flour...

Mabel: Today is Adaleines birthday and I have to go see her. I haven't seen any of my old friends in years, and I am not excited. I stopped spending time with them nearly 20 years ago, and so I'm sure you can imagine my surprise when I got the invite. It would have been verey rude of me to ignore it or say no, but now I wish I had. No, I have to go see all of my old friends, and smile, and bring Ada a gift. This. Is. Going. To. Suck.

[Galena May]

Walking out of the exam hall after the strangest but incomplete exam in years, Praline looked shifty, Pecan looked pale, and Pristine looked mysterious.

"What a beautiful thing to happen! Can it be true? Or am I dreaming? What happens if I wake up and find that it was all one big dream and that I still have to write the exam? No, it can't be. The expression on Professor Mill's face when she announced that a strange event was going to happen all over the world and all of us had therefore been summoned to the school playground to watch it, was a morose one yet mingled with hopes of upcoming excitement. She informed us that the authorities had made a special concession for our exams, since a strange global event was unexpectedly announced on news channels worldwide in the midst of our exam, and our papers were to be graded incomplete, and the marks obtained extrapolated out of full marks. I want to go hug my sister right now for her sagely advice that I should start the exam by writing first what I knew best. Thanks to her, I just wrote my best creative essay, and I am pretty sure that if the marks are extrapolated from that essay, I have surely passed my exam with flying colors. Now, what is this strange event we are waiting for? Not that I am interested as long as the decision about the exam stays. If the exam isn't retaken, I am safe, otherwise I will have to suffer the consequences of not studying anything but that one essay. Why isn't everyone as happy as me? Particularly, look at Praline. She looks as remorseful and unstable as if she missed the train to her holidays, I am beginning to feel strongly against her unhealthy obsession for perfectly executed and uninterrupted exams that she can bag the top scores in. Oh wow! what a dazzling brilliant light! Whatever are those two streaks across the sky? Not that I care! Please stay right there and take your own sweet time, lest the exams are reannounced and the decision of grading incomplete papers is changed." - Pristine.

"Of course, it had to happen during the exam. All the strangest misfortunes and deadly occurrences turn up during the exam. How is one to show off their talents and get good marks? There is always some disturbance or the other. Why? There was that time when a rat nibbled through the whole sheaf of question papers and the exam for our grade had to be postponed for a week. Then, there was that time our mischievous classmate set a pile of wood on fire on the last desk, and the exam had to be discontinued to let us out until the fire - fighting engines arrived. All these disruptions after you have studied for a month. And Pristine keeps asking me why I always take things so seriously. Well, she would know if she ever worked hard. Looking smug about the extrapolation of marks, is she? I bet I would perform better than her if I had got to write the whole paper. Now, we will probably score the same. Anyway, what strange event are we waiting for? A UFO? A visit from the aliens? The destruction of the world? The largest earthquake? An overhead three-sided war in the sky between the Martians and the Venusians and the Uranians? What is so important? Wait! Wow! What a spectacle! The twin lights crossing the sky, I thought it only happened in fables. They look so beautiful in reality! I guess that this one time, it was really worth it!" - Praline.

" 'When the twin flames cross the sky, the world shall change, and bonds shall separate, and new bonds will be formed, and the truths will be reconciled with those that deserve to hear them. 21 years later, when the twin flames cross the sky, shall the past, present, and future intermingle, and the destined one shall choose their reality' was what the Seer said in the prophecy during my birth. I bet Praline and Pristine are each thinking something insignificant, likely fighting virtual battles with each other in their heads about the outcome of the exams, but little do they know that I need their help. This phenomenal and strange global occurrence is about me. The twin streaks of burning light are passing across the sky, and it is now my time to choose my real destiny, for for 21 years have I hidden that I am the destined one. I don't know how to break this to Praline and Pristine, but I need their advice because they are my best friends. God help me! Can someone at least stop the ringing in my ears? Should I go and tell Praline and Pristine just now? But, will that stop this ringing in my ears? Oh dear, it hurts! Oh no! I am fainting! Help! Can they hear me screaming? Or is it all in my head?" - Pecan.