Write on Wednesdays - Choose your own adventure

I am linking up with inkpaperpen again for Write on Wednesdays....

This week I am allowed to choose any of the previous writing prompts I like... so I chose this one....

Write On Wednesdays Exercise 15 - Give yourself some time to notice the people around you. The people who may cross your path each day. The lady in front of you at the supermarket, the man who helps the school kids cross the road, a neighbour, a waitress in a cafe, a librarian, anyone at all. Choose one person, someone you don't know, and this person will become the basis of the week's writing exercise. Describe this person as you see them, describe their surroundings. Then imagine a problem, create conflict for this person. Describe the conflict. Describe how your character deals with the problem. The conflict might resolve itself, it might not. It is up to you. Perhaps, the lady in the supermarket has forgotten her wallet. Does she bursts into tears? Maybe the librarian finds a lost child. The aim is to show how your character responds to conflict and in the process, reveal something about that character. Tell us their story.


Let's aim for around 200 words, keeping with the theme of the last few weeks (to make each word count). Hopefully those of you who are writing ongoing stories will find a way to weave this exercise into your work.

There is a house across the street from us that intrigues us. The people who live there hardly ever come out. They are very private, very .... shy? Nervous? Secretive? Ashamed?

They do the same things every day: open gates, get newspaper, check mail, water plants. Mr Cool has spoken to the man once and he seems okay. I have said hello to the lady once, she barely said hello in return. 

I am sure that they are lovely people, but my imagination gets the better of me and I wonder what they do all day long... They may be in witness protection. Or there could be a tunnel under the house where they leave without anyone seeing. Or they could be Batman's parents. Or Ivan Milat's parents! Eek! They could have a basement full of pygmy skulls and elephant tusks. We love to think that they are nudist addicted to online gaming and can't bear being dressed to even grab the paper in the morning. Intriguing huh?

Here is my 200 word story about the lady of the house across the street.... 

The Lady Across the Street

She spends some of her time pottering around in her garden of three plants. She spends most of her time behind closed doors. Does she watch game shows all day long? Is she part of a secret society? Is she addicted to online gambling? Is she a nudist?

Her straw like hair is getting greyer and greyer and more twig like. She wears clothes that look like cardboard. She moves with slow trudgery. I spoke to her once. I said, 'Hello'. She half smiled back through tight lips. She was toothless. 

Each day she walks to the store. She buys two carrots, one apple, she haggles over cents at the checkout. She counts out her money, coins rattle. One day, there were not enough coins. She was flustered. She asked to take one carrot off the sale. Still not enough coins. People behind her felt the awkwardness. 

I tapped her on the shoulder and offered her a $5 note. She stared at me for what felt like hours. Instead of accepting the money, she made a choking sound and left all of her items. She bolted out of the door. She did not come out of the house for days. Her blinds are shut more. She walks a different way to the shops.