Fiction: First Story Draft
Use the scene below or take one of the scenes you wrote for the first writing assignment and begin to develop it into a story. You should take the scene you felt most engaged with. You might begin where the scene begins. Or write a set-up/opening which comes before that scene.
You can choose just a single element of the scene like character and/or setting and go from there. You could combine more than once scenes if that feels like it might work for you.
Write the story you want to write.
Page Length: 5 – 7 pages (This is the goal – get as close to that as you can. You want to generate material.)
Scene:
A Scene in which a Character is accused of Shoplifting
Some memories are complicated to erase from the mind, especially when they involve damaging and soiling reputations. My best friend Paul likes to remind me of an ordeal he went through many months ago. Paul is a person of color, and in many scenarios, he has found himself in very unpleasant situations and on the wrong side of the law. There are a few changes that I have always tried to introduce to him, which he initially took for granted, but I am happy he is adopting them gradually. For example, he likes dreadlocks, which do not look good on him. Secondly, he is a great fan of street dressing and swagger. One sunny Sunday, Paul and a group of other young men took a walk down the beach and decided to have some fun. As they were enjoying themselves, an idea struck them to go and get a few drinks to quench their thirst and craving. So together, they left for the nearest supermarket down the streets. As is typical, most shopping malls and supermarkets are continuously under full-time CCTV camera surveillance.
As the young men approached the supermarket, they were immediately put on the radar because they were easy to spot for obvious reasons. First, their dress code was conspicuous. Secondly, they had dreadlocks; to make it worse, they were persons of color who appeared rowdy. Fast forward, immediately they set foot in the store, they went straight to the sector where alcoholic drinks were stalked and kept looking at different alcoholic beverages of their choice. They had no specific drink in mind and would take a look at one, put it back on the shelf and proceed to the next. In the process, Peter put a drink in his saggy pocket. As they approached the counter to pay for the drinks they had settled on, the one he put in his pocket was forgotten and was never paid for. As they left the premise, an alarm alerted the security, and they were arrested on the spot. As fate would have it, he was incarcerated for close to six hours before being freed. In as much as he did it unknowingly, there was no justification of no intention. Since this ordeal damaged his reputation, he has shaved his dreadlocks and prefers wearing an official dress to ensuchore he restores his dignity.
