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"She remembers the last time she saw him, the last time
she looked into his eyes, the last time she watched him go through that door and the
knife in her belly twisting like..."
Expanding the small story—a single First or a single Last—flexes your narrative
muscles. To expand, use a device called the Long Sentence Release, writing one long
sentence for 10-15 minutes, and when your internal editor tells you to write a period,
you write AND THEN or AND SO or AND WHEN and when your prose picks up speed you take a
deep breath and then you let the language dive or soar or go sideways because this is
writing free and because it drops you into the maw of creativity.
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Writing Exercise |
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1. She remembers the first night she saw him, how he looked
and how he smelled when he got close and the touch of his hand and...
2. The last time he called her, she...
A good story has a core. It has a center of gravity. Firsts and lasts give you that center
of gravity and lead you to full scenes. Click on Page Four, converting narration into scene.
Practice by expanding any of the first/last rituals.
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