Stort A Day In May - Story 13

Little Miss Fussington

by J. Smith Kirkland

She was born and reared in the more upper crust regions of the city. Her mother was a Fussington, of the South Carolina Fusingtons. He father was a Legislator. The family prided itself on their rung in society. For this reason he was surprised not only to see her on this side of town, but even more so that she had found a large tuft of grass to use as a stool, and was devouring a bowl of some indeterminable substance in a very unladylike like fashion.

She was so immersed in her meal, that he startled her when he spoke. He asked what was that delicacy which she was enjoying so intensely. She informed him it was of course curds and whey. When he stated he was unfamiliar with the dish, she looked at him as if he were a mule with two heads. She could not imagine that a person had never heard of curds and whey.

He asked her about the ingredients, and how the dish is prepared. She explained the dish as if describing the work of a master chef. The main ingredient is milk. Her understanding was that by taking the liquid from inside the fourth stomach of a calf, and then mixing it in the milk, it curdles the milk causing the lumps, and leaving as a side effect the whey, a thin pungent liquid. She further explained that many people find the whey to be an unpleasant taste, and will squeeze it out of the curds before eating it. She insisted however that the whey is what makes it such a delicacy to the discriminating pallet.

After a moment of consideration. He informs her that the choice of sustenance if likely the most disgusting dish he has ever seen anyone consume. He further elaborates that to publicly posture herself on the ground in such a manner was far removed from the expected behaviour of a Fussington. She was obviously insulted by the remark. She rose and with chin up and her glare directed down her nose towards him, she left in a huff

The Prompt

Choose a nursery rhyme.

That is going to be the plot of your story.

The key with this exercise is that now choose an author whose voice you love.

Write that story with that character, but in the voice of the author you chose.

Bonus Prompt

This is actually a great prompt to do more than once. Once you’ve done this exercise, you may want to come back to it after the StoryADay challenge and do it again, choosing different writers as the inspiration for the voice.

If you do this, use the same Nursery Rhyme each time. Then you’ll start to get a sense of how, when you’re putting on another author’s voice, you’re sort of wearing that author’s voice suit, how your voice behaves in that ecosystem, and eventually you’ll start to get a sense for what your voice is and what you bring to the table that is completely unique and you can then, write.

After you’ve done it two or three times, I want to challenge you to write that same story in your own voice with your own storytelling awesomeness. This is a great exercise to practice stretching yourself a little bit in terms of your voice, but also to help you find your voice.

People always say, you need to find your voice. Well, you never lost it in the first place. It’s always been there. This will just help you uncover. The things that make your voice especially unique. So there you have it, the Nursery Rhyme Exercise

Story A Day Framework

N/A