Fortnightly Writing Competition! Dialogue

[Macay]

The theme of the fortnight is dialogue.

The story could be about anything but must be told through dialogue. It should read like two people talking more so than a story being exposed. The majority of the story should be dialogue, narration, exposition or flowery text is allowed as long as the dialogue still weighs out as the bulk of the text.

Rules:
- The story must be told in dialogue.
- No word limit.

Started June 19th,
Ends July 3rd.

[Gravity]

Since I've been itching to try my hands at writing a play I may enter an exert for this competition. If I do, I don't want an overly long entry so maybe just a short ten minute scene. Guess it all depends if I can get off my sorry behind and write one.

Nevermind. It seems I was too lazy yet again to come up with anything.

[Dataflashsabot]

Since I've been itching to try my hands at writing a play I may enter an exert for this competition. If I do, I don't want an overly long entry so maybe just a short ten minute scene. Guess it all depends if I can get off my sorry behind and write one.

Off topic, but I'm curious, why the monospace font? It makes your post hard to read.

[Crimson Wizard]

May I ask, by "The story must be told in dialogue." you mean that the story should be... literally told in dialog (e.g. one guy telling another some story), or that the story should have the dialog as a "spine"?

[Darius Poyer]

May I ask, by "The story must be told in dialogue." you mean that the story should be... literally told in dialog (e.g. one guy telling another some story), or that the story should have the dialog as a "spine"?

I'm certain that both of those fit the rules set.

[Macay]

May I ask, by "The story must be told in dialogue." you mean that the story should be... literally told in dialog (e.g. one guy telling another some story), or that the story should have the dialog as a "spine"?

I'm certain that both of those fit the rules set.

Indeed.

[Stupot]

I think just telling a story and putting he said at the end is kind of missing the point. 

[ddq]

I call this one "My girlfriend just left me and I'm taking it out on arguably innocent motorists."

"39... 35... 37... 42! Alright, time to roll!"

Twelve seconds of not exactly exhilarating pursuit later...

"Is there a problem, officer?"
"Sure is, son. I'm afraid you've been speeding."
"With all due respect, sir, I'm pretty sure I was going about 40 miles an hour, and last time I checked-"
"Right you are, lad. My fancy radar gun thingy here clocked you at precisely 42 miles per hour."
"Right."
"This is a 40 mile per hour zone."
"Yes it is."
"Right."
"So may I go?"
"Go?!? Certainly not! You've been caught exceeding the speed limit! I can't just let you go!"
"42 miles an hour is hardly speeding, sir."
"Let me ask you a simple math question, Einstein. Is 42 greater than or less than 40?"
"Well, greater-"
"PRECISELY. Thus, you were quite obviously in excess of the posted speed limit and you must be issued a citation, you silly twat."
"But everyone goes a couple miles over, sir."
"Here's another big-wig mathematical concept for you, Euler. What do you think the word 'limit' means? It means approaching but never reaching or exceeding!"
"But common practice-"
"I don't give a buttered badger about common practice, young man! You just broke math!"
"Listen, are you low on your monthly quota or something, cause this just doesn't seem fair."
"*Sigh.* Alright, you want the truth? My girlfriend just left me and I'm taking it out on arguably innocent motorists."
"That's awful!"
"Yeah, I know. Our two-year anniversary would be next week and-"
"What kind of prick cop are you? Being a dick to drivers who might just have more important things to do than get pulled over just because your girlfriend broke up with you? Fucking pigs. This is what I've been telling Martin down the street, you can never trust the Man and, hey what is that? Whoa, what are you doing with that thing?!? No, no! DON'T TASE ME BRO!!!"

fin

[Oliwerko]

Just great 

I'm still thinking of something juicy and will definitely join...

[straydogstrut]

Lol, brilliant and ditto=)

[Dualnames]

Entry name goes here

"What have we here son?"
"Just a piece of junk, resisting to get arrested, sir!"
"Have you not tried enough officer, or do you believe it can't be done?"
"I have no beliefs sir, but this stupid machinery refuses to get out of its current position."
"Hmmm, interesting. Have you gathered any information concerning the motives behind such a move?"
"No sir, can we just forget the whole incident and get away from here, sir? This suit I have to wear for the radiation levels, really bothers me."
"Just wait inside the car, while I connect it with that robot."

The police officer attempts to plug the car with the robot when suddenly the robot breaks its silence.

"I told the other human, that I'm stuck in this swamp, but what do I expect?"
"Humans, so ridiculously stupid, it's to wonder how they still exist."
"Here I am brain the size of the planet, so go ahead mistreat me, plug your car."

The police officer disregards the robot, and plugs the car to the robot.
Two seconds later, the car blows up killing both the police officers

"I told you, but no one ever listens to me. Oh, why do I bother!"

[Stupot]

Grandma

"I was your age once."
"Really?"
"Yep. And quite the looker too, by all accounts."
"Now I know you're senile, Grandma."
"Seriously... you're Grandpa chose me didn't he?"
"HA!  True."

"I had an affair behind his back, you know?"
"Grandma, I..."
"He didn't have a clue..."

"You any good at maths, Peter?"
"Err.. yeah..."
"I met Roland in '62"

"The year my mum was born... What is this ab-...?"
"Roland died this morning."
"So... this Roland... is my real grandfather?"
"You always were the clever one, Peter."
"But... what about Grandpa..."
"He needn't know Peter... he's too ill to understand..."
"But... Grandma... why are you telling me this?"

"You're a millionaire, Peter."
"Ey?"
"Roland...  He was a rich man.  I was bored and he was charming... he's a nice man though.  We never lost touch."
"And what?  He's leaving me a chunk in his will?"
"He's left you the whole lot, son.  Seven Million."
"I... But... Does Mum know?"
"No... and you must never tell her, where the money came from."
"But... Christ... Wow!... What do I do?... I mean shit!"
"Language, Peter!"
"Sorry Grandma..."

[discordance]

I dig the theme.

Celestial Navigation

(The deck of a ship)

(He walks out and sees her leaning on the rail)

“Evening.”
“Evening, General.”
“Watching the stars, eh?”
“Yes.”
“Were you ever any good at picking out the constellations? My days out in the wilderness, I always got lost. Couldn't remember which was the north star and which was just some other star nobody cared about. You know, in the wilderness there are too many stars, it gets impossible to keep track.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Ever try getting lost in the wilderness? Don't ever do it. It's a thrill at first, drinking rain water and sleeping in a tree, but after seven nights away from home you get lonely for the city lights and the voices around the campfire . . .”
“Yes, I suppose you would.”

(Pause)

“Eh, sorry, I'm boring you. Not much for an old man to do, these days, except tell his old stories. What are you thinking about?”
“Tell me, when you were in the city . . . did you ever get lonely â€" for the loneliness . . . for the quiet in the thick of the trees . . .”

(She looks out at the heaviness of the ocean and the sprawl of the reflected stars and the deep slow wake of the ship and the points of light desperate in the endless outer silence)

“Well, maybe I did, now and then. But it wasn't a sincere feeling, you understand. You can't remember the wilderness properly if you're not in it. Oh, it seems beautiful from outside, but there's a reason the whole upward slope of the human journey has built away from the wilderness and into comfort and routine and that's because from the inside it's entirely . . .”

(Pause)

“Are you still listening?”
“Sorry. I was watching the stars.”
“What's to watch? The stars just stay where they are. That's how celestial navigation works, you know, the captain can look at the sky and know for sure that at the same point at the same time the stars will always be the same . . .”
“Can he really? Doesn't the earth tilt on its axis over time or something?”
“Eh, maybe. The thing is, you always know where you're pointed, out here. All you have to do is look up, and there's the sky, and here's you, and here's land.”
“Only at night.”
“Well, yes. By day you have the sun. Sun by day, stars by night, that's how it works.”
“What if it's too cloudy to see?”
“Well, then, you get lost.”

(Pause. For a long time there is only the slow lap of the waves and the gentle glow of the oncoming sun as the stars slowly fade into the morning sky. After a while, the sound of seagulls in the distance. After a while, land.)

[Oliwerko]

Could be better, but screw it, here it is.

Know your worries

You know that feeling when something’s bugging you, when something doesn’t let you rest and relax, when something holds you from the state of free-minded happiness, when something is sucking your energy and eating you from the inside. Everyone has a story about this.

This is my story.

“Listen, I wanted to tell you something.”
“What?”
“I don’t think you’re happy.”
“Come again?”
“I don’t think you’re a happy person.”
“Why is that?”
“You don’t look like you’re happy.”
“I am.”
…
“I have virtually everything I can â€" a happy family, trusting friends, good health…”
“Yes, you do. Yet you don’t look happy.”
“Don’t I?”
“For god’s sake, I’ve known you for years. I can see it. Maybe you look happy at the first glance, maybe you do. But I don’t believe it.”
…
“Maybe you are only pretending happiness…”
“Pretending? Why would I do that? I mean, I have no reason to do that, while I have plenty of reasons to feel relaxed and happy.”
…
“Maybe…you know, convincing yourself that you’re happy when you are not is, in my opinion, not quite the right way.”
…
“I don’t know what’s eating you, but I think something is.”
“Why?”
“It’s the things you say, the way you behave…there’s a struggle going on in you.”
…
“Well…I’m not going to lie to you, I think I’m pretty happy overall, but… I don’t know. I don’t know what’s eating me. I get this weird feeling I’m worried from time to time.”
“Do you?”
“Yeah.”
“Didn’t you just get used to it, trying to forget it?”
…
“Maybe…Maybe you’re right, I don’t know.”
“If you have a problem, it’s not going to vanish itself.”
“I know.”
“Do you have one?”
“I don’t know. I think I’m happy, but…”
“…you’re not sure.”
“Something like that, yeah…It may be the thing you mentioned â€" how I get on with others.”
“What about it?”
“I feel I got trouble doing it.”
“Doing what?”
“Getting on well with people. I’m too different from them. You know me.”
“Heh, yeah, I know what you mean.”
“I just don’t know where’s the golden middle line between staying myself and accommodating to the environment.”
“To what environment?”
“To people.”
“What people?
…
“Me? Or (a friend), or (another friend), or who?”
…
“Well…You have a point. I don’t know.”
“Look at me. I’m very much like you yet I don’t give a fuck about others. I do not NEED to accommodate.”
“Yeah…I know…”
“But you see, you aren’t happy, something’s bugging you.”
“Probably yes, it is.”
“Now what is it exactly?”
“That’s hard to tell.”
…
“That’s the first thing you have to answer, you know. Without a problem there’s no solution.”
“I know, I know.”
“You think about it.”

And so I did. It changed my thinking quite a lot. This person hit my weakest spot, the spot most people don’t even see. I learned that knowing your worries can be harder than it seems and that it’s very important to know them. I learned that overlooking that “something” is not leading to a solution. You can get used to it, of course. But it’ll be eating you inside until the moment you think hard and reveal what that “something” is.

I did. And I’d like to thank the person that made me do it.

This was my story.

[Gravity]

I'm guessing voting does not start until tomorrow but I'll go ahead and cast my vote early, for discordance.

[Macay]

I suppose the voting box is on the table then.

Good people, get voting.

[Oliwerko]

Stupot.

[discordance]

Definitely ddq.

[Atelier]

Stupot.

[straydogstrut]

Oliwerko =)