EXERCISE: A Jewish Teaching Story

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original posting: Tue, 04 Mar 2003 13:40:00 -0500

"Truth, naked and cold, had been turned away from every door in the village. Her nakedness frightened the people.  When Parable found her she was huddled in a corner, shivering and hungry.  Taking pity on her, Parable gathered her up and took her home.  There, she dressed Truth in story, warmed her and sent her out again.  Clothed in story, Truth knocked again at the villagers' doors and was readily welcomed into the people's houses.  They invited her to eat at their table and warm herself by their fire."

p. 27, The Story Factor by Annette Simmons

Your job, should you choose to attempt it, is to pick a truth.  Take one from the quotations, if you like (for example, go to <http://www.quoteland.com/random.asp> and pick one.  Such as:

"A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral." -Antoine De Saint-Exupery

Now expand it.  Dress that truth in story, warm her, and send her out again.

Characters.  Scenery.  Conflict.  Dialogue.  Lights, action, and...

let the truth slip quietly into their houses, eat with them, and warm herself by their fire.  And in the light of that story, they may see themselves in the shadows it casts.

Go ahead, write.

EXERCISE: Character Sketching?

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

original posting: Tue, 14 Jan 2003 01:41:51 -0500<

When you're sitting at a party or at lunch, and someone asks something like "who was the oddest person you knew?" most of us have someone that springs to mind.  And there's a little story that goes with the name and face about why they're odd (weird, fascinating, interesting, booooOoooring, etc.)

So -- your assignment is to quickly write us a character sketch.  Take that question, "who was the oddest person you knew?" and answer it.  Make us see, hear, feel the oddness.

How about writing it in 10 minutes?  Well, okay, take your time, but remember, this is a quick sketch, not a detailed life story.

"Riches and power are but gifts of blind fate, whereas goodness is the result of one's own merits." Heloise

EXERCISE: Cloning?

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

original posting: Thu, 02 Jan 2003 23:26:25 -0500

CNN asked people to think about:

Who would you clone, and why?

Let's push that a bit further.  Consider some of the real limitations of current cloning:

1.  You get a baby, not the adult you are cloning
2.  That baby has to grow up, and may not get the environmental training, influences, etc. that generated the adult
3.  (add to the list your favorite points...)

Anyway, pick a clone (your favorite bultibillionare?  The Sainted One from your favorite religious slice?  A Random Person selected by the television networks?  Why not?).

Consider their life and times.  Or maybe just the life and times of the cloning group?

And write about it.  What happens?  Why?  What do they learn?  What does the rest of humanity learn?

What do you learn, in writing this?