The assignment from last night's Robowriters Meeting is to write a scene based on a fable or fairy tale. The idea is to tell the story in your own way - exaggerating the absurdities or focusing on your favorite parts. Adding humanity or modern sensibilities. It's also helpful to do a little studying up on your fav. I recently brushed the dust off my take on the Pecos Bill Tall Tale. I was surprised to find early versions of the tale that included Pecos drinking whiskey with nails in it, because he was that darn tough. He also shot the love of his life because she was stuck bouncing between the earth and the moon. It was the only way to put her out of her misery. Um, stick to wrangling twisters, Pecos, if you should ever find me in a similar predicament.
It's fine to use modern language and social conventions, but refrain from going all Shrek on it and loading it up with pop culture references. If you need a little inspiration, here's a Fractured Fairy Tale from The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.
OLD!
Last spring, I had the pleasure of directing a comedy group called OLD! They posted one of their songs on YouTube. It features Tory Altree, Debbie Ruzicka and Remy O'Brien. It's a trio of soccer moms singing a protest song at Starbucks. Good stuff. It was the highlight of the show.
THE BS NEWS QUIZ OF THE DAY Yesterday, I asked...
"A pro-abortion billboard in New York City is causing controversy as it features what?"
52% answered "A terrorist forcing a woman to give birth"- Nope. But I hear the pro-life faction wants to use an airplane flying itself into a pregnant belly as a metaphor for abortion.
14% thought it was "A smiling woman throwing a fetus into a kitchen trash can"
- Yeah, no. I think that's a Hefty ad. Although I'm sure they could handle a tough job like an abortion clean-up.
No one took to my ruse "The pope giving a thumbs up"
- I couldn't find a thumbs up pic of a pontiff, but I did find this one, which I like better...
28% got the right answer "A coat hanger"
According to CBS, The Manhattan Mini-Storage Company is well-known for putting a liberal spin on their advertising. This one has really got the Catholic League up in arms and fashioning glasses out of their fingers.
According to CBS, The Manhattan Mini-Storage Company is well-known for putting a liberal spin on their advertising. This one has really got the Catholic League up in arms and fashioning glasses out of their fingers.
2 comments:
When will the robos meeting to read this fables?
It's an open writing group. It's not like the next meeting would then be devoted to people bringing in last week's assignment. There's no set curriculae for the RoboWriters. The assignments are just suggestions to motivate people to write and to give them something to work on and bring in. It also serves to nudge writers in directions they may not have considered.
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