Well, it turns out that when very, very young kids develop bad habits (which they do very quickly), it can be very difficult to break them. We’re working on teaching Tobin that he doesn’t actually need to nurse in order to go to sleep, even though he’s convinced that he does. Eventually we’re going to have to teach him that he can go to sleep on his own, without one of us holding him, but I have a feeling that it’s going to work better if we deal with one thing at a time. Trying to handle everything at once is probably going to be a nightmare. Anyway, I have a scene challenge for you. You all should know the rules, but just in case: I provide you with specific rules for how to write a particular scene. Try to keep your scene under five hundred words, and try to keep it in the same tone as the introduction. If I give a line that is very dark and depressing, then I don’t want to see a scene about a drunken monkey in a tutu…it just doesn’t fit. If I do give you a line about a drunken monkey in a tutu, then you should probably try for a funny scene.
Your Challenge: write me a scene of at least 300 and no more than 1500 words that effectively expresses your preferred approach to parenting. This could be a specific parenting theory (like Tiger Momming, Attachment Parenting, Free Range Parenting, etc), or it could be a view espoused by some acclaimed expert (like James Dobson or Dr. Spock). This is not to be an essay about your position, nor is it to be a character simply presenting your position in monologue. I want your scene to be vivid, dynamic, and meaningful, but also to give the reader a clear sense of your opinion on the event/issue about which you chose to write. Express your opinion through the way you set your scene, the setting that you choose, the situation in which your character’s find themselves, and the way they interact with one another both verbally and, more importantly, non-verbally. Have fun!
Broken Mirrors 