Monologues & Soliloquies
Good day readers and followers it's another sunny but cold Spring day here in the village of the Answerman. Once upon a time- on a warm summer night I had the words to a monologue or soliloquy (pick your word) fall out of my head. If you're a writer and you have it happen then you have to write the stuff down or it evaporates. I had the good fortune to be home, wrote it, typed it, saved it...nearly four years ago. I mentioned it in a previous blog piece.
The scene had two people, one man, one woman. I never touched it again. I left it alone- no character development, no additional dialogue. I left it alone on purpose. The characters didn't even have names. Another writer I know found it fascinating but ignorant. My style of writing was mostly prose, poetry with two story books that I've never published. I never wrote a play or a scene.
The first story I wrote when I was 13 and 14 years old. I have it somewhere, it's relatively stupid as most things that an adolescent would write. The main character was a cat that could do martial arts and speak to his human owner. The geographic basis was actually the real town where I live now---but I never lived here growing up! The second I took years to write and complete. I finished it about seven years ago. I was close to publishing it about five years ago- but my illustrator backed out and life got in the way.
In July, 2014 the monologue just flowed. The male character exits the scene with "Now I have to excuse myself and let that sink in ." Well, it must've sunk in, eh? Three years and seven months. A little over three weeks ago- during one of the Nor'easters I opened it and suddenly developed a following scene with dialogue from the female character. I didn't look at it again until yesterday. More characters and a prior scene just flowed. I can't touch the monologue or change it...I just like it the way it was created. Free form.
One of the new characters has his own soliloquy in the newest scene that is set prior to the original piece that sat all this time. Strange. I spent a few hours on it yesterday with the dialogue and characters just falling together. This morning I hit "writer's block." While I don't consider my ignorance of prior development a writer's block (the inability to produce new or creative material), I just didn't want to touch the monologue. Today's block was sudden and I really hope it doesn't last long. I like the new story but creative things have to happen naturally.
The Answerman says "Finish what you started." This time I hope I can follow my own advice. I hope it's not another three years and seven months because a gem of a line like this came out of the new character's monologue; "Geez, Dude you just compared a woman- an attractive woman- to a train...... Awesome dude! A f'cking train!"
Be good, be safe
The scene had two people, one man, one woman. I never touched it again. I left it alone- no character development, no additional dialogue. I left it alone on purpose. The characters didn't even have names. Another writer I know found it fascinating but ignorant. My style of writing was mostly prose, poetry with two story books that I've never published. I never wrote a play or a scene.
The first story I wrote when I was 13 and 14 years old. I have it somewhere, it's relatively stupid as most things that an adolescent would write. The main character was a cat that could do martial arts and speak to his human owner. The geographic basis was actually the real town where I live now---but I never lived here growing up! The second I took years to write and complete. I finished it about seven years ago. I was close to publishing it about five years ago- but my illustrator backed out and life got in the way.
In July, 2014 the monologue just flowed. The male character exits the scene with "Now I have to excuse myself and let that sink in ." Well, it must've sunk in, eh? Three years and seven months. A little over three weeks ago- during one of the Nor'easters I opened it and suddenly developed a following scene with dialogue from the female character. I didn't look at it again until yesterday. More characters and a prior scene just flowed. I can't touch the monologue or change it...I just like it the way it was created. Free form.
One of the new characters has his own soliloquy in the newest scene that is set prior to the original piece that sat all this time. Strange. I spent a few hours on it yesterday with the dialogue and characters just falling together. This morning I hit "writer's block." While I don't consider my ignorance of prior development a writer's block (the inability to produce new or creative material), I just didn't want to touch the monologue. Today's block was sudden and I really hope it doesn't last long. I like the new story but creative things have to happen naturally.
The Answerman says "Finish what you started." This time I hope I can follow my own advice. I hope it's not another three years and seven months because a gem of a line like this came out of the new character's monologue; "Geez, Dude you just compared a woman- an attractive woman- to a train...... Awesome dude! A f'cking train!"
Be good, be safe
While both a soliloquy and a monologue are lengthy talks delivered by a single person, the distinction is in the audience. Usually, a monologue occurs when a character speaks directly to another character. It is a soliloquy if they are talking to themselves.
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