How does a writer order an ice cream cone?
Sunny Mayne Island Bakery is full of muffins, cookies, tarts in glass display cases in the front part of the store. During the summer, in the back, there's an ice cream parlour. Rocky Road is like Cookie Dough but has brown crunches instead of black. Some of the tubs are marked blah, blah 'ice cream'. Other tubs blah, blah 'frozen yogurt'.
"What will you have?" you ask loudly stressing each word like I didn't hear you the first couple of times.
Standing there, looking at all the flavours reminds me of the story I'd just written, earlier that morning, "Hey, would you like to hear a story?" Of course, you do. I pull a piece of paper out of my purse and read...
(Please click the link to listen to me read the short story)
I fold the page and return it to my purse.
"We don't have Rainbow." You sigh.
"A scoop of Strawberry Shortcake."
"Waffle or plain?"
"I don't want a waffle. I want an ice cream cone."
"Yes, I know but what kind of cone--waffle or plain?"
"Which is cheaper?"
"Plain."
"Plain, please."
Your next customer treats you like a machine--orders two scoops of chocolate, says, "waffle" without being asked, and pays. No imagination. No exchange of pleasantries, beyond thanks. How rude.
I listened to...
What To Do When You're A Discouraged Writer
I'm listening to...
CBC radio
Here are the winners of the 2020 Governor General Literary Awards
