I raised an eyebrow when I turned down the hallway at six a.m. this morning and spotted the light spilling out from underneath my daughter’s bedroom door. Usually, waking my kids for school is like rousing a couple cadavers, (corpses who, to my chagrin, effortlessly self-resurrect before sunrise on Saturday and Sunday mornings). Sidney had complained about a tummy ache yesterday, so I half-expected that a campaign to miss school was underway. When I pushed open her door though, I encountered a smiling little girl.She stood in the middle of her room, her belly button peeking out beneath a too-short pajama top, and her long braided hair bent into a pair of boomerangs flanking her shoulders. In her hand she held her diary.
“You’re up early, sunshine,” I greeted her. “Is everything okay?”
Her eyes sparkled. “Mommy!” she began. “James-y woke me up.”
James was our sweet kitten who passed away from feline-leukemia a few weeks ago. As Sidney's declaration sunk into my pre-caffinated brain, a smile remained fixed on my lips but my eyebrows knitted a little closer together. “What?” I asked.
“James woke me up, but it was still dark. So I peeked out my window and you know what I saw?”
She didn’t wait for me to answer. Drawing in a deep breath that sent her belly button a little further into the room, she said, “Down by the tree, I saw three black cats! They were so cute, Mommy, and they came right up to my window.” She held up her diary. “I’m going to write about it!”
That’s my girl!
Our reality is dictated by our beliefs. Sidney believes James woke her up so she wouldn’t miss seeing those cats. Why not? (I hope it’s true!) One of the goals I embrace as a writer is drawing my readers into my brand of reality, suspending their disbelief. It comes down to the level of authenticity in the writing which can be achieved many ways: through the logical chain of events in the plot, believable dialogue, realistic characterizations, etc.
What’s your favorite device for creating authenticity in your writing, or for suspending your readers’ disbelief? Can you think of a time when you were the reader or viewer, that your disbelief wasn’t suspended? (Think Clark Kent hiding his Super Identity behind a pair of glasses!)
[Artwork at the top of this post by Joied6]
13 comments:
What a beautiful story. I can see why it made you so happy. And what a pretty kitty. You must miss him so. I have to admit that I don't often have to work to have my readers suspend their (dis)belief. I'm pretty straightforward in my writing choices, brutally so. :)
I really enjoyed your post. The story about your daughter and the cats was very sweet. Seeing the picture of James made me want to get one of my own. I find that the authenticity in my stories comes from my characters. When they are real to me, they seem real to my readers as well.
First off i want to say that i'm sorry about your kitty. He looks like he was full of love.
This was a great story, i really hope James did wake her up and is watching over her
Last night I watched an older movie for the first time and I had it happen to me. "The Pelican Brief" was on and, having never seen, I decided to give it a go. There was one particular scene wherein the Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington characters were pinned down in a parking garage by one of the bad guys. All of a sudden a dog in the car next to the antagonist started barking viciously and the protagonists managed to get away.
That would have been fine and all, but nary a hint of the canine was provided prior to his (Her? As the owner of a girl dog, I shouldn't make such gender assumptions...) day-saving barks. It was extremely deus ex machina.
I'm not sure if the book is written the same way, though. I've only read one Grisham book and it also left me shaking my head in disbelief, but I do intend on getting to his Ford County collection of short stories one day (for curiosity's sake...).
What a sweet story. I'm so sorry about James's passing; he was a gorgeous cat.
In terms of suspending disbelief, I guess I toy with that a little in my latest novel. Similar to Clark Kent, my characters have alternate identities that they hide by wearing sunglasses and hats. It seems dumb and illogical, until I reveal that they haven't fooled anyone -- the people they're hiding from are just playing along. Silly, yes. But it was fun to write. :) (And sorry for the semi-spoiler to my book; it may never see the light of day anyway.)
Great story. Your daughter sounds like a cutie!! :)
Oh you've definitely got a writer on your hands there, very sweet story. I hope she enjoyed penning her thoughts today. I read a debut novel recently where the author's hand was so visible in the way too many "coincidences" that happened in the story. It just would never be so in reality, so it lessened the book in a couple of ways, but namely in my view of the author, who I felt didn't put in the effort to really convince her audience.
So sweeeet!
There is an award for you on my blog@
http://kristincreative.blogspot.com/2010/02/whos-been-hoarding-awards.html
You go girl! You daughter sounds like a cutie!
Great story, Nicole. : )
That's sweet and I hope that diary becomes an obsession.
Oh my...this tears at my heart strings and makes me smile all at the same time. I can only imagine how it made you feel. Thank you for sharing this...a special moment and memory for sure. I miss that sweet little James-y-poo!
Love and hugs,
Tonya
What a sweet story. :) My Sydney and I built fairy houses together today. She loves to write also. Sounds like our Sydney/Sidneys would get along well!
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