Day 10, 20,567 words.
I don't really have anything to post as an excerpt today. I wrote a pretty serious and un-funny set of scenes between Si and Seth. I don't think it will be very interesting for you all to read. Damn, writing about actual human emotions is hard! Katie, I don't know how you've done it all these years.
I'll leave you with a picture of Si, and just a little excerpt. Don't feel you have to go on and on about how good it is, though... it's just some emotional stuff that has to get out of the way for the plot to really move forward.
Si knocked on the door of apartment 3B at about 4pm. My flight was at 7 so I didn’t have much time but that was exactly how I wanted it. I was surprised, when I saw him, at how my stomach flipped and then slowly righted itself. This was even more shocking, given that he wasn't his usual well-coiffed and styled self. He certainly didn't give off a 'movie star' vibe. His hair was rumpled even more than usual, his black tshirt was ill-fitting, and he was grinning like a maniac.
As I ushered him through the living room into my bedroom, I caught a glimpse of my face in the mirror and noted that I was grinning like a maniac, too. The over-stretched grin did not match my sudden wave of queasiness, but it was too late to un-invite Si. Instead, I sat him down in the armchair beside the bed while I painstakingly folded the clothes I had so recently hung up in the closet. (I had made sure to pack all my underwear already, as I did not want Si staring at either the lacy little numbers or the ripped and stained ones.)
“So.” I made sure my hands were busy with the folding, and I clearly had no time to look at Si what with walking back and forth to the closet to retrieve and then pack my jorts, one by one. “What were we talking about?” With an effort, I kept my voice light. I was pretty sure if Si saw my face, he’d see how uncomfortable I was. At the time, I couldn’t remember exactly why I didn’t want him to know he made me uncomfortable, but I didn’t want to spend the time thinking it through, either. Stay focused, I muttered to myself under my breath.
“You were going to tell me about you and Hagrid and all of your other dates or boyfriends or girlfriends or whatever. And I suppose I wanted to hear why in all your vast dating experience, there wasn’t room for me. But you firmly instructed me not to pry, and so I suppose I’m trying not to pry, all at the same time as I’m trying to get as much information out of you as humanly possible.” I could hear the laugh in his voice. Damn his Hollywood charm! This was a man who was paid to charm people. I had to remind myself that it was a skill, like any other.
If I focused on his words, he became less charming. There was an undertone of slut-shaming in the way he talked about my ‘vast dating experience,’ and it was just gross that he thought I should date him if I was also dating other people. I could turn this into an academic conversation, just one more political discussion between the two of us, and then I’d be on firmer ground.
I'll leave you with a picture of Si, and just a little excerpt. Don't feel you have to go on and on about how good it is, though... it's just some emotional stuff that has to get out of the way for the plot to really move forward.
Si knocked on the door of apartment 3B at about 4pm. My flight was at 7 so I didn’t have much time but that was exactly how I wanted it. I was surprised, when I saw him, at how my stomach flipped and then slowly righted itself. This was even more shocking, given that he wasn't his usual well-coiffed and styled self. He certainly didn't give off a 'movie star' vibe. His hair was rumpled even more than usual, his black tshirt was ill-fitting, and he was grinning like a maniac.
As I ushered him through the living room into my bedroom, I caught a glimpse of my face in the mirror and noted that I was grinning like a maniac, too. The over-stretched grin did not match my sudden wave of queasiness, but it was too late to un-invite Si. Instead, I sat him down in the armchair beside the bed while I painstakingly folded the clothes I had so recently hung up in the closet. (I had made sure to pack all my underwear already, as I did not want Si staring at either the lacy little numbers or the ripped and stained ones.)
“So.” I made sure my hands were busy with the folding, and I clearly had no time to look at Si what with walking back and forth to the closet to retrieve and then pack my jorts, one by one. “What were we talking about?” With an effort, I kept my voice light. I was pretty sure if Si saw my face, he’d see how uncomfortable I was. At the time, I couldn’t remember exactly why I didn’t want him to know he made me uncomfortable, but I didn’t want to spend the time thinking it through, either. Stay focused, I muttered to myself under my breath.
“You were going to tell me about you and Hagrid and all of your other dates or boyfriends or girlfriends or whatever. And I suppose I wanted to hear why in all your vast dating experience, there wasn’t room for me. But you firmly instructed me not to pry, and so I suppose I’m trying not to pry, all at the same time as I’m trying to get as much information out of you as humanly possible.” I could hear the laugh in his voice. Damn his Hollywood charm! This was a man who was paid to charm people. I had to remind myself that it was a skill, like any other.
If I focused on his words, he became less charming. There was an undertone of slut-shaming in the way he talked about my ‘vast dating experience,’ and it was just gross that he thought I should date him if I was also dating other people. I could turn this into an academic conversation, just one more political discussion between the two of us, and then I’d be on firmer ground.
Ahem, I think you have mislabelled this excerpt. "boring emotional scene"? I think not. It looks as though there is heart break on the horizon for Si Greengage, but that's no reason for slut-shaming! Glad that Seth's rich internal dialogue has let the reader know that they will not be shamed.
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