Creative Writing #1: Writing in Reverse

Pivotal moments of a stranger’s life.

Pictured above is an excerpt from Bill Sullivan’s Turnstile Photography Project. Sullivan took pictures of strangers in New York City the moment they pushed through the turnstiles to ride the subway. The results are surprisingly intriguing - The faces are so expressive; the props and things we carry, revealing. You will be following the preceding link to Bill Sullivan’s project website and choosing a character (or two) to base your story around.

You will be writing a narrative fiction surrounding this pivotal(?) moment of your character(s) day. Is the gentlemen on the left, above, on his way to a bank heist? Is the woman to his right the lifeline for a friend appearing on tonight’s episode of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, and is she fretting because she’s unsure of a question she should know the answer to? Or is thinking too hard about it going to put her on the wrong train, which starts a whole domino of bad (or brilliant) things to happen to her that day?

Whatever story angle you choose, make sure to use facial expressions and props captured in the photo as cues. This story is not to be told in the first person. Although that doesn’t mean you can’t be creative in the telling. You could have an omnipresent narrator who, for one reason or another, has a particular dislike for your protagonist and is continually antagonistic. The story could be told by an eventual son, recalling the cute (or hilarious, or unlikely) story of how his parents met and fell in love.

As an additional challenge you’ll need to post a picture of the character(s) you choose to your blog along with your story. You may need to do this in photoshop. It would be polite to provide a link to Bill Sullivan’s website, since you’ll be posting segments from his photographic work. And, as always, it’s a good idea to lead your post with some introduction. Your readers (from all over the world!) don’t know that your teacher is asking you to write a story. The things you post will seem rather random sans context.

Due Wednesday night.