I’d love to see what Julia could do with this one.
DIRECTIONS
1. Take five books off your bookshelf.
2. Book #1 — first sentence
3. Book #2 — last sentence on page fifty
4. Book #3 — second sentence on page one hundred
5. Book #4 — next to the last sentence on page one hundred fifty
6. Book #5 — final sentence of the book
7. Make the five sentences into a paragraph.
My result:
In a sheepfarmer’s low stone house, high in the hills above Three Firs, two swords hang now above the mantelpiece.
“I want from you an alert, a query, transmitted to all your agents around the world, barring none.”
“Who decides what to do?” So did the alcohol: the sinners who drank it became more insolent; the prohibitionists who reviled it grew enraged at its proximity. He might as well have been singing.
The instructions seem a little vague, though… “Make the five sentences into a paragraph.” Does that mean simply copy the five in straight sequence, with no additions, as I’ve done above, or does it mean to be a little creative?
In a sheepfarmer’s low stone house, high in the hills above Three Firs, two swords hang now above the mantelpiece. “That’s irrelevant,” he snarled. “I want from you an alert, a query, transmitted to all your agents around the world, barring none.” He might as well have been singing, for all the attention his words received. The tension in the room increased. So did the alcohol: the sinners who drank it became more insolent; the prohibitionists who reviled it grew enraged at its proximity. But who decides what to do?
I’m thinking this would be a good writing exercise, or another tool for combating Writers’ Block.
Oh, and my five books were:
The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon
A Palm for Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman
Sporting Chance by Elizabeth Moon
Rising Tide:The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How it Changed America by John M. Barry
The Ship Who Sang by Anne McCaffrey
These are just the five that were closest to my sofa, not requiring me to get up and search for books to use.
h/t: Joshilyn Jackson (who, it seems, has written a book titled after my favorite Georgia town name. Must. Get. Book.)
Who’s there? There was interest in his eyes now: “No, is it any good?” On the wall I mean, not on the menu. If you don’t want a broken wrist, don’t wave a gun in my face. I could be wrong.
Hamlet by Shakespeare
Red Rabbit by Tom Clancy
Winter Prey by John Sandford
Time Enough for Love By R.H. Heinlein
The Rants by Dennis Miller
Hmmm, sounds like you’ve discovered how Harold Pinter wrote his dialogues.
Comment by Timmer — 20061231 @ 1825
The moment after Lew Nolan wheeled his horse away and disappeared over the edge of the escarpment with Raglan’s message tucked in his gauntlet, I knew I was for it. Geoff has a good head on his shoulders, and a first-rate team. I withdrew to the ground below and moved in cautiously from the side, creeping low and so hoping to elude the full force of the beam. Quoting Archimedes (”Give a place to stand and I shall move the earth”), Kissinger remarks that “Nixon sought to move the world but he lacked a firm foothold.” “Perhaps we could,” French answered.
Flashman at the Charge, George Macdonald Fraser
Juggernaut, Desmond Bagley
Exiles of the Stars, Andre Norton
The Bloody Crossroads, Norman Podhoretz
A Hostage For Hinterland, Arsen Darnay
Comment by Rich Rostrom — 20070107 @ 2010