Genre: Mainstream?
Main Characters: Anne, the local medical examiner. Short in stature, and in her forties, she tends to take things solemnly to the point of seeming ambivalent.
A.S., an assassin-for-hire. Although he's not universally attractive, he is a bit of a charmer and tends to communicate with clients and others alike with cordiality.
Yvette, a funeral singer. She's rather thick but tall enough to even it out. She and her group have sung at many funerals, but she only seems immune to the sorrow until she's out of the building.
Herbert, the victim and the epitome of a good Christian man. Those who knew him can't fathom why anyone would murder him. (There was a logical, if heartless, reason for his murder.)
Herbert, the victim and the epitome of a good Christian man. Those who knew him can't fathom why anyone would murder him. (There was a logical, if heartless, reason for his murder.)
Setting: Modern-day, somewhere in America. All takes place in the same town, aside from perhaps a few musings from A.S.
Plot: Anne, A.S., and Yvette reflect on the meaning of professionality in the face of such a tragedy. Anne is trying to help solve the homicide case; A.S. is clearing the area; Yvette is waiting through the eulogies for her second round of songs at the end of the funeral.
Point of View: Third-person, limited to each of the main three in different sections.
Seems like it'll be quite a bit longer than a short story, but sounds great! :)
ReplyDeleteMaybe more of a novella? Hm. I don't know. We'll see if I ever actually get to writing it, I guess.
DeleteI think it's a very promising idea, and addresses a sensitive question -how should a person act when their livelihood depends on someone else's death or peril? It seems like excellent short story material, the type of thing that could analyze and dissect life's typical conventionalities and the meanings behind them.
ReplyDeleteSo what you're saying is, it's not the kind of thing I'd want to write. :P
DeleteI see what you mean, though.
Hey, that's not what I meant. >:( I wasn't trying to insult you.
DeleteThere's a difference between insulting and admitting that it's not just my typical lighthearted nonstop torture.
DeleteI'd hardly call 'nonstop torture' lighthearted. :P
Delete