The Unruled Notebook

I don’t know if you have had the same problem, but the snag I come up against when I try to tell a story is where to begin it. How do I begin a perfect story?  Fooling about too long or what do they call it – beating around the bush; well, that doesn’t help. Getting off the mark like a scalding cat trying to prove a point doesn’t help either. I have read some stories that begin with striking, eyebrow-raising passages but the whole story that follows leaves you hanging in the middle of nowhere. If you are thinking “Where is this story heading?” then I have caught your attention. At least, I am happy I could bore you for a while. Haven’t done that in the past few months, you see!:) This morning, I was S ocioscrolling* in FB when I came across this contest which asked us to narrate a lipstick incident, or should I say a lipstick experience. Hundreds have been commenting real and fake stories to that post. One of the stories caught my attention as it began like this “I ...

In the wake of a subtly ironic incident which left me spellbound, the power of TV commercials becomes evident once again. I have tried to capture it in 55 words to keep it simple. Here goes: It is excruciating to have to select a gift for a 5 year old boy who already has all the toys in the world. After spending three hours in the gift shop, I chose a toy tent. On his birthday, I handed him the gift and said “ Happy Birthday ”. A familiar tone replied, “ Whose birthday?”   This piece of art is definitely not sourced from Google.       It took a couple of minutes for his reply to sink in. That darn tone, that darn ad! We had a good laugh. However, he loved the gift because he found a home for his toys. His mom is happy too, and you know why! J