Class exercise:

We were given a list of opening sentences and asked to pick one. Using this sentence, we were instructed to write three paragraphs describing the plot of the story, the character and the setting. After looking them over, here's what I came up with.

"I am sitting over coffee and cigarettes at my friend Rita's, and I'm telling her about it."

Plot:
After trying to hold on to his nationality, the character, a foreign born U.S. citizen, is trying to evaluate the construct of his identity. Weighing the worth of his ancestry against his own piece of mind brings up big questions of what's important. He enjoys the novelty of his person but is tortured by an inability to meet his inflated standards for an immigrant.

Character:
The character in this story is a young male, eighteen years of age that just graduated high school. He moved to the country at a very young age and his family has slowly worked their way up to be a productive members of the middle class. Meanwhile, the character refuses to accept his new lifestyle. His attempts to reach a balance are thwarted by the struggle between the ease of his new life and the need to be understood by those around him, two things he doesn't believe can coexist.

Setting:
The story takes place on and around inner city streets, where the character originally grew up. The population consists of Middle Eastern and European immigrants and their descendants. Many of the buildings in the area have been victim to urban decay. Store fronts have become a canvas for the local graffiti artists and local gangs marking their turf. Regardless of the area, the character finds him-self frequently returning here to escape his suburban life and to find understanding in his friend Rita.

After doing this assignment, I'm almost interested in continuing the story. It's nice to have the opening sentence complete for you. That, however, may be left for a spare time. In the meanwhile, I need to focus on my main project. If you haven't read it yet, give the following links a glance in order. I post up paragraphs as I write them so there should be a fair amount still coming. Look for posts labeled "Through his eyes".

Main Project:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Comments and suggestions are more than welcome, so please leave a note. :-P