First lines meme

[vilakins]

Everyone doing it, so I thought I might as well: Post the first sentences from your last 20 stories. Do you see any patterns?

I took it to mean more than one sentence if that was necessary to give some context. And I'm appalled that I haven't written anything for almost two months (except for the story I wrote this week for a fic party on Monday, which isn't included).

1. Servalan had always counted on her looks and her power, but now she had neither.
   
   
2. It was a quiet evening on the Liberator flight deck. Blake stood commandingly, legs apart, on the bridge (why didn’t anyone call it a bridge?) and lifted his chin to let the soft breeze from the air vents ruffle his curls.
   
   
3. I am her and not her.
   
   
4. "Don't much like the look of that," said Vila.
   
   
5. Vila ducked as the trooper fired, then his eyes widened at the monstrosity coming over the ridge towards them. "Um, you might want to look behind you."
   
   
6. "No!" Hiro stared at the next panel in shock. "That's not supposed to happen!"
   
   
7. Captain Jean-Luc Picard relaxed in his chair as the starfield stabilised on the screen.
   
   
8. Vila used his handkerchief to clear a circle on the shed's dirty window and squashed his nose up against the glass. "It looks all right," he said, "but it's full of boat."
   
   
9. "Will you be all right for a minute?" Cally asked. "I'll be back."
   
   
10. "I'm not going." Vila folded his arms and glowered at them. "Nothing you can say would get me down there."
    
    
11. I saw this vid show about karma a few months ago.
    
    
12. Vila cut his toast into four fingers, then dipped one in his soft-boiled egg. "Troopers, my mum called them."
    
    
13. Tarrant looked at the grey knobbly thing optimistically described by the canteen staff as a dumpling, squatting in a pool of greasy stew. He sighed and put his head in his hands.
    
    
14. "Now open the main locks."
    
    
15. Once upon a time there was a rebel leader called Blake who became unaccountably annoyed with two of his followers when one of them shot him--not once, but three times, because in these stories things tend to happen three times--and the other just stood by and let him.
    
    
16. "I don't know why the girls wouldn't come with us," Vila said, looking around the market. "What'd they mean anyway about it being a minefield and not wanting to be with anyone magnetic?"
    
    
17. "I swear I didn't put those up!" Sarit said quickly.
    
    
18. "That's not fair! I was on weapons!"
    
    
19. Avon stretched his legs out and settled deeper into his brown leather chair as he swirled his port before taking an appreciative sip. He liked the Belhangria Club.
    
    
20. Til Morgen left the freight agent's office, pleased. That had been a very lucrative run and he could afford to stay here for a few weeks and play tourist.

At a rough count, half contain Vila, only two are first person, one is present tense, two aren't B7 characters (but the stories are crossovers), and just over half contain speech.

Comments

[hafren.livejournal.com]

Yes, I noticed the preponderance of dialogue!

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Perhaps it's because I like writing it most of all!

[vandonovan.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'll have to try this! It seems like a lot of fun. I like to start my fics with dialogue--I think it's a good hook--but it'll be interesting to see how many I actually do. I do like how it assumes one has written 20 stories. I have, but I think that'll be going back quite aways!

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

You can count any b7friday ones too! Most of mine were. :-)

[vandonovan.livejournal.com]

Yes, I noticed that. I thought about it, but most of the times I don't really consider those stories, I guess. I skipped all my drabbles and ficlets, ahahahaa. Maybe I shouldn't have, but I rarely get them betaed and tend to just sort of slap something together.

I'm surprised you've got any in first person. I so rarely play with that sort of thing. I suppose I should if just to experiment.

[sallymn.livejournal.com]

"Don't much like the look of that," said Vila. You know, I could guess the Vila ones without the name... you have such a strong yet distinctive way with his voice.

[azdak.livejournal.com]

I love 2! Which story is that from? ("let the soft breeze from the air vents ruffle his curls", bwahaha!)

[astrogirl2.livejournal.com]

I really like yours. They seem to instantly promise an entertaining ride. :)

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

I like tat one too. What a poser that man is! :)

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I like first person if there's a believable reason for it (a letter to another character, e-mails, dairy or memoirs--some form of communication. I can't quite buy stories told by a character with perfect recall of all conversations. This story was the Avalon android talking to the others: Alpha and Omega (http://community.livejournal.com/b7friday/323457.html).

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Vila has such a distinct way of speaking (as has Avon) that he's a pleasure to write.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Ah, that was the Goon Show pastiche, The Dreaded Batter-Pudding Hurler (http://community.livejournal.com/b7friday/319363.html)! It may not make much sense if you don't know the Goon Show.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I think you'll like that one as I'm sure you know the Goon Show. It was The Dreaded Batter-Pudding Hurler (http://community.livejournal.com/b7friday/319363.html)!

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Really? Thanks! I've been admiring other people's.

Now I think of it, I don't think I commented on yours. :-P

[astrogirl2.livejournal.com]

I thought you had... Possibly my brain is now inventing comments from people, which is mildly worrying. :)

[sallymn.livejournal.com]

But everyone should know the Goon Show (and listen to The Dreaded Batter Pudding Hurler, yes? I think that's the one we got the catchphrase "But suddenly... nothing happened! But it happened suddenly, mark you!" from)

[sallymn.livejournal.com]

Most of My Heroes share that (which is probably partly why I'm such a first-person fan :)

[azdak.livejournal.com]

I know of the Goon Show, rather than having ever listened to it. My parents enjoyed it, so it was sort of on the fringes of my cultural consciousness, but the few times I've heard excerpts, I've been underwhelmed.

I might go and read the story anyway. Now I know it's Goonish, I shall know what genre to expect!

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

My father introduced me to all those old British shows like The Navy Lark, I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again, and the Goons. A friend and I loved the Goons so much when we were at uni, we taped our own eps complete with SFX like a steak dropped on a table. :-P I can still do the voices of several characters.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

:)

*goes to look*

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

ISIRTA was a particular favourite of mine. There's a community for it on LJ, though it's pretty much moribund.

Many of those old shows are repeated on BBC7, and hence accessible via the Net.

[thetisonline.livejournal.com]

Lots of Vila, as would be expected. I like how your lines promise light-heartedness, too.

Have I ever told you that I read your Pets story out-loud to my daughter (only ever so slightly edited for suggestive bits). She loved it!

You'll have to point me in the direction of 13.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

[huge grin] How cool! The only suggestive bits I remember are Jenna thinking Vila was about to swear, and the jam roly-poly. :-)

#13 is only a short b7friday one: Job Satisfaction (http://community.livejournal.com/b7friday/354451.html).

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Then you know about the Electric Time Trousers!

Our access is capped here so I can't listen with abandon, but I have heard a few shows.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

Then you know about the Electric Time Trousers!

Indeed. Not to mention the Curse of the Flying Wombat. :)