Anna walked into the Golden Cherry Inn. The man sitting behind the reception area looked at her, unimpressed. Anna remembered seeing him before when she’d come in with clients.
“Hourly room or room for the night?” he asked.
“Neither. I’m looking for someone,” Anna said. “Angela Harris. She used to go by the name Lady Pussycat.”
“Lady Pussycat,” he repeated. “Didn’t she used to be famous a long time ago?”
Anna nodded. “Have you seen her?”
“I haven’t seen any old women skulking around here.”
“Shit.” Anna knew that old woman she’d talked to at the Sweetwater Nursing Home seemed loony. Another dead end. Disappointed, she turned to leave.
“Wait,” the man said. “Now that I think about it, I do remember an older broad came in by herself about two weeks ago. Took a room for the night and left the next day.”
“You don’t have any idea where she was going, do you?”
He scrunched up his face in thought. “Out of state. I remember she called someone on the pay phone over there. Said she’d busted out of a nursing home and was taking a train the next day.”
“Thank you,” Anna said.
As she left the motel, heading in the direction of the nearest train station, Anna remembered the first time she ever saw Lady Pussycat. It was an adult video that had been left lying around her childhood home – typical. But when she saw this beautiful woman – so in touch with her own body and so clearly enjoying every minute of sexual contact with others – Anna couldn’t help but fall a little in love with Lady Pussycat. It was a childlike love, of course, but Anna knew in her heart that Lady Pussycat had in some ways been her salvation.
Hi all -- I wanted to use this post to reveal a little more about Anna's obsession with LP. I think for the first chapter of a novel, they (that is, Anna and LP) wouldn't actually meet face to face. That would probably come either midway through the novel or toward the end, since this story seems at least in part about Anna's quest to find LP. Anyway, my goal here was to connect some elements from previous posts, so hopefully I've accomplished that.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you decided to maintain some actual distance between Anna and LP, as I, like you, find a story more intriguing when the protagonist is forced to go through a lot to finally find what he or she is looking for at the end. I am still working out what I'm going to bring to the story with my post tomorrow, so I look forward to hearing what people say. Good job!
ReplyDeleteNice! Thanks for including an interaction with another character, this gave me an even more clear image of Anna's character. . .Busted out of a nursing home?! Awesome! I love that little detail. I am with Chloe, making her go through things to get to her. Because I feel like when we do catch up to her, our story may be abruptly over. I wonder if we could flashback into further detail now--maybe HER first encounter with a guy? (Not graphic or anything), but could because of the crap she went through with her stepdad. ?
ReplyDeleteNice! I like this stringing along of LP! She's becoming increasingly mysterious. I think we need to draw it back to the pregnancy a little, but I'm sure that'll come up later. Great work, Court!
ReplyDeleteNice! I really like what you reveal through LP. My challenge for the next few writers is to build a scene. A happening now, scene that takes four people to do it. I really like what we have and I love what this addition does for character development. But can we do something with Anna interacting or doing something that isn't completed and the next writer picks it up.
ReplyDeleteI think Michelle has a good point--I'd like to see how we can collaborate something a little bit lengthier.
ReplyDeleteCourtney--nice job introducing the reader to the first time Anna saw LP.
Courtney - I like how you described Anna's first encounter with LP. I think it reveals more of Anna's character without having to describe her outright. Anna's fascination with LP's control and freedom over her own body nicely juxtaposes with the implied sexual abuse that Anna experiences.
ReplyDeleteAll I have to say is: BRAVO. I enjoyed your dialogue and how you portrayed LP...basically escaping the nursing home as if it was Alcatraz. I also appreciated how you framed Anna's perspective of LP. It was gritty, sassy, but also tasteful and direct. Yay for you! :D
ReplyDeleteI like that you've slowed down the pace and given Anna someone to interact with. I think we should do more of this. Maybe she can have an interaction with Hudson soon? That would give us an opportunity to explore Anna's softer side. Just an idea.
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