A Exploratory Profile
In one of his five pinstripe business suits, Jacob ate his lunch in the car. The windows were up, even though it was seventy-five degrees outside. The stuffiness didn't bother him. He just hoped no one could smell his lunch on him after he was done. He didn't want anyone knowing that he ate alone every day.
Today, like every Wednesday, it was a $6 turkey deli sandwich on a rosemary bagel from Breugger's down the street from the office. The peppered bacon here was his favorite. And it was inexpensive. Randy Simmons always went to lunch at the restaurant on the base floor of the office building. A burger there was $15 plus tax and tip.
He tucked the napkin methodically into his collar above the knot of his tie and spread it out to protect the maximum surface area. Last week, he had dropped a dab of mustard on his light gray tie. It had cost a fortune at the dry cleaners to remove the oil stain.
When he was done, he wrapped his trash neatly into the napkin that protected his shirt, saved the extra napkins in his glove compartment for dinner, and returned to work. His most flavorful lunch of the week was done for now. Tomorrow was Thursday, and he was back to sack lunches in the corner of the break room until next Wednesday.
I really enjoyed reading this. You have done a great job in portraying a character that seems to mold in so many traits. The underdog who is trying to make it in a power hungry business; the guy with low self esteem trying to be someone else. The possibilities are endless and it leaves you wondering and wanting to know more. Your writing style is also easy and straight to the point. Good job.
ReplyDeleteI find exploratory writing to be an amazing exercise for authors; novices and seasoned alike. As I write my own YA novel, Aiken’s Wings, I often find that I need to step back from the “heaviness” of my plot. Exploratory writing is a good way to still practice your writing skills and unleash more creative juice without the complexity of putting all pieces of the puzzle together. It often leads to a better understanding of our own writing style but introducing us to a different form. It is good to take a breather and be open minded with characters, settings, and ideas that simply aren’t tied down but ready to take off in new experimental way.
Thanks, Tamara, for sharing! I know what you mean about taking a break from the plot of your novel! I tend to choose to explore characters that I see on the street and wonder what their story is based on what I observe. Its my people watching fun!
DeleteAwesome example of an exploratory profile! I'm not much of a writer so I can't give you much more than compliments, though. Hehe!
ReplyDeleteI love lines like: "He just hoped no one could smell his lunch on him after he was done." & "Last week, he had dropped a dab of mustard on his light gray tie."
It's actually one of the biggest things I worry about when I eat my lunch. Well, not the part where he spills mustard on his tie, but the same concept that I'm nervous about spilling food on myself. x_x;; I love love love reading people's creations though so I'm glad I found yours! I didn't know you had a blog! I will be reading yours more often if you don't mind! :D
Thanks, Steph! :)
Delete