One subject that has fascinated me for years is storytelling. I love how rewarding it is for the storyteller, and how captivating it can be for the reader. I don't have any great tips on storytelling, but I can show you a short story that I wrote. It came from the prompt:
"Write about a funeral from the dead person's viewpoint."
The constant humming of people kept me in place. If it was not for their energy I would have slipped away long ago. I could sense my family among the hordes of people. Sadness oozed from their bodies and I desperately wanted to comfort them. I could not though, for I was not connected to my body anymore. My spirit could only hover for so much longer. The rejoicing of the life I had led begun. I couldn't hear words anymore, it was just dull mumbling. Light flooded in as a little boy lifted my coffin lid. I was hovering inside. No one noticed as the little boy leaned down.
"I know you're watching me, Daddy. I know you'll be with me forever." He whispered into the dead man's ear.
The child was pulled away, but the words had already engulfed me. I felt lighter than before. My handsome son. Now I could remember every detail of him. I looked at my dead body. It didn't feel weird not to be attached to my body, I felt free. The words carried on and on and the feelings rose. Everyone touched my heart in some way. Too soon it was the end. My heart weighed heavy. I could now see a perfect view of the speaker. My wife stood in front of everyone, her eyes wet. I almost wanted to leave but even if I wanted to I could not. At first, I felt my wife's anger towards me. We hadn't planned this death. How did she know I was to slip away first? And at such a young age? As she went on her feelings changed. By the end, she was crying with tears of joy. She knew I was okay. I felt my spirit tug at me, it was time to go.
(Picture found on Google images)
"Write about a funeral from the dead person's viewpoint."
The constant humming of people kept me in place. If it was not for their energy I would have slipped away long ago. I could sense my family among the hordes of people. Sadness oozed from their bodies and I desperately wanted to comfort them. I could not though, for I was not connected to my body anymore. My spirit could only hover for so much longer. The rejoicing of the life I had led begun. I couldn't hear words anymore, it was just dull mumbling. Light flooded in as a little boy lifted my coffin lid. I was hovering inside. No one noticed as the little boy leaned down.
"I know you're watching me, Daddy. I know you'll be with me forever." He whispered into the dead man's ear.
The child was pulled away, but the words had already engulfed me. I felt lighter than before. My handsome son. Now I could remember every detail of him. I looked at my dead body. It didn't feel weird not to be attached to my body, I felt free. The words carried on and on and the feelings rose. Everyone touched my heart in some way. Too soon it was the end. My heart weighed heavy. I could now see a perfect view of the speaker. My wife stood in front of everyone, her eyes wet. I almost wanted to leave but even if I wanted to I could not. At first, I felt my wife's anger towards me. We hadn't planned this death. How did she know I was to slip away first? And at such a young age? As she went on her feelings changed. By the end, she was crying with tears of joy. She knew I was okay. I felt my spirit tug at me, it was time to go.
(Picture found on Google images)