Fiction Exercise

Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter — What if? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers prompts —

The Exercise —

Write a two-person scene in which one character tries to break through another character’s barrier of denial. Make the issue both specific and dramatic. Do this mainly in dialogue, but anchor it in a particular time and place.

The Objective —

To train yourself to be aware of the unconscious forces in everyday life. People are rarely what they seem; motives are cloudy at best and often almost entirely hidden. Fictional characters, like real ones, ought to incorporate this psychic complexity. Remember that occasionally no does mean yes and vice versa.

Sally Former and Mary Denell were working together at a treatment center in Minnesota. As Mary walked into Sally's office, she said, “Can I run this by you, Sally?” Sally shakes her head and takes a seat across from Mary in her office.

“It is about Bob, you know, the man from Rochester. He has been here for about a week now. So far, he acts like he is not here for his drinking or drug use, and he is not sure why he is here. Does Bob have a diagnostic assessment that I can look at? I am ready to shake him free.”

“You didn’t get one in the record?” Sally asked. “No, it wasn’t in there,” Mary said. “Okay, well, let me check into that, Mary, and I will get back to you. I was told he is a chronic alcoholic and drug addict and is in the process of being committed for a longer stay.”

“But he is so convincing that he has no problem. He doesn’t appear to have any withdrawals.” Sally said. “Mary, that is because he was in detox and then a short-term stay at a crisis shelter before coming here. We should have gotten that file by now.”

Two weeks later, Mary walks into Sally’s office asking for a consult. She says that she is pushing for an extension for Bob. “Remember the Bob that I was going to discharge? What a joke. Bob is definitely chronic and in need of more time. And Sally, thank you for getting me the rest of the file!”

“Bob isn’t admitting anything because he appears to honestly not remember. He was having blackouts every time he drank, and it only took a couple of drinks. Then I am having him tested for Wernicke-Korsakoff, because of the stories he makes up.”

“Bob does not remember being in detox, and he only remembers being at the crisis shelter for a few days. It turns out he was there for almost two months as he was waiting for a bed at a treatment facility. His brother finally offered to pay for our program, and there was a bed open here.”

“Bob may very well end up in long-term care, aka a nursing home. He does not appear to be getting any clearer as he forgets what he just said and did. Now, what about me not recognizing him and being ready to discharge him? I saw him as an older male being put away by his family as they couldn’t care for him.”

“Is that my denial? Should I even be here working? Some people will say that you should be an alcoholic to work with alcoholics and addicts. What do you think?” Sally then said, “Mary, it happens to all of us. We all have our histories and biases, and we are not always right.”

“We can be fooled. We want to think the best of others. I don’t believe you have to be an alcoholic to work with alcoholics, you just need to believe in lifelong learning as the drugs change and the person we worked with at one time changes too.”

“I think it’s just important that you continue to talk with me or the clinical supervisor or other staff any time you have a question.”

~~~~

Published first by Mercury Press on medium.com