Myra looked up from the toilet she was scrubbing. "So the conference was good."
Will pulled off his green mirrored shades. "Totally life-changing. The motivational session was called 'Slaying Your Dragons.'"
"Hmmm." Myra squirted bleach into the bowl.
The dandruff on Will's dark shirt looked almost scaly. "See, we have to kill what stands between us and success."
"Dragons."
"Right." He lit a cigarette. "I think mine's selflessness. I need to pursue my dreams." He flicked ash on the freshly mopped floor. "Hey, you should find out what your dragon is."
Myra stared. "Yeah. Sure. Wonder what it could be."
Saint Georgette by I Saw Lightning Fall
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Friday, May 18, 2012
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12 comments:
Your dialogue is brilliant. And thanks for making me grin :-)
I wish there was a way of making the title come last, as they do in certain movies. I woke up bleary, read the story, and then found the title hilarious and amusing. Good story.
Thanks, Fleur. Glad you liked it. I've actually known couples like Will and Myra.
C.R.,
I know. I'm not sure how many people will get the allusion, but I'm glad you did.
I realize this is one of the few stories I've written without any speculative or genre premise to it.
We all know couples like Will and Myra, I'm afraid. Just hope not in my house.
I almost read it as a bit of magical realism. But yes, I suppose by our previously-established rule of thumb, the story is dealing with a problem marriage and is therefore Literary Fiction.
Re. the allusion, though, do people really not get it? I mean, a medallion of Saint George was featured in an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie (Eraser), so it can't be that obscure.
I mean, it's not like you're writing a story about St. Roch (who, btw, has the most fantastically diverse lists of patronages of any saint that I've run into. Seriously--what other saint is the patron saint of dogs, knee diseases, skin afflictions, and the falsely accused?)
Apropros of nothing, it's nice to know that Gertrude of Nivelles is much more rational: She is the patron saint against mice, for cats, for mental illness, and for travelers. This is a much more reasonable list, because cats (unlike dogs) are reasonable and rational creatures.
Patti,
I hope not in my house either!
CR,
It's also literary fiction because Will isn't actually a flesh-and-blood dragon. He just acts like one at every freaking turn.
You know, I find a lot of folks just don't get those kind of allusions. Maybe it's the people I hang out with.
Cats and mental illness go well together because they can be sweet one moment and skin-rendingly awful the next. Or maybe that's just my mom's cat.
Heart-wrenching. The dialogue is stellar and it rackets up the emotional punch.
Thanks! You know, it's funny, but I wasn't sure this one worked. Commentors sure seemed to like it, though.
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