Kossiwa Logan Writes A Short Story

I really enjoyed reading Ron Carlson Writes A Story. He took us through the process of writing a short story. That's what I'm going to do here. I've told you my process of writing and now I'm going to show you.

First I have an idea, which begins with a thought, an image, a memory, a word or phrase that I turn into a sentence.

There wasn't much to do today. As slow as it was, the manager let the girl at customer service go for the night. He told her to call her ride to come get her. I was in the process of putting more things in my cart to return to their proper shelves when Mr. Barkley told Tracy there wasn't enough work. I glanced at them, but the store manager was walking away and she was already dialing on her cell phone. I hated standing in the customer service box trying to think of something to do in between customers. Since they didn't need me up here for no, I finished filling my cart with items customers either returned or changed their mind about. I started in Infant Care.

I've always wanted to write my version of John Updike's A&P story. I'm hoping this is it. I've also always wanted to write a story based on working in retail.

It's been raining all day as if a storm was blowing through Georgia. I had to drive through it to work this evening for a four-hour shift. We closed at 9:30 and we're out five to fifteen minutes later depending on the ease or difficulty in setting the alarm. My co-workers, and me when I wasn't at customer service reshopped and Straightened the selves as fast as we could so we could be out the store and on our way home or to wherever as fast as possible. My four hour shift was actually a three-hour shift.

The beauty of a first draft is that you're just getting the story done. You're not figuring anything out. You're not trying to write anything, you're simply writing. You don't have to have a subject, but it is helpful.

I sorted out the items for the Infant Care section while standing near the Tommee Tippee bottles. I hated doubling back because I missed an item.

"Ma'am, do you work here?"

That question grated on my nerves. I'm wearing the same purple and khaki that every other employee wore. But, it was better to ask than to make an assumption. I glanced at her and smiled. She looked ready to have the baby any second.

My idea, as I said earlier, was to write a story based on working retail jobs. I enjoy talking to people. I enjoy the work when I'm staying busy. I might rewrite this to include a vendor I spoke to. She was so memorable to me.