This article is part of series I am writing called Experiments in Style. It is my version of Raymond Queneau’s Exercises in Style (Amazon affiliate link), in which the author takes a very mundane incident and reworks it in various ways. A graphic version of the same thing is Matt Madden’s 99 Ways to tell a story (ditto). I think it’s quite interesting to see how a change in style can dramatically alter the feel of a piece. My ‘experiments’ are based on the article I wrote called A bang on the head.
In this version, I’ve decided to pass the story over to you. Imagine that all the words that made up the original story have been thrown in a box. the contents of that imaginary box are listed below, in alphabetical order. In case it isn’t obvious, you can use a word for the maximum number of times it appears below.
17%
a
a
a
a
a
Accident
After
almost
among
An
and
and
and
and
and
and
As
as
awake
bathroom
being
being
book.
brought
but
call
can
chin
concussion.
conscious
darkness
days
different
direction
distancing
do
door
door
emerged
Emergency
entire
facing
facing.
failed
few
for
from
further
go
had
half
have
headaches.
hour
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
if
In
in
in
in
instead
into
knocked
knowledge
later
masks
means
middle
mild
more
much
much
my
myself
nausea
next
night
not
nothing
of
of
of
of
one
out.
people
petrified
pleased
prevarication
purposefully
quite
read
reason
result
secure
semi
semi
serious
social
somnambulance
states
than
that
that
the
the
the
the
The
the
the
the
the
The
the
the
their
thought
through
through
to
to
to
to
to
to
touching
towards
tried
twilight
twin
up
waited
walk
walked
walking
wall.
warmer.
was
was
was
was
went
where
who
whom
woke
wore
writing
you
you