A Night In New York: My Writing Process

My writing process for the first paragraph in my story involved using American author, John Cheever's narrative style. I used the "slice of life" method which involves a story occurring in a single time and place, in this case being set at night in New York in a smoking area outside a club. This is a style often used by Cheever, for instance in "The Enormous Radio". This story occurs in one apartment focusing on a radio and a couple. The story never goes outside the world of their apartment building meaning we get more insight into their life and snippets of the lives of those they can hear through their radio. I also wrote my story as a character driven piece with a slight twist at the end, as Cheever often did. The first 250 words of my story doesn't reveal this twist but I intend to bring this in later. One other Cheever method I brought into my story involves "capturing significant moments in ordinary lives with humorous compassion". This meant looking at my main character and signifying an important moment in his life when he first sees the girl he pursues throughout the story. It shows humour and compassion by looking at his appearance in a twisted way and giving the character a personality. I felt my writing process greatly benefitted from Cheever's stories as I was able to keep the focus on my character and in one place. This is a method I will take forward in my future writing.