As I’ve been re-editing Another Past: Book Two, it’s given me the opportunity to review some scenes I haven’t read or touched in nearly a decade. Here is one of my favorites, as Paul and Jeryl fit the first season of their reality-TV show, The Interns.

THE SCENE

Camera lights came on as we entered their part of the second floor. We had reconfigured the office space to create four conference rooms around an open area filled with free-form seating. Desk space lined the outside walls, with a small café area in the far corner. The twelve interns were standing in a rough semicircle. There were looks of concern when they saw the baseball bat in Jeryl’s hands.

She walked to a mannequin of the same size as the one upstairs but lacking a helmet. Without a word, she swung the bat and bashed in its head, leaving the same deep indentation. There were a few gasps. Before anyone could say a word, however, I pulled the helmet on, and she turned and swung at me.

I was glad she didn’t swing with her full strength, as my head snapped to the side, but the helmet did its job. I felt no worse from the small demonstration.

“This product will save some little league player from a serious concussion, or a major league ball player from a killing blow,” Jeryl said as they all stared at her and me in slack-jawed wonder. “How many of you actually tried it out?”

No one raised their hand.

WHY I LIKE THIS

This scene is heavy on narrative, rather than dialog, but I feel it sets up the conflict that fills the next few chapters. The Interns are learning what the expectations are for their efforts and the show. It’s not about plodding along in a typical internship. The show is about taking risks, learning from mistakes, and growing their confidence. This theme of the show is an echo of Paul’s entire mind-set, which is why I like this snippet. 

What do you think? Comments are open.

Another Past: Book Two is available for pre-order on Amazon now and will be published on April 15th.