TLC has a GREAT one-sentence story in their song "No Scrubs." A song that's secretly 25 years old...
Background - A one or two-sentence story gives your reader a quick snapshot of a character (or setting) that goes beyond: He's nerdy. She's Type A. He's a slacker. Or the dreaded height, weight, and hair recap that feels like you're reading a police report.
Staying with the TLC example. "He's a scrub." Alright, what's a scrub?
First lyric of the song:
🎶 A scrub is a guy that thinks he's fly
And is also known as a busta 🎵
Okay. This gives a better idea, but it's still telling us, not showing us, what a scrub is.
But then we get to the chorus and there's the perfect visual:
🎶 Hangin' out the passenger side
Of his best friend's ride
Trying to holla at me 🎵
The listener can totally see this guy now. In his buddy's car, hanging out the window, calling out to the girl, "Hey, wanna go out tonight?"
All it took was one sentence. Establishes who this person is. Reader/listener thinks to themselves, "Oh yeah, that's a scrub."
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