Now what was I talking about?

[TheEarl]

I'm currently writing in my never-ending story that has been going since last September and I've just discovered an interesting sentence.

It was a plaque. Anna reached over and scraped the ice from it to clear the writing.

Marco Di Viao: born 18.08.1921, died 1.11.1999
Credo quia absurdum est
I miss him very much in this place that he loved

Gemma stared at it for a second. The last line was odd for some reason, but she couldn’t work out why.

The last line is obviously setting up a twist later in the story where Gemma discovers the significance of that sentence. The only problem is I can't remember what the hell the twist is, or even why she thinks the line is odd.

Has anyone else done this? And more importantly, can anyone think of an idea of what the hell I was trying to set up here?

The Earl

 

[MathGirl]

Originally posted by TheEarl can anyone think of an idea of what the hell I was trying to set up here?

Dear Earl,
Well, it obviously had something to do with sheep. Hope that helps.
MG

 

[oggbashan]

"Marco Di Viao: born 18.08.1921, died 1.11.1999
Credo quia absurdum est
I miss him very much in this place that he loved

Gemma stared at it for a second. The last line was odd for some reason, but she couldn’t work out why."

Assuming that you did have a meaning, how about "this place" being his lover's cleft "that he loved" or:

"this place" is where "he loved" someone even MG's perhaps sheep? or:

The inscription is by his wife (or daughter or whatever) and "this place" is where Marco went to visit his mistress, so the inscriber misses him because the location reminds her of the split between them or:

Marco died and was buried somewhere else, at sea or in a far country so the plaque is in a place that he loved (and left forever) or:

Marco was exiled from "this place" and could never have returned.

Just a few suggestions. Hope they help.

Og

 

[gauchecritic]

There's a missing comma. And comets have commas. And Mark Twain rode to earth and from it on Bill Haley's comma. Marco is the latin form of Mark. De Viao is the latin form of Laptop Computer. The 'place that he loved' was Under the Bridge and that was where he 'drew some blood' (Red Hot Chilli Peppers). Chilli is a corrupted form of Chile which is a country unless it's a Voodoo Chile when it's a Hendrix song. So:

Comma (missing)
Mark Twain (River pilots depth call)
De Viao (Laptop)
Drew some blood (The children of the night)
Chile (mispronunciiation)
Hendrix (Axe man)

The dead man is an axe-murdering, dyslexic vampire from Chilli who works for Intel (inside) and is a part time river boat gambler with a large black friend who keeps singing about the 'trouble he's seen' and is MIA.

Is that it?

Gauche

 

[Svenskaflicka]

Ooooh! Ooooh! This is from chapter 15 of Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix!

No, seriously, my first reaction was "if the person who wrote it misses him especially here in the place that he loved, then that refers to the cemetery, and why did he love the cemetery so much?"

But maybe I've misunderstood things...

 

[MathGirl]

In awe!

The dead man is an axe-murdering, dyslexic vampire from Chilli who works for Intel (inside) and is a part time river boat gambler with a large black friend who keeps singing about the 'trouble he's seen' and is MIA.

Dear Gauchie,
As always, I am in awe of your near supernatural powers of deduction. Your mental powers are positively Holmesian in their scope.
MG
Ps. Sherlock, not John

 

[Dirty Slut]

First you need to remember where the plaque was found...

Then you can figure out what significant factor that would bring to add a twist to your story, and why it would add that twist.

Hope this helps.

DS

 

[Gabriel_Lee]

I agree. It must have to do with the location of the plaque. It is certainly not clear that it is in a graveyard - it may well be elsewhere.

 

[Just-Legal]

Just to be clear, there are *two* people looking at the plaque, right?

 

[TheEarl]

Svenska and Ogg have actually just brushed what I think I was thinking about, which was something that Marco did which showed his love for Anna (his granddaughter). I don't think that was my original intention, but it's given me an idea...

To summarise, the plaque is on a bench overlooking a Scottish loch, where Anna and her grandfather used to go to sit and talk. Anna is now showing Gemma (who's is her homophobic brother's girlfriend) the plaque. Anna will then go on to try and seduce Gemma.

My God, I'm writing an American soap opera!

The Earl

 

[TheEarl]

PS: Keep going! This is really helpful. The most important thing is really why she thinks the last line is odd.

The Earl