Week 9- Lecture Exercise by Lam Xiao Ci

 Exercise 1: Scene Rewrite in 3 POVs

Scene Prompt: A character walks into a crowded room and realizes someone he/she fears is there.

1. First-Person

I pushed open the door, the noises is crashing into me like a wave. The lights were too bright, and the room was too loud. I scanned the crowd, hoping that person wouldn’t be here. But then I saw him. Standing near the corner, terrifying. My breath caught. I could feel the panic rising like bile.

2. Third-Person Limited

As she stepped into the crowded hall, her pulse quickened. The noise wrapped around,trapping her. Her eyes was turning around, searching. Please don’t be here, she thought. But there—by the window—he stood. Just the sight of him made her hearbeat increase. She could hear her heartbeat in her ears, louder than the chatter. 

3. Second-Person

You walk into the room and the noise hits you all at once. Laughter. Clinking glasses. A hundred conversations blending into one dizzying hum. You try to stay calm, but your fingers twitch. Your eyes scan the room—and then you see them. The person you’ve hoped to avoid. Your chest goes tight. You can’t breathe. Every instinct screams at you to turn around and leave, but you’re frozen, stuck in place. 

Exercise 2: Show vs. Tell Through POV Describe a character who is jealous without using the word jealous

1. First-Person (Let them rationalize their feelings)

I mean, it’s not like I care that Mia won the award again. She works hard, I guess. And sure, she’s always the one teachers notice, always the one who gets picked first. But honestly, it’s not a big deal. I just think—maybe for once—they could’ve seen how much I’ve been trying too. That would’ve been nice. I’m happy for her. Really. I just… wish it had been me.

2. Third-Person Limited (Show what they observe, how they react)

As Mia stood on stage holding her trophy, Sam clapped along with the rest of the room, though her hands moved slower. Her eyes didn’t leave Mia’s wide smile or the way Mr. Roberts patted her shoulder. Sam shifted in her seat, tugging at the hem of her sleeve. When the applause finally faded, she looked down at her own feet and bit the inside of her cheek, pretending to fix her shoelace.

3. Omniscient (Show what they feel and what others are unaware of)

Everyone in the room saw Mia glowing with pride, laughing softly as the spotlight caught the shimmer of her trophy. They didn’t see the storm quietly brewing in Sam’s chest—how her smile tightened with every compliment Mia received, or how her heart sank when she remembered staying up late practicing, unnoticed. No one noticed the way her eyes lingered too long on Mia, calculating, aching, wondering why she never seemed to be enough.

Exercise 3: Voice Check (First-person POV) 

Write a paragraph in first-person from the character had made an accident

I didn’t mean for it to happen—it all happened so fast. One second I was holding the vase, trying to dust the shelf like Mom asked, and the next it slipped right through my hands. It hit the floor with a loud crash, pieces flying everywhere like angry little shards of glass. My heart stopped. That was her favorite vase—the one from Grandma. I just stood there, frozen, staring at the mess, my hands still in the air like I could somehow catch it in reverse. Now all I can think about is how I’m going to explain this without making her cry.