My Dear Lily
"Sex without love is an empty experience, but as empty experiences go, it's one of the best."-Woody Allen
I apologize for the crudeness of this post. Ah, hell, I'm not that sorry...We're all adults here (for the most part).
Anyway, when I was in high school--you know, that place where rumors float about like a bunch of buzzing gnats--I heard of a girl that attended a local Christian school who was saving herself for marriage. Vaginal intercourse, that is.
Oral and anal was still considered "OK." I found this so compelling that she became the basis for our "American High" script. I was so utterly fascinated by this that I created Lily, a girl with the same warped sense of sexuality--the school shooting "hook" for the show was an afterthought. That's saying a hell of a lot--I was more interested in writing about a single individual's concept of sex than something as large, controversial, and compelling as a Columbine-style assault.
Lily even shows up in much of my short fiction. My most recent piece has been about the first time that Lily (again, I apologize for the crudeness) gave a handjob. In the story she's stuck on an elevator with this frat boy and, well, one thing leads to another...yada, yada, yada.
I'm so consumed with this girl that here I am, once again writing about Lily. I know Lily, this figment of my imagination, almost as much as I know myself or anybody else in my life.
The school-shooting angle did add a lot to the subtext of our script, and actually gave Lily some sort of motivation for her actions. Though we don't condone it, we understand her behavior.
Which brings me back to that girl I once heard about in high school, the one I've never met and, for all I know, one I may have heard a false rumor about. If that rumor is true, I no longer see her as the butt of a joke (Lily started out the same way) but rather, as somebody who is nothing less than human. Somebody to sympathize with and perhaps even relate to.
posted by Bird on a Wire @ 2:00 PM
5 Comments:
Lily is not a figment of your imagination. She really exists. Many of her, in fact. And yes, she is very human. You may even meet her one day. In fact, you have probably already met her but may not have recognized her. Who knows, you may be the one she is "saving herself" for.
You're very perceptive and a good writer. Your script sounds fascinating.
Nice post. In my last post about "Speedboat," he became a character in my short story "Jail Bait."
President Clinton had a rather peculiar view of what exactly constituted "sex," too.
I'd love to read your script, but I know that unlike a book, it's not possible to post excerpts. At least that has been my experience with scripts I've written. They must be read in their entirety.
When I was growing up in NY, Lily would have been called a "technical virgin."
Nice name, by the way, as "Lily" means "purity."
Yeah, this reminds me of Bill Clinton and Monica, as well. Would love to read the script, too. Ever see the movie 13?
Cheers!
Josie--I know lots of Lilys, come to think of it.
J.R.--I'm about to mosey on over to your blog, so I'll check it out.
San fran--Reminds me of Clinton also. The choice of Lily as a name was a coincidence (I'd never known that it meant purity, but I like the irony). I also like to examine her similarities to Lilith.
Erik--I really want to see 13. Maybe I'll rent it this weekend.
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