Young Writers Society

Hi,
I'm writing a story (or screenplay) about a couple who have been married for 100+ years and have eternal life and don't age. It's in the perspective of the wife, Mary, who is getting bored of her marriage to her husband after living with him for so long. I wanted some tips to show how she felt her marriage has gotten monotonous over the years, introducing the characters.

I've found that if written badly, monotony can be boring, but if written well it is one of the most beautifully entertaining things to read. As for how to show it... here's a few ideas off the top of my head.

Stargate SG1 had a hilarious episode called Window of Opportunity in which two characters get stuck in a time loop and have to repeat the same day over and over. It's not quite the same, but their reactions and coping mechanisms are really amusing and show how long they've been doing it for. You can probably find a few clips of it on Youtube. Most of these ideas are inspired by that episode;

She could Demonstrate a peculiar skill that she would have acquired whilst doing the same task over and over, like making his favourite meal with her eyes closed or something. Maybe take the classic 'finishing each other's sentences' a step further and have her play out an entire conversation. You could also create some sort of time lapse by using the environment, like maybe a side-board where there was once a wooden photo-frame, then a metal one, then an electronic one, but with the same picture in it.

Lexically, you could try switching out your adjectives for things that better relate to boredom and stagnation. For example, what would normally be a clean, white bed sheet, could instead be pale and wrinkled from the wash. They both mean the same thing but create a very different atmosphere.

Another really interesting thing to look up would be the Sweeney Todd musical- mainly Johanna's song Green Finch and Linnet Bird. She's been captive from a young age and has developed a soft, melodic voice because she spent so long listening and imitating the songs of caged birds.

Routine! You'll often see in movies some moment where one character is all ready for when the other character forgets/messes up/drops something. For instance, she'll be sitting reading the newspaper over cereal when he comes rushing back in, and without pausing or looking she just holds up his keys, he takes them, thanks her, and rushes off, and to her it's like nothing happened, because she always knows he forgets his keys.

He always forgets this thing so I have it ready for him.
He always overloads the dryer so I have a basket ready to catch all the extras that fall out as soon as I open the door.
He always leaves his coffee mugs sitting out when he works late, so part of my morning routine is walking a route through the living room and picking them all up. Usually while focusing on something else entirely, like the newspaper.

That sort of thing, I think. Nuisances, irritations, forgetfulness, this-always-happens. Those things will really stand out over time. "After a hundred years you still can't fold a shirt correctly?!"