A Nashvillian Surprise

The mission: B and Sam drive from Orlando to Nashville to surprise E. Before crossing the Georgia state line, B and I were already brainstorming surprise specifics. We decided strolling up to the door and saying "hi" was far too obvious. So, when we reached E's neighborhood, we parked and B wrote a note saying, "There's a surprise waiting for you under the stairs." Which is all sorts of creepy. I told B to draw a smiley face to lesson the disturbing factor. Instead of drawing a regular one (you know, two dots and an upturned line), she drew an actual face that was smiling. Even more creepy.

Disturbing note in tow, we snuck to E's apartment. B hid under the stairs while I laid the note on E's welcome mat. Then, I knocked and sprinted down the stairs, tripping but moving in a general downward direction. I reached our hiding place just as E opened the door. (See picture.) B and I waited as E read the note, probably panicking. But then she saw us through the stair slits. Success! She was shocked. We laughed, we hugged, we savored the moment of surprise.

As you can see, I LOVE surprises. That's why I'm story obsessed. My favorite part of reading or writing is unraveling a story to its end. After reading a page turner, I sit back and enjoy the satisfaction of knowing. Same goes for writing a manuscript. When my characters yank me in unplanned directions, I write like crazy to find out where they're headed. So, as important as the revising process is, there's nothing quite as magical for me as penning that first draft.

What do you think? How important is the element of surprise in storytelling?