Let's Write a Christmas Movie! - Five
AI & I | Quarter 1, Scene 2 - Tangled Threads and Terrible Timing
If you're just joining us (what kept you?) for this particular Let’s Write challenge, you may want to start at the index page to catch up. TL/DR: This is an experiment where we’re trying to use AI to help us write a short romance.
Welcome back to our Christmas movie writing journey!
Last time, we met our wheelchair-using protagonist Jaz and witnessed the gloriously awkward meet-cute that set our story in motion.
Today, we're exploring the second scene from the first quarter—the moment when Jaz learns more about the red scarf she just damaged and gets some unexpected information about its owner.
Remember, we're following our adapted Lester Dent formula, and this scene completes the first quarter of our story by adding emotional stakes and setting up the inevitable reunion.
Also, side note: I'm still not sure if “Maggie” is the final name for our yarn vendor. I might pull in a side character from another series later—yay, crossover potential! But for now, she's Maggie. Placeholders are fine. Names can change. Keep writing. With that out of the way, let's see what happens when Jaz finally reaches Maggie's stall...
Q1 Scene 2: Tangled Threads and Terrible Timing
Maggie looked up as I approached her stall, her smile fading as she read my expression. "What's got you looking like you just found a knot in your best cashmere?"
"Nothing," I muttered, coming to rest at her table. "Just people not watching where they're going. Or where their scarves are going."
She nodded sympathetically. "The market's a madhouse today. Last weekend before Christmas." She leaned forward conspiratorially. "But you'll forgive the chaos when you see what I've got for you."
From beneath the table, she pulled out a bag and set it before me. Inside were skeins of alpaca wool in exactly the deep jewel tones I'd been searching for—emerald, sapphire, and a rich plum that made my fingers itch to start creating.
"Maggie, they're perfect." My mood lifted instantly. "The Henderson commission is going to be stunning with these."
"That's why I set them aside for you." She winked. "How's business? Still keeping those spoonies of yours in fancy patterns?"
I smiled despite myself. My online knitting circle for people with chronic illnesses had grown steadily over the past year. "Busier than ever. Just posted a new mitten pattern yesterday that's already getting traction."
As Maggie rang up my purchase, I felt something catching as I moved my chair slightly. I reached down and found a strand of red wool still tangled in my wheel.
"What's this?" Maggie asked, noticing my frown as I worked to extract the thread.
"Some guy's scarf got caught in my wheel. Made a proper mess of it, I'm afraid."
She took the strand from my fingers, examining it with a professional eye. "This isn't just any wool..." Her eyebrows rose. "I think this is qiviut. Musk ox down. Incredibly rare and expensive."
"You're joking." I looked at the innocent-seeming strand with new eyes.
"I never joke about luxury fibres, darling." Maggie turned the strand in the light. "Was it a red scarf? About this long?" She gestured with her hands.
"Yes. How did you know?"
"I think that might have been Ellie Harrington's1 brother. She made that scarf for him after his divorce last year—commissioned the yarn specially. She's got a stall in the jewellery section."
Great. Not only had I been rude to a random stranger, but apparently, I'd also destroyed what was probably a thoughtful, expensive gift from his sister. The guilt settled uncomfortably in my stomach.
"Do you know him?" I asked, trying to sound casual.
"Will? Not well, but he's at most of these events helping Ellie. Quiet type. Accountant, I think. Recently back on the market after a nasty split." Maggie gave me a knowing look. "Handsome, though, isn't he?"
I ignored that last comment. "I may have been a bit short with him."
"Well," Maggie said, handing me my purchase with a smile that was far too shrewd, "the community centre fundraising committee is meeting next Tuesday. Word is Ellie's chairing it, and she's roped her brother into handling the finances." Her eyes twinkled. "Weren't you saying the accessibility advocacy group nominated you to consult on that project?"
Oh no. The realisation hit me like a cold wave. The committee meeting. I'd completely forgotten about it with the holiday rush.
"You've got to be kidding me."
"Sounds like you'll have a chance to apologise," Maggie said cheerfully.
Somehow, I didn't think a simple "sorry about your thousand-dollar scarf" was going to cut it.
Anatomy of the Aftermath Scene
This second scene completes our first quarter. Digging into the scene, we can see that it ticks several boxes in Dent’s formula:
1. Deepening Character Introduction
While the first scene introduced Jaz and the physical (and mental) obstacles she’s facing just to get some yarn at a Yule Fayre, this scene tells us more about her life and skills. We learn that she runs an online knitting circle for spoonies (people with chronic illnesses), works on commissions, and designs knitting patterns. This shows us both her expertise and her connection to a supportive community.
2. Raising the Emotional Stakes
At the heart of this scene we have Jaz's discovery. That was no ordinary Walmart scarf—it was made of incredibly rare and expensive qiviut wool, specially commissioned, and knitted by Will's sister after his divorce. This turns her simple moment of irritation into something with real emotional weight: guilt, embarrassment, and the knowledge she'll have to face him again.
3. Setting Up the Inevitable Reunion
Maggie's revelation about the community centre committee meeting (wow, that’s a mouthful!) creates the perfect mechanism forcing our future lovers back together. It's not a contrived coincidence—we’re making it part of Jaz's existing commitments, one she'd temporarily forgotten about amidst the holiday rush. This creates a natural anticipation (for the reader) and dread (for Jaz) for their next meeting. Love it!
4. Providing Essential Background
Without resorting to an info-dump, we've shed some light Will’s background. He's an accountant. He's recently divorced ("back on the market"). He helps his sister at events. And he's described as quiet and handsome. This should give our readers just enough information to be intrigued, but not so much as to drown them in it.
Craft Elements to Notice
Now, let's check out some of the specific writing techniques at work in this scene:
Casual Exposition
Notice how we learn about Jaz's business, the online knitting circle, and her role with the accessibility advocacy group through a natural conversation rather than long paragraphs of explanation. Maggie's question about "keeping those spoonies of yours in fancy patterns"2 tells us many things in a single line of dialogue.
Symbolic Objects
The strand of red wool isn't just a plot device. It's a physical connection between Jaz and Will that she's literally carrying with her. Later, we’ll have her repairing the scarf for him. This then becomes a lovely3 metaphor for healing and connection. I think introducing this motif early gives it more weight when we circle back to it later on.
Character Through Reaction
Jaz's immediate discomfort as she learns about the scarf's value and potential significance to Will tells us something about her core values. Despite her initial irritation with him, she feels really bad to have damaged something that’s probably rather precious to him. This shows us that she can be a bit prickly, but she's a compassionate person. It also tells us that she might end up earning that happy (for now) ending we have in store for her.
Foreshadowing Through Dialogue
Maggie's throwaway line about Will being "back on the market" not only explains his recent divorce, it also hints at romantic possibilities and gives us the title of our story. Jaz is back on the market to buy more yarn from Maggie. Will is back on the relationship market. (Mrs Bennet would have him married off to Kitty in a heartbeat!)
But that’s not all. Her question about the community centre committee plants the seed for the next major development in our story. Cheers, Maggie!
Your Turn: Writing Prompts
Right, that’s the first quarter of our story covered. Please remember, we are not doing any edits at this stage. Our only focus is to get the story down and make sure it ticks all the boxes. We’ll worry about the cosmetics of it in stage two.
How are you feeling after all this? Ready to flex your writing muscles? Here are some exercises inspired by this scene:
A Revelation: Write a 300-word scene where your character discovers something unexpected about a stranger they briefly encountered. How does this new information change their perspective? Does it create guilt, curiosity, or anticipation?
A Casual Exposition: Create a conversation between two characters that naturally reveals important background information about a third character who isn't present. Avoid information that sounds like it's only there for the reader's benefit.
A Symbolic Object: Choose an ordinary object and make it symbolically significant in a short scene. Show how this object connects two characters or tells us something important about their relationship.
Next Time on Let's Write a Christmas Movie
In two weeks, we'll move into Quarter 2 of our story structure and tackle the committee meeting scene where Jaz and Will are forced to work together despite their awkward first encounter. We'll explore how to write professional tension that gradually evolves into something more personal, and how to create obstacles that feel real, not just made up because we needed some drama.
Until then, I'd love to see your responses to the writing prompts! Share them in the comments, or if you're feeling shy, work on them privately. The important thing is that you keep writing. Even if what you produce seems about as elegant as a penguin in stilettos. I’m a firm believer in doing things badly on purpose, and first drafts are meant to be messy!
This is where we remind ourselves that it’s not just the eventual kiss that makes romance satisfying. It's the emotional journey that takes us there and show is how it is earned. In this scene, I believe we have laid the foundation for that journey by giving both Jaz and Will compelling reasons to reconnect and get over their first (bad) impressions of one another.
Puss & Kram,
Linnea 🤍
P.S. If you're tired of battling the blank page alone, consider boarding my ship! We're a small motley crew of literary pirates who share triumphs, disasters, and (occasionally) useful advice. New deckhands are always welcome!
Links and Footnotes
Not sure about her name either.
Gah, I really wanted to say delightful! 🤭
We are definitely changing this mouthful! That community centre needs a name asap.