What is your first thought when you get that notice in the mail? How can I get out of this? Maybe I won’t get picked? In any event, you most likely will have to report to the court at least one day to go through the selection procedure. Now, the purpose of this blog is to not debate what is our civic duty. No, I am thinking of this from a writer’s point of view.

As a writer you should be thinking…there is a story here, somewhere in this experience.

When I arrived in the jury assembly room on a recent summons, I made it a point to look around the room and observe the people gathering to answer their “civic” duty. Most, that is to say, almost all of them were staring at their phones. What was their life stories, I thought.

Upstairs in the courtroom I watched each person as they were called up to the judges’ bench to be interviewed by her as to their ability to render an unbiased verdict based on the facts of the case. I studied the hand gestures and facial expressions of each person, including the judge, and wondered what their story was. As each person turned from the bench they either walked to the jury box, or the coveted freedom walk back to the assembly room. I wondered why one was chosen, but not the other.

There were probably the makings of a thousand stories to be written from that experience. As a writer, always be looking for a tale to tell.