October 26th, 2006
Six word short stories and Sarsaparilla
Back in the Sigla Magazine days, we had a section called ‘Flash Fiction’, that encouraged people to write a short story in 25 words. It was tricky enough to be economical with the words… or so we thought. Taking Hemingway’s famous six-word short story (”For sale: baby shoes, never worn”), Wired Magazine have asked a who’s who of fantasy, horror and sci-fi writers to come up with their own versions:
Harry Harrison: TIME MACHINE REACHES FUTURE!!! . nobody there .
Ursula K. Le Guin: Easy. Just touch the match to
Stan Lee: Automobile warranty expires. So does engine.
Joss Wheedon: Gown removed carelessly. Head, less so.
Margaret Atwood: Corpse parts missing. Doctor buys yacht.
Neil Gaiman: I’m dead. I’ve missed you. Kiss . ?
Frank Miller: With bloody hands, I say good-bye.
William Shatner: Failed SAT. Lost scholarship. Invented rocket.
A couple of weeks ago, I discovered the excellent Australian literary/culture blog Sarsaparilla, which is offering a prize for the best SWST they receive.
Can anyone do any better than the ones above?
October 26th, 2006 at 9:23 am
Shatner’s sounds EXACTLY. Like HIM.
Mine:
Anger rising. Someone will die now…
October 26th, 2006 at 9:42 am
Here’s my effort:
Closing her eyes, she swallowed water.
October 26th, 2006 at 10:58 am
shatner tops the list.
btw, went to see Coraline (Neil Gaiman adaptation) by Púca Puppets last week. Great show. Will be touring shortly I believe.
*ahem* my attempt:
Clicked on link, reality flooded mystery.
October 26th, 2006 at 12:16 pm
‘If only I could count’, thought David.
October 26th, 2006 at 1:03 pm
Neat idea!
“I’m pregnant. Don’t call me again”.
October 26th, 2006 at 2:11 pm
“Be careful not to touch that…”
“We’re the same. But you’re different.”
October 26th, 2006 at 2:54 pm
Hi! Why ? Lie! Cry.
October 26th, 2006 at 5:05 pm
My effort: All that’s been will be again!
October 26th, 2006 at 5:23 pm
With a (big) nod to Heinlein: Sex change; time machine; fuck self.
October 27th, 2006 at 7:06 am
Wake up hungover. Recall ex. Drink.
October 27th, 2006 at 9:24 am
Here’s mine with influences attached:
Mind drugs work, he rapidly thought
Iain M. Banks
Memory returned. Bullets shot through him
Momento
Graveside oration given by the murder
Corrie
October 27th, 2006 at 9:29 am
Chicken came first. Then the egg.
October 27th, 2006 at 10:03 am
Truman: Of course I knew, silly!
October 27th, 2006 at 11:08 am
Feeling glum.
New shoes.
Immediate recovery.
October 27th, 2006 at 11:09 am
Coppery smell.
Guilty dog.
Kicked arse.
October 27th, 2006 at 11:10 am
Ringing phone.
Number viewed.
Mother ignored.
October 27th, 2006 at 11:18 am
Antony to Cleopatra: Oh, I say!
October 27th, 2006 at 11:25 am
Love hurts (so does colonic irrigation)
October 27th, 2006 at 11:30 am
Late Spring. Still cold, no leaves.
October 27th, 2006 at 12:50 pm
woke up in bath. kidney gone.
October 27th, 2006 at 12:51 pm
woke up this morning. liver gone.
(but lambchop were worth it).
October 27th, 2006 at 1:11 pm
What can I say? Very impressed with these efforts. Can particularly related to Fatmammycat’s given that we’ve got a doggie visitor with a flatulence problem at the moment.
Keep them coming…
October 27th, 2006 at 1:38 pm
Winter time, the living aint easy
October 27th, 2006 at 1:42 pm
Two hours
to mole
slice, worried.
October 27th, 2006 at 1:43 pm
Vodka mixed
with gin,
bad idea.
October 27th, 2006 at 1:49 pm
I thought you loved me? Oink
October 27th, 2006 at 1:53 pm
Avoid doing work. Write six words.
October 27th, 2006 at 1:55 pm
Christmas is coming. Pack your bags.
October 27th, 2006 at 2:05 pm
Halloween coming. Pretend I’m not in.
October 27th, 2006 at 2:06 pm
Trick or treat? Ask me bollo
October 27th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
My tuppence worth …..
Announced blog, commented liberally ; thought. Silence.
M50, 5 series, nose-picker, Yuk!
October 27th, 2006 at 5:31 pm
Sick of doctors
Stupid bloody idiots.
October 27th, 2006 at 10:54 pm
My fingers slipped… and then nothingness…
October 27th, 2006 at 10:57 pm
She turned and closed her eyes.
October 27th, 2006 at 11:07 pm
Cancer? But he was so healthy?
October 28th, 2006 at 2:41 pm
Wanting. Finding. Shedding. Merging. Melting.
Cigarette.
October 28th, 2006 at 2:47 pm
[…] Sinéad talks about six word stories. More than six people make replies. The post title is my submission. blogs ireland irish irishblogs six stories […]
October 28th, 2006 at 8:32 pm
Laurell K Hamilton: Some nifty plot… let’s have sex
October 28th, 2006 at 8:33 pm
oops, misread, thought it was about those authors….
ah well
October 28th, 2006 at 9:08 pm
Great stuff…I blogged this yesterday and there’s a real meme about with flickr groups and everything
She said “Yes�. I undressed quickly.
“Checkmate�. Jesus looked forlorn. I laughed.
Only six words to say everything?
Sin in order to be forgiven.
She was underage. So was I.
Grave. Two men. Under and Over
Her bum looked big in it.
matt (lategaming, infurious, mac-sys)
October 29th, 2006 at 7:47 am
Feeling secure as an officeboy.
October 29th, 2006 at 6:47 pm
“I’m not in right now…” *click*
October 29th, 2006 at 10:01 pm
Chew gum
your mouth
open, die.
October 30th, 2006 at 11:27 am
Six word story? Not nearly enough.
October 30th, 2006 at 11:38 am
The sun rose in the west.
October 30th, 2006 at 5:56 pm
Love you forever. Don’t call me.
When she’s grown, I’m outta here.
Just cock the hammer, like this.
Oops. Now the jet is inverted.
Iraq to Korea? About 12 minutes.
Don’t drink that … well, never mind.
If you’re sick, use my purse.
October 30th, 2006 at 7:52 pm
oh, did
you actually
need that?
October 30th, 2006 at 10:24 pm
‘your personality replacement order was cancelled’
October 31st, 2006 at 11:27 am
These are my last words. Goodbye.
October 31st, 2006 at 1:17 pm
Banger up hole now lit. Goodbye spleen.
October 31st, 2006 at 1:19 pm
I wish I could count to six.
October 31st, 2006 at 1:38 pm
Now you need to put all the six worders sequentially together to make a longer story!
October 31st, 2006 at 5:20 pm
Warning. Brain not found. Try coffee?
November 3rd, 2006 at 5:52 pm
Sting ray? You’ve got to be…
A collect call from the Pope.
They sure don’t have a nuke.
Nicest folks on earth, the French.
Badges? Don’t need no stinkin’ badges!
I’m gettin fond of that bitch.
Read my lips: No new taxes.
I took initiative,inventing the Internet.
I didn’t live in this century.
Well, I am not a crook.
Everybody is ignorant on different subjects.
Nothing to fear but fear itself.
Marijuana? Once. I did not inhale.
November 4th, 2006 at 2:41 am
Hugh, as an editor -
Lit banger up hole. Goodbye spleen.
Isn’t this basically an exercise in what movie tag-line creators do?
Just saw The Departed, for example -
Mad Micks make Marky Mark’s Day.
November 6th, 2006 at 11:12 am
Aye, and there it was; Gone!
November 6th, 2006 at 11:22 am
Dead eyes stared from her photograph.
November 6th, 2006 at 11:25 am
“The Sun’s not yellow; it’s chicken” - Bob Dylan’ish
November 10th, 2006 at 4:53 am
News: Bin Laden Found in Bush
November 10th, 2006 at 7:24 am
Thank you for the editing, copernicus. I should get extra marks, I think, for prescience:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wear/6132140.stm
March 21st, 2007 at 3:09 pm
Someone’s imitating you. Flattered?
http://reallynotmuch.blogspot.com/2007/01/six-word-short-story.html
March 21st, 2007 at 3:31 pm
Thanks Anon, that’s a bit disappointing. By all means use the idea, but using my exact words? Hmmm…
March 21st, 2007 at 10:36 pm
The whole thing sucks btw:
Here’s a story inspired by the whole incident (all my own work, I promise! Are titles allowed? Do they count? ‘Stripped’ describes the feeling I had when somebody conned me via plagiarism when I was a tutor in UCD):
STRIPPED
Honest, I was robbed. Sad now.