Discussion thread -- November 2015 75-word Writing Challenge

Well done StilLearning! Great little story, says me

Got to say a big thanks to all those that mentioned my attempt: Ihe, Saharren, TheDustyZebra, TitaniumTi, Martin321 & StilLearning - but especially The Alex G and T for the vote - glad it made you laugh!

Well done StillLearning.

Looked at definition of absurdist tales being about no purpose in life and meaningless actions. So I thought about a poor court jester attempting to bring humour to an oblivious Dark Lord.

Poor Ham.

Congrats StilLearning! A good win!

Alex -- as you probably guessed, it was pawl. I first mis-read it as pawn, then when I read it properly thought it was a mistype, then thought I'd better check. I'm still not sure what it is, but hey, it's a new word, so that's good enough!

TDZ -- I got it! Well, part of it, in that I'd seen you'd referenced the earlier stories, but I didn't click it was two words from each. Clever, clever!l


For anyone wondering about my piece of nonsense this month, as DGJ has noted I was plagiarising... er... paying homage to the original of the theme's not-quite-a-quote, namely Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken -- hence the "so frosty" -- which mangled quotes from the poem itself, including its famous "the road less traveled by" line, and since she was being nit-picky about people quoting accurately I deliberately ended with her making a mistake in quoting from one of the most famous pieces of absurdist theatre, Waiting for Godot. I was pleased as well to find another quote for the title -- Reflection has closed the road is from Kierkegaard on the issue of absurdism, and it seemed appropriate for a cow... sorry an aurochs... unable to choose which of two paths to take (unfortunately the one it chose led to extinction.)

But since the whole was undeniably going nowhere (much like the monologuist herself, in fact) I didn't expect any notice to be taken of it, so I'm delighted with all the mentions I got -- and I see ratsy popped in after me last night and gave me a "fave" listing, with which I am absurdly, not to say aurochsly, pleased. Thank you all.

I can't claim any particular source or inspiration for my entry (other than Wikipedia and Wiktionary), which shouldn't be a surprise, given that the two stories** I'd tried to make work just wouldn't coalesce at all, let alone do so within 75 words.

So, in desperation, I wondered if there was a meaning of path that didn't match with a meaning of absurdist fiction. But though I found such definitions, they didn't make for any sort of story, let alone a compelling one.


** - Both involved "intelligent" stars ('Celestials'): story 1 was meant to be about a Celestial who wanted to become more important but in becoming a black hole wasn't able to tell anyone what it thought (because it couldn't emit anything), so what it was doing was pointless (even though it could, as a singularity*** be thought of as a point mass); story 2 was a Celestial who wanted (for whatever reason) to become a black hole but wasn't big enough (and so couldn't become a singularity***).


*** - Beware: handwaving, rather than cosmology, is in play.

Congratulations StillLearning!!

Thanks for the mentions / short lists Johnnyjet, Juliana, Saharren, TDZ, Mad Alice, CC, Crystal Haven and TJ.

For those that didn't 'get' my contribution it was an obscure reference to Alice in Wonderland. I was hoping Mr White and Hatter would give it away but I must admit the reference to the raven probably foxed most people.

I got it!

Congrats Stillearning.

Although I read the odd bit of absurbism, I'm a pragmatic soul and knew I'd come up with nothing close, so I decided to pay homage to one of the great Irish Absurbists, Samuel Beckett.

I got Mosaix and TJ's references immediately so I'm due red bounty. I need to visit my neighbour so I'll go via the newsagent to get my reward. I loved the fact there was so much reference to Beckett (and, subliminally, TS Eliot), and of course Robert Mackay's supreme Sci-fi update to Catch 22.

I wrote quite a few attempts but in the end I only finished three of them. I chose to submit the one about England, Scotland and Wales moving away from from France because of my other two, one was too comedy-ish, and the other was too Endgame (I like my Beckett at his darkest, most bleakest). @DG Jones - Iceland is north of Scotland, so when Pauline and her husband crowbar the cliffs away from the Continent, they set the mainland (Scot, Eng, Wales) coasting towards Iceland who object to the incursion, hence them declaring war. I thought it was clear that the white cliffs referred to Dover and that 'they' were the French. I should've probably thought it through a bit more.

The Reluctant Count
Clark hated spinach when he was alive! And people think vegetarians ate everything. He looked at his kitchen counter; chopped liver pate (kosher, blessed - ha bloody ha), bags of spinach, even a bottle of folic acid!

Later he sat on the graveyard gatepost, filing down his teeth while his belly and mouth smoked, really wishing he'd lost his taste for garlic.

Moonrise: Thankfully the supermarket was 24 hours.




Then - the Endgame one - I just couldn't get down to 75 and even at 83 it was a little too obscure, expecting people to make a guess as to what Rubbish Men were.

En Passant
James walked to the white. The square was cool; the burning heat from the black quickly leaked from his soles.
'Your turn,' Mike shouted from the other end. He'd already moved!
James looked over the edge of the board at the roiling inky depths. Sparks flashed down there every few seconds.
One way out. He looked at the door at the other end of the chessboard. He'd never beat Mike or the Rubbish Men.
He peeked into the void again, and jumped.

pH

Just in case it didn't pop up in anyone's "new posts" listing for this thread, I'd like to refer you to post #297 where I moved DG Jones' alternate story to, from elsewhere. I didn't want it to be missed just because it sneaked in the back door.

Thanks Dusty! Yes I'd like to know what people think of my alternate story. It's based on a true story that happened to my housemate and me. Sort of.

CONGRATS StilLearning, great win.

My Vote goes to Robert Mackay, reminded me of my old job.

Must thank,Phyrebrat and Moonbat for their votes, I am a happy man, THANK YOU.

I count 11 mentions, short lists, short short list, runner-up, almost vote, and a couple of laughs, thank you---
StilLearning--Cats Cradle--Alex TheG and T--The Judge--Ursa major--Hazelrah--The Dusty Zebra--Mad Alice--Johnny Jet--Venusian Broon--Hopewrites.

Not knowing a thing about the challenge but felt I should write something, I knocked out a story in 5 minutes, read it to Renate and she said "what?", so I rewrote it in 2 minutes and sent it off. I think absurd and nonsense suit me well.

Parson, Keep up the good work, I'll be in touch soon.

Bob

The Judge said:

Alex -- as you probably guessed, it was pawl. I first mis-read it as pawn, then when I read it properly thought it was a mistype, then thought I'd better check. I'm still not sure what it is, but hey, it's a new word, so that's good enough!

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I looked to see that random dictionaries, indeed, have confusingly inadequate definitions. All one really needs to know about a pawl that it is the part of a ratchet, or mechanical clock that says, "click," "tick" or "tock." The word suggests the mechanistic nature of seemingly eternal stair-stepping.

The further fact that the look of the word invokes pawnishness is also a definite bonus, favoring that particular choice of word.

If all of that wasn't brilliant enough; the lovely word rhymes with "fall."

I liked the new word, too, though I doubt I'll have much opportunity to use it. That line was truly brilliant!

*I blush.* Thanks.

I popped in for a quick moment. I voted for DAVID EVIL OVERLORD who came in at a strong second.

Well done to everyone who entered, I enjoyed all of the stories.

Thank you to everyone who mentioned my little tale.

My STORY: I merely put myself in a BAD mood by thinking about what I didn't like at the jobs I've worked in my life. It made me very angry and depressed . Then I typed it out. Fortunately, I never wore a box on my head, or had my severed head in a box, like in my "dead end" story.

Cat's Cradle --- I am so pleased for the mention. I was so out of my depth on this challenge that your mention tasted like Manna.

Bob Senior said:

Parson, Keep up the good work, I'll be in touch soon.

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Thanks, looking forward to it.

----

As to my own story. I thought about the most absurd entertainment I could think of: "Monty Python's Flying Circus" that brought to mind Baron Von Richthofen's Flying Circus. So the clown reference was a kind of parable of life and death, which the Baron was considering and just decided to go for it.

Parson said:

As to my own story. I thought about the most absurd entertainment I could think of: "Monty Python's Flying Circus" that brought to mind Baron Von Richthofen's Flying Circus. So the clown reference was a kind of parable of life and death, which the Baron was considering and just decided to go for it.

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Hmmmmm. Brontosaurus' Flying Circus...

David Evil Overlord said:

Hmmmmm. Brontosaurus' Flying Circus...

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Or a remake of The Beast with Five Fingers...


...all of them being terror dactyls....

mosaix said:

Congratulations StillLearning!!

Thanks for the mentions / short lists Johnnyjet, Juliana, Saharren, TDZ, Mad Alice, CC, Crystal Haven and TJ.

For those that didn't 'get' my contribution it was an obscure reference to Alice in Wonderland. I was hoping Mr White and Hatter would give it away but I must admit the reference to the raven probably foxed most people.

Spoiler

The Wonderland riddle "Why is a raven like a writing desk?"

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I got it! Loved it. Came really close to voting for it, but in the end went with HB's horrible pub story.

Congrats StilLearning.

I came very close to not posting this month. It would have been the first time for a while (I think), and an embarrassing volte-face after my recent enthusiasm in the “why do we post” thread, which is situated somewhere nearby.

I didn’t really get what absurdist fiction was, and felt if it was fish-slapping, surrealism then I didn’t really have a story. When I discovered the best book ever written could be classed as absurdist, I felt I should have something, but then spent many days thinking that whatever 75 words I wrote would be a real slap in the face to the many political absurdities we are surrounded with. Dark days. When the idea arrived it seemed to match the idea of not being able to find inherent meaning in life, and this existential approach is also an aspect of Absurdism.

Thanks for the mentions LittleStar, TheDustyZebra, Cat’s Cradle, The Judge, and Droplet for the vote.