Discussion Thread -- May 2022 75 Word Writing Challenge

[Ursa major]

All baked by me for everyone to eat, so don't be shy, get stuck in.

If you wanted to make something hard, porous and with a high carbon content, why didn't you try to make cake coke...?

 

[Bowler1]

If you wanted to make something hard, porous and with a high carbon content, why didn't you try to make cake coke...?

Yay... someone likes my cooking.

 

[Wayne Mack]

If you wanted to make something hard, porous and with a high carbon content, why didn't you try to make cake coke...?

I think that I'd have to chew on that one for a little while.

 

[Cat's Cradle]

Congratulations @therapist! Looking forward to your choices for June.
And well done to all - a good Challenge.

Thanks so much @paranoid marvin, @OuttaInc and @Hugh for your kind words. This is such a good site, CC

 

[Starbeast]

Congratulations Therapist
@therapist

Silver Medal
@Victoria Silverwolf
@StilLearning
@Aknot
@OuttaInc
@M. Robert Gibson

Bronze Medal
@Luiglin
@Christine Wheelwright
@chrispenycate
@JS Wiig
@mosaix

​

@Parson "A Memory of Memories" - Good tale. If a person lives a long life (including those who live beyond centuries), we are usually confronted with the same problems.

That was a great theme and many entries made fun with it.

Shortlist:
@Starbeast - Darn, darn, darn, darn... what a way to spent eternity. It was only one touch!

Thank you for the wonderful comment.
I chose your story because I had trouble thinking of something to write about. Your words were exactly what I thought.

 

[Parson]

Congrats @therapist well done.

Thanks to @StilLearning and @M. Robert Gibson for the precious mentions. And a surprised thank you to @Bramandin for the vote.

Thanks @Starbeast for the review.


----

For a long time I thought that I wouldn't be able to find a story. I wanted to do something about the kind of infinity found in a person's progeny. But I couldn't get past just that 1000 year stare a mother might see looking in the eyes of her daughter and make a story of it. Perhaps this might seem too far afield but I was brought to the former thought by a wedding I did about a decade ago. A young bride stood as she was about to be escorted down the aisle by her father to the waiting groom and then instead of an organ wedding march (as is usual in this area) there was a recording of Scottish pipes playing Amazing Grace, and suddenly it seemed to me like I had gone back in time about 300 years and saw an unending chain of those who have wed in the name of Jesus. I found myself crying and had to compose myself in about a minute's time or it would have been very embarrassing for me.

In the end the problem with memory at my advancing age turned the light on for a story that I'm pleased was well received by some.

 

[Luiglin]

Congrats @therapist .

Thanks for the votes @sule and @JS Wiig plus the mentions folks.

I got the idea for mine from a NASA article about how they've been receiving an unexpected interstellar 'hum' recorded by Voyager 1. So, I just thought about future space exploration, the potential madness of a long journey and interstellar environment - the Space Between.

 

[OuttaInc]

Question for all challenge participants:

Has anyone ever reworked their 75-word entries into longer versions and submitted them for publication?

I had a few ideas for developing mine (the house of mirrors story) and was thinking about submitting a longer version to a few flash fiction outlets. But I don’t know what constitutes prior publication- if the seed of the story is the same but 90% of it has been rewritten, could that be considered a new (unpublished) piece?

 

[Luiglin]

Question for all challenge participants:

Has anyone ever reworked their 75-word entries into longer versions and submitted them for publication?

I had a few ideas for developing mine (the house of mirrors story) and was thinking about submitting a longer version to a few flash fiction outlets. But I don’t know what constitutes prior publication- if the seed of the story is the same but 90% of it has been rewritten, could that be considered a new (unpublished) piece?

I've expanded on a whole world based on an initial 75 word entry. From the misadventures of the Dark Lord and the Minion (approx 60k words), to the Tales of the Four (approx 40k) to Short Investigations (approx 50k)... I really need to finish one of them. And that's not including a myriad of short stories.

 

[Wayne Mack]

Question for all challenge participants:

Has anyone ever reworked their 75-word entries into longer versions and submitted them for publication?

I had a few ideas for developing mine (the house of mirrors story) and was thinking about submitting a longer version to a few flash fiction outlets. But I don’t know what constitutes prior publication- if the seed of the story is the same but 90% of it has been rewritten, could that be considered a new (unpublished) piece?

I took one of my 75 worders and built a 83 K word novel out of it. I still need to complete an editing pass, but I may go ahead and brave the publishing market.

I had written the entry purely to see if I could create a space opera style story. Though my entry didn't get very much recognition, I really, really liked the character, so I build a full tale around her. Though heavily rewritten, the introduction is still reminiscent of the 75 word entry.

If you feel like there is a bigger story to emerge, go for it. It can be a lot of fun to see an idea evolve.

 

[Parson]

Has anyone ever reworked their 75-word entries into longer versions and submitted them for publication?

Probably the most successful of these was Nathan Hystad, who took a story and built it into The Event which is now book 1 in The Survivors series (20 volumes now). As some of the books in the series have more than 1000 ratings, I'm sure he's sold at least 10,000's of books in the series. --- I don't believe he's been seen around here in a long time now.

*Parson immodestly mentions that he suggested to Nathan that his 75 sounded like the beginning of a great book. I have an autographed copy with a nice recognition of my part in the beginning.

 

[StilLearning]

Question for all challenge participants:

Has anyone ever reworked their 75-word entries into longer versions and submitted them for publication?

I had a few ideas for developing mine (the house of mirrors story) and was thinking about submitting a longer version to a few flash fiction outlets. But I don’t know what constitutes prior publication- if the seed of the story is the same but 90% of it has been rewritten, could that be considered a new (unpublished) piece?

The first book in my sig line is an anthology of drabbles, including expanded versions of my 75 word entries up to that point. It was more a test run of the KDP process than a serious attempt to make money, but I enjoyed doing it - it gave me a vehicle to showcase my art too! Officer Crooker, who was a character in this month's entry, is in a bunch of them. The inspiration for it was also the anthology 'Magpie Tales' by Neil Murton, which is worth checking out - it reimagines King Arthur as a 10 year old girl, which caught my imagination.

 

[Guttersnipe]

I was really hoping, for the sake of my story, that most were familiar with the infinite monkey theorem.

Thanks for the vote, @Luiglin!

 

[Parson]

I was really hoping, for the sake of my story, that most were familiar with the infinite monkey theorem.

I have no idea what the "infinite monkey theorem" is.

 

[THX1138]

agdgDSdf I do msjaBHJJk.

The infinite monkey theorem states that a monkey hitting keys at random on a typewriter keyboard for an infinite amount of time will almost surely type any given text, such as the complete works of William Shakespeare.

 

[Elckerlyc]

Ah yes, I have heard that theorem before. But just rereading your story again, @Guttersnipe, I am still a bit confused. Especially the final 2 sentences.

 

[Guttersnipe]

Ah yes, I have heard that theorem before. But just rereading your story again, @Guttersnipe, I am still a bit confused. Especially the final 2 sentences.

I meant to reveal that it took place in a reality where humans are hunted. Kind of a Planet of the Apes reference. I might've come up with a better ending if I tried harder.

 

[Astro Pen]

** - USRA was and is a gift for the manufacturers of model US steam locomotives (and those of their customers who don't want to have to choose between paying a lot more money or buying unrealistic toy-like models). USRA designed a set of "standard" steam locomotives that were used by many the numerous private railroad companies (either as designed or adapted from the USRA designs). This meant that those manufacturers could sell models of real-world locomotives and so could be used (either straight out of the box or with minor modifications) on model railroads based either on many of the real ones, or imaginary railroads whose builders/owners wanted them to look as "authentic" as possible. (Oh, and did I mention that I was a bit anal....)

You are no doubt aware, but others may not be, that you share that US model railway passion with Rod Stewart.

Sir Rod Stewart unveils model railway he worked on for 25 years

The rock star, 74, would book an extra hotel room while on tour so that he could work on his models.

news.sky.com

 

[Elckerlyc]

I meant to reveal that it took place in a reality where humans are hunted. Kind of a Planet of the Apes reference. I might've come up with a better ending if I tried harder.

Thinking of a good, funny or punch ending is always the hard part.

 

[OuttaInc]

I've expanded on a whole world based on an initial 75 word entry. From the misadventures of the Dark Lord and the Minion (approx 60k words), to the Tales of the Four (approx 40k) to Short Investigations (approx 50k)... I really need to finish one of them. And that's not including a myriad of short stories.

I took one of my 75 worders and built a 83 K word novel out of it. I still need to complete an editing pass, but I may go ahead and brave the publishing market.

I had written the entry purely to see if I could create a space opera style story. Though my entry didn't get very much recognition, I really, really liked the character, so I build a full tale around her. Though heavily rewritten, the introduction is still reminiscent of the 75 word entry.

If you feel like there is a bigger story to emerge, go for it. It can be a lot of fun to see an idea evolve.

Probably the most successful of these was Nathan Hystad, who took a story and built it into The Event which is now book 1 in The Survivors series (20 volumes now). As some of the books in the series have more than 1000 ratings, I'm sure he's sold at least 10,000's of books in the series. --- I don't believe he's been seen around here in a long time now.

*Parson immodestly mentions that he suggested to Nathan that his 75 sounded like the beginning of a great book. I have an autographed copy with a nice recognition of my part in the beginning.

The first book in my sig line is an anthology of drabbles, including expanded versions of my 75 word entries up to that point. It was more a test run of the KDP process than a serious attempt to make money, but I enjoyed doing it - it gave me a vehicle to showcase my art too! Officer Crooker, who was a character in this month's entry, is in a bunch of them. The inspiration for it was also the anthology 'Magpie Tales' by Neil Murton, which is worth checking out - it reimagines King Arthur as a 10 year old girl, which caught my imagination.

Wow... it sounds like these challenges are a great way to seed the imagination! Thanks, everyone, for your responses.