DISCUSSION THREAD -- March 2024 -- 75-Word Writing Challenge

[emrosenagel]

Congrats @Victoria Silverwolf!! A fantastic story

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

I am greatly honored.

Congratulations should go to paranoid marvin for the silver and mosaix for the bronze.

With such a wide spread of votes, everybody should be congratulated on doing a fine job.

 

[THX1138]

@Victoria Silverwolf Congrats!

 

[Parson]

For me @Victoria Silverwolf was a winner even before the votes were cast. Congratulations.

 

[paranoid marvin]

Congratulations Victoria!

Many thanks to Ursa, Pyan, Luiglin, AnRoinnUltra and Fox Astor for your votes and to CC, Christine, emrosenagel, Culhwch, Starbeast M.Robert Gibson and sule for the shortlistings.

From a personal point of view, I was happy to (eventually) drag a poem (or at least my concept of what constitutes a poem) out of myself, and hopefully will be able to do so more regularly in future.

Thanks also to Victoria and Parson our considerate to reviewers and to The Judge for an interesting Theme and Genre for this month's Challenge.

 

[mosaix]

Congratulations @Victoria Silverwolf!

 

[Provincial]

Congratulations @Victoria Silverwolf, and (at the risk of sounding like a copycat) thanks also to Victoria, @Parson and @The Judge for your reviews and choice of theme/genre. That was a really interesting and enjoyable challenge which brought out the best in the entrants.

 

[THX1138]

For me, it was like the Gaslight one: Think, think, think...oh bother. Really THX?...I mean, really?

 

[Elckerlyc]

Congratulations @Victoria Silverwolf!

 

[nixie]

Congratulations @Victoria Silverwolf.

 

[The Judge]

Congratulations, Victoria! An emphatic win for an excellent story!

Spring Duckling Thanks for the lovely shortlisting, CC!

 

[Cat's Cradle]

Well done, Victoria, well done all!
Your thanks, TJ, inspired me to go look at pictures of spring ducklings... adorable! I recommend everyone do so today, if times are seeming stressful. Throw in some puppies and kittens, too...

 

[The Judge]

Many, many years ago a niece sent me a little stuffed toy of a duckling, who was promptly named Jemima, (Mima for short) and adopted as one of the family, and whenever we go on holiday, she comes, too and has her photo taken at venues to prove it. My mother knitted little hats, scarves and waistcoats so she -- Mima, not Mum -- wouldn't get cold, and at my brother's wedding Mima attended in finery while my sister's toy polar bear had a top hat and bow tie. (And people wonder where I get my nonsense from....)

Anyhow, since then the Judicial Helpmeet and I have never referred to people we like as Spring Chickens, they're Spring Ducklings, as ageless as Mima.

 

[M. Robert Gibson]

Well done @Victoria Silverwolf , another classic

Thanks for the unexpected vote @BigJ
and thanks for the mention @johnnyjet

 

[Cat's Cradle]

That's the best story I'll hear today, TJ! My wife and I have a variety of stuffed animals scattered around the house. And nonsense makes perfect sense to me.

 

[Hugh]

Excellent story @Victoria Silverwolf !

 

[Luiglin]

Congrats @Victoria Silverwolf .

Thanks for the mentions folks.

I started out with a typical legend tale about a mountain spring and a nature spirit. However, the lure of adding in as many variations of 'spring' was just too hard to resist. Also, the first iteration bored me, let alone any else.

So, I went with something different on the genre and I suppose failing in doing so. It was more fun to write though.

I have an elven bard NPC in and old roleplay game I used to run. He had so high a charisma that he could come out with any crap and everyone still loved him. As the nonsense esoteric verse shows.

There in came my other mistake. I'm not sure how universal the moniker 'absolute legend' is. In the UK, it is used to highlight anyone who is above and beyond everyone else. They don't have to be famous, just the best in their circle. A true legend in the sense of the word.

I had 6 'spring' variations in mine.

1. Water source
2. Burst forth
3. Name of a flock of teal (breed of duck)
4. The season
5. Leap up
6. A type of nautical line (don't ask me the details, I'm about as nautical as a brick)

I could possibly claim 7, the title is elven for Spring Poem

 

[Elckerlyc]

As mentioned earlier, I couldn't think of any (legendary) story that would make Eöstre proud to be goddess of Spring. So, I went for a as wide as possible application of the word 'spring'. But even there any inspiration failed to spring forth. Hence a (admittedly) atrocious tale as result:

Small Talk

“Springtime [1. yearly season] is the work of a goddess.”
“What?”
“Surely it must be a divine being that is the spring [2. source] of, the source behind, the spring-tide [3 greater high tide] of new life, the womb from which all budding leaves and blossoms forcibly spring forth [4 germinate/produce] in vibrant, indomitable abundance, the energy as from a released spring [5 coiled, elastic device] that batters people’s winter-dulled senses and brings back a spring [6 energetic/lively walk] into their step!”
“One word springs [7 prominent thought] to mind.”
“What word?”
“Hogwash!”

 

[The Judge]

Wow, two stories each with seven iterations of spring! (I think Luiglin's title counts, even if it is in a foreign language!)

Any advance on seven?

 

[Starbeast]

Congratulations Victoria Silverwolf
@Victoria Silverwolf

Silver Medal @paranoid marvin
Bronze Medal @mosaix
Star Wars Medals for everyone else!

​

My Story: I thought a bedtime story would be nice. I did make a mistake using the word "Legend" instead of "Myth" in the title which would have been better. I thought about changing the title too late. The title should have read, Daddy, Tell Me a Mythical Monster Story. Never-the-less, I'm still happy how it turned out.