Writing Challenge Discussion -- FEBRUARY 2011

[Heck Tate]

PC, I've been writing and posting poetry in various places online all night, so know that I am being completely sincere when I saw that you have just made my day (night)!

 

[fitzchivalry]

Hi everyone

Looks like a really busy month. I have been out the country since, just before the last months competition ended. So a late congratulations to Digs on winning, very good story. Just sifting through this months stories and making a short list, as well as writing a few stories to fine tune an entry myself. Looks to be a very tough one this month, which can only be a good thing.

 

[The Judge]

Well, I've finally posted mine, so that's another reasonably solid** contender out of the way. More good ones pouring in, like icy waters over the Titanic.



**And I'm not solid, thank you very much. Just well-covered.

 

[TheEndIsNigh]

Doing a bit of bird yourself J?

 

[HareBrain]

Excellent entries from The Judge and J-Wo. *Sigh*. Whereas I missed January's vote through inattention, I might just pull the plug on my modem for the last week of this month to avoid going insane trying to choose a winner from a shortlist of about twenty.

 

[Parson]

Judge: Excellent! It has a lyrical and poignant feel. It strikes at the heart of so many who long to be free but are not, but would add "not yet."

J-Wo: Scary idea. It sounds like the opening for a Twilight Zone episode.

 

[nixie]

Glares at HB,twenty mines currently standing at fourty

 

[HareBrain]

Glares at HB,twenty mines currently standing at fourty

Ah, but to cut it down a bit, I've decided to only include people whose join-dates fall into one of six randomly chosen months.

 

[The Judge]

No bird** for me, TEiN, but my justice is swift. (Hard to swallow, I know.)

And thanks, HareBrain and Parson. Typically, after holding off on posting for 24 hours to allow for further ideas/improvements, a better penultimate line came to me this afternoon. *hits head against wall*



** cockney rhyming slang for those outside the UK -- bird is short for bird-lime = time, = a prison sentence

 

[sloweye]

Anyone missed Lenny's thread?... we are put to shame

http://www.sffchronicles.co.uk/forum/530569-31-words-from-a-master.html

 

[Precise Calibre]

I find that his writing lacks a certain impact when he's more to the point, but yes, he does what most of us do in 75 words with half as many.

 

[Ursa major]

We already have 41 entries, which despite the earlier worries isn't a bad total, given that it's still only the 14th.

 

[J Riff]

Interesting. A 'bird' inside the prison system, has a very different meaning indeed.
Too much good stories, can't pick a few to laud at this point.

 

[HareBrain]

Hurrah! We got 42, now we can all relax. And a good piece from a newbie called Pyan (though judging from his post count he must have been around quite a bit elsewhere on the forums).

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I was so glad to see pyan post a story. He is such a splendid poet, I knew he would give us something lovely.

 

[TheEndIsNigh]

Hurrah! We got 42, now we can all relax. And a good piece from a newbie called Pyan (though judging from his post count he must have been around quite a bit elsewhere on the forums).

He may be one of those WOW fans. Haven't seen much of his stuff about so he must be pretty keen to get that kind post count. Teresa seems to know him though.

 

[Moonbat]

2 more great entries, and one refering to a Bob Dylan song, that's almost certain to get my vote. And Pyan, judging from his avatar is one of the ancient beings that has dwelt within the earth since before the time of man.

'Remember me to one who lives there'

 

[The Judge]

Welcome to the Challenge, pyan. A lovely piece. And I got the lead character in HJ's story even before reading Moonbat's post, so I'm feeling quite chuffed! (Didn't get the song, needless to say...)

 

[Perpetual Man]

There has been a few more entries since last I commented so I thought it was well past time I caught up with my comments. As I keep reiterating the standard of entries at the moment is simply astounding and is going to make making a choice incredibly hard.

That being said making these little notes does seem to help, so I might be able to put together a short list fairly quickly, picking from that though...

Moonbat - This was absolutely superb, I loved it from the moment I read with it. Touching, with so much depth it you could drown

Hoopy Frood - Another scorcher from Hoopy, a slow (well for 75 words) building end, not exactly a horror, but grimly horrific

Karn - Really funny, I laughed out loud. And probably horribly accurate.
Heck Tate - Another magnificent entry, the old saying 'And the band played on' immediately sprang to mind. I don't know if it meant to be about the sinking of the Titanic, but that's what I thought of.

The Judge - This was another astounding entry, a lovely little piece, with so many undercurrents running though it, just one that jumped out the feeling that no matter how big events are for an individual the world goes on.

J-WO - Grim, in a good way. Giving the sound of a gun over to a song is something different, but a genius idea.

Phyrebrat - The idea of whalesong never crossed my mind, but it is a good one, and combining it with the tale of Jonah is equally great. Another excellent entry.

fitzchivalry - One that had twists and turns to it, but the ending makes the rest so right, that it just adds to the beauty of the piece.

Pyan - Another entry that is so made by the last line, and another excellent, unique idea. something that can be taken in more than one way, exceptional.

Hilarious Joke - I knew who it was, the moment I read the piece (coupled with the title) although I could not say which (if any) song. All the same a great piece.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Sorry for the double post, but I wanted to separate this from the previous one.

I heard the following the other day and thought it almost fit perfectly with this months theme, although where I heard it really surprised me (I'm not going to say where yet). I just wondered what everyone else thought (It's 77 words long so a little too long really, and not really a short story, but almost poetical in places)

If we look out at the night sky we can see millions of stars. The stars we can't see we can imagine, we can imagine them any colour and shape we like. This star for instance, this serene orb sailing forever through the silence of the sky. Does it ring with the music of the spheres or is it always silent? Or is it silent because just now the inhabitants are inside, safely asleep in their beds?