DISCUSSION -- February 2015 75-word Writing Challenge

Stunning myself with the fact that I'm ready to vote, here comes my shortlist:

Honourable Mentions:
Mr Orange
Teresa
Ratsy
Cul
MB
BigJ

Cream of the Crop
Victoria
telford*
WinterLight*
Glen*
Crystal
Haven
TJ*
TDZ

*They all made the photo finish, but in the end it was telford first past the post by a whisker**

**Most likely a rabbit's whisker, the state of which I'd rather not comment on.
 
Thanks for the mention Perp, and thanks for the review (I'd prefer think of it as disturbing ;) )
Also thanks to Cascade for the listing.

So many cool stories here and an interesting genre that allowed quite a bit of interpretation. The theme was sufficiently unique and broad to make this a memorable challenge.
I remember now why I stopped doing shortlists, but I do enjoy seeing my name on yours so I thought I'd go back to it.

Here is my shortlist, my Runners Up and my Vote

Mr Orange – Magic Trick
Ashlyene B watts – devils don't dance
Locksmith - magic lantern
Teresa - A wicked pack
Telford - Two Dollar Special
Mosaix - an unfair cop
martin321 - the carnival's coming to junktown
Phyrebrat - werewolf queen of new orleans

Big J - the legend of Katrina

Dg jones – the angel and the devil
juliana – boto
springs – fat Tuesdays, its flipping fab
remedy – 17:00
johnnyjet – the parade of spirits
phyrebrat – pennys last gleaming

culwhch – masquerade

the judge – grave mistakes at the mardi gras


Crystal Haven - Committee Meeting

 
Ok, here we go, the Final Countdown, and then it's Votin' Time!

@martin321 - The Carnival's Coming To Junktown - Give 'em bread and circuses, that's what they want! It's not entirely clear who's been designated lunch: is it the island's inhabitants or the performers? I'm plumping for the performers, but either way way it's nice and ickily subversive. Carnival Will Eat Itself! And if it doesn't, a whacking great dinosaur will! I like the idea of the baying mob sighing at the hoops and clowns and floats, and then cheering when the bloodsport arrives - deep down, isn't that what being human is all about?

@Azzagorn - A Very Magical Dysfunction - You know, sometimes it's not appreciated just what a feat of biological and spiritual engineering it is to get your spell up. But getting your potency back doesn't have to mean using that little blue pill, you know; it might be all in the mind. Although any magicians out there opting for the pill had better watch out; they're gonna put on one helluva show!

@Culhwch - Masquerade - The lure of this sensual siren poses a neat question at the denouement; is our narrator really convinced he's following his lover? Or is he simply so entranced by her morphing masquerade that he can't help himself? I think it's primal; the thrill of the hunt and the courting game resulting in an opening... does he take it? I reckon he does.

@Darkchrome - Scream, If You Want To Go Faster - Hey hey, the second story in this bundle to mention a T-Rex! Sorry, down to business. The sheer frivolity of the fair allows these two sisters to throw off their day-to-day identities - casting off their fears like clothes - and plunge headlong into the teacup maelstrom. The lingering figure of the gaff boy offers just the merest trace of this tale heading into a darker direction. Standing on the walkway, is he literally along for the ride or watching over the girls, a giff-gaff gargoyle?

@Moonbat - They All Have Floats Round Here - I suppose one could view the carnival float as a kind of 'love-craft'... oh, do behave! I like this, quite a lot. It's all very well having Pierrot and Harlequin miming at each other until the cows come home but if you really want your party to go with a bang, then you can't beat an ancient sea-god with an octopus for a face who's going to chomp down on you all when the carnival's done. Wickedly subversive (again!) and fun for all the family in this one :)

@Perpetual Man - 2005 - Can it really be ten years ago now? I can't help but love giving the bruised and battered city of New Orleans itself the agency to change the lives of its million-fold protagonist Krewes through the one thing it knows how to do; party, and party hard! A seriously postmodern peeling of the layers of Carnival; if Carnival represents death and change and rebirth, then did Katrina represent the death of Carnival, prompting its own rebirth? However far down you drill, the cycles of life continue, perpetual...

@Parson - The Genesis Of An Evil Idea - It's a bit (but only a bit) selfish of us to give Scarface such slim pickings through the Lent period. We give him such a deep pool of opportunity for temptation in the mad blitzkrieg of Mardi Gras and then whip it all away through the proceeding 40 days. They do say that when you're self employed you've gotta prepare a for a bit of feast and famine. But hold on, folks: maybe he wants us to feel sorry for him, so we reach for the vuvuzela one last time, grab that bottle of Bourbon and keep the party going all the way until Easter. All it'd take would be for that CNN special to air... Don't do it, people!

@BigJ - The Legend Of Katrina - now here's an interesting little sea shanty! Whereas Perp's Katrina was the undoubted antagonist and instigator of change, here we see Kat from a fish-eye lens, and it was no bad thing for them. Imagine your delight at swimming along Bourbon Street, floating beads and boas making amoebic shapes in the water; what fun! There's a darkness to this story, too: reimagining the city of N'Orlins, bathed in its own sweat, is anything but fun for those of us who live above the waterline; and there's Daddy Fish's foreboding prediction: will she ever come back? "Yes, son."

@The Judge - Grave Mistake At The Mardi Gras - Oh dear. I've been waiting for a tale with a moral, and here it is; when you're thinking of filling your carnival with transmogrified carnivores, check, double check and triple check that inventory! Covered in oodles and oodles of hot, tasty Schadenfreude, this is a darkly funny farce. Like The Office with were-polecats.

@jastius - Enchantment's End - A riddle wrapped in a silk gown wrapped in an envelope, I think the key to this charming short lies in its title: at the end of all things, we find the fairy tale inverted; not two poor lovers playing at fairy kings and queens, but the Fairy King and Queen playing at paupers! Enigmatic and charming.

@TheDustyZebra - A Bargain At Twice The Price - A back-alley transaction has multiple unintended consequences in this story of doomed and redemptive romance. "Give me just a taste so I want more," sang Edwyn Collins. So it proves to be. Once you get that itch called love, you just gots to scratch it. In the end one life becomes two deaths, but for all the supposed darkness, theirs is a happy ending, neverending, a party immemorial.

@Ursa major - Carne Levare (To Remove Meat) - Poor Geoff. All he wants is to chow down on some partygoers and our Bewitching, Samantha-like narrator goes and leave him and in the nud - and then some - with one of her gnarly spells in this mischievous yarn. Geoff'll need more than one of Azzagorn's little blue pills to fix that.

Phewee!! Some dang good stories in all that lot. Now to get voting :)
 
Thank you for the shortlisting, Kerry, and Perp. A lovely surprise.

And Wow! Votes! Thank you for the vote, moonbat. And I’ve discovered I’ve also got two stealth votes. Thank you, mosaix and J.L Borstlap. I’m thrilled you liked my story enough to vote for it.
 
I rather anti-socially posted my story and disappeared without comment - for which I apologise - then come back to find a Shortlist mention from CC and a very generously worded vote from Cascade. Thank you so much :)
Also rather excellent reviews from Perpetual Man and DG Jones - I love that you take the time to do these, thank you!

I'm hoping to get my reading/voting done tomorrow.
 
Perp: Thanks for the review. You always find a good thing to say about my stories.

D.J. Jones: Thanks for the review. I love it that you carried on the conversation and caught the direction the story was headed. Made my day!
 
I think I'm going to have to break down and make a list for the first time. . .having a rough time choosing.
 
Perp: Thanks for the review. You always find a good thing to say about my stories.

D.J. Jones: Thanks for the review. I love it that you carried on the conversation and caught the direction the story was headed. Made my day!

Haha! It was a fun story, I enjoyed it with great muchness; so pleased you liked the review, I love writing them. Maybe I should submit a review for next month's challenge....?
 
Haha! It was a fun story, I enjoyed it with great muchness; so pleased you liked the review, I love writing them. Maybe I should submit a review for next month's challenge....?
Hm! It would take a rather special theme and style for this to work. But over the years we have seen reports, bills, and IIRC a grocery list.
 
Double Posting is such fun.:whistle:

I found this not only a hard challenge to write but also to judge. I seemed to miss the point in a lot of the stories this time. That fault is undoubtedly mine. But here's my list

Short List:

Michael Colton: "All that Dust" --- A closet full of carnival fairies tickled my funny bone.
Remedy: "1700" --- It took me three reads before it suddenly dawned on me that 1700 wasn't a year but a time!! Then I understood the celebration.
Teresa Edgerton: "A Wicked Pack" --- The "magical" reading, and then the texted break up struck a strangely humorous chord in me.
Culwhch: "Masquerade" --- A weird idea. A mirror disguised? Clever, very clever
The Judge: "Grave Mistakes" --- This was too full of weirdness not to make the cut.

Vote:
Phyrebrat:
"Penny's Last Gleaming" --- this one won with the delightful debut of a delectable chant.
 
Groan. Another impossible task. So here we go again:
Honourable Mentions: Mr Orange - Hex - Remedy - Glen - Phyrebrat - StillLearning - Azzagorn - Perp and Dusty.

Vote had to go to Starbeast. What a feast. Well done to everyone, again this month.

Thank you Telford for the vote. You made my night! :ROFLMAO: Wheeeeeeee!!!

*They all made the photo finish, but in the end it was telford first past the post by a whisker**

**Most likely a rabbit's whisker, the state of which I'd rather not comment on.

LOL. You know something Perpetual Man, I burst out laughing when I read Telford's entry.



MR ORANGE - Nice sound effects and humorous ending.

HEX - Awesome Coca-Cola bashing, and I like that soda.......somethimes, when I'm not thinking about the chemicals in it.

ASHLEYNE. B. WATTS - You make me want to dance.

DDAWSON - Uniquely written.

CASCADE - Excellent spooky vibe.

DG JONES - "We're all moths here". I like that.

LUIGLIN - Interesting dance partners indeed.

HOLLAND - An eerie offering.

JULIANA - Excellent creepiness vibe.

SPRINGS - Delectably delightful.

MICHAEL COLTON - Fantastic pixie tale.

ANNE MARTIN - Nicely written.

VICTORIA SILVERWOLF - I like this strange tale.

CAT'S CRADLE - Marvelous poem.

KERRYBUCHANAN - Excellent spooky vibe.

REMEDY - Festive and cool use of color.

LOCKSMITH - Uniquely written.

WILLWALLACE - Tremendous dialogue, and I chuckled.

TERESA EDGERTON - Awesome use of tarot.

TYWIN - Nice pair, I mean, nice story. I chuckled.

TELFORD - You throttled me with laughter. I voted for you.

JOHNNYJET - Spectacular supernatural.

HIGH EIGHT - Thee, doth please me.

BOWLER1 - You zapped me with a fine tale.

FARNTFAR - Ooooo- Ya got me with a zinger.

SANCHO - Heh heh. Well done zinger.

FISHBOWL HELMET - Dynamite dialogue. Sho'nuff is.

J.L. BORSTLAP - Magically magnificant.

WINTERLIGHT - Nicely written. "A comet's tale of sparkling hair". I like that.

ROBERT MACKAY - Unique and intense entry.

RATSY - Spirited in spookiness.

REIVER33 - Tormentingly terrific.

CHRISPENYCATE - Always wonderfully stylish content.

KARN MAESHALANADAE - Karn!!! I mean, magical merriment.

GLEN - I was impacted by your remarkable poem.

STARBEAST - "Step right up folks, and see the Woman that can turn into a Werewolf. Only two bucks."

CRYSTAL HAVEN - "You'll be strung up in their branches for a week". I like that.

MOSAIX - If you can read my mind, you'll know I like your story.

PHYREBRAT - Excellently eerie.

STILLEARNING - "Death by stupid". That made me laugh.

MARTIN321 - Nom Nom Phe-nomenal.

AZZAGORN - Even though I couldn't operate heavy machinery after taking the blue pill, I still like your story.

CULHWCH - Captivatingly creepy.

DARKCHROME - Screaming good ride.

MOONBAT - Great commentary.

PERPETUAL MAN - Powerful poem that blew me away.

PARSON - Ides of Feb, is fab here. Nice touch with the title.

BIGJ - Pulp comic poetic coolness.

THE JUDGE - Fantastic fearsome furries.

JASTIUS - Stylishly sculpted story.

THEDUSTYZEBRA - Dark and dazzling.

URSA MAJOR - Good to the last bite. A tasty treat.
 
Nice stuff Starbeast! Thanks for the runners up Moonbat. I was torn between lots with Telfod and Crystal Haven's being my favourites. telford got the biggest laugh, but Crystal got my vote for such a lovely, sly, understated,reveal in the last line. :) i could hear the slightly worried tone in the voice...
 
thanks for the honourable mentions, telford and perp, the longlisting kerrybuchanan, and the shortlisting moonbat

off to choose...

righto back again. this month there were plenty of good entries but i found a lot of them lacked the magic element so ruled a few out for that, although i figured anything "otherworldly" was good enough... maybe it's just me.

anyway, my cha-cha-cha'ing conga line of magical missives:

One Last Time -- ddawson
This is Our Day -- Cat's Cradle
Beads -- willwallace
The River King’s Daughter -- WinterLight
untitled -- Glen
Penny’s Last Gleaming -- Phyrebrat
They all have floats round here. -- Moonbat
Grave Mistakes at the Mardi Gras -- The Judge
A Bargain at Twice the Price -- TheDustyZebra

dancing with spectacular high kicks and glittery samba costumes in front of the conga:

Don't fall asleep on the Night of the Living... -- holland -- a suitably surreal offering with a left-field last line i really liked
All That Dust -- Michael Colton -- i really liked the idea behind this and would love a closet full of pixies
The Flame of Love -- Kerrybuchanan -- a bittersweet story of heat and love which i could picture in my mind perfectly
17:00 -- Remedy -- strangely close to the end of my work day, at least in my head, great story and i'm putting in a request to HR
Two Dollar Special -- telford -- umm... yes... well, a hilarious story about a rabbit... extraction... 'nuff said.
Committee meeting -- crystal haven -- treemendous story that got me nervous - mrs O started to sharpen her pencil as i read it and i'm sure the shavings are watching me... . did my door just move??


and finally, sitting on the SFF 75 Word Challenge Float (which looks strangely like a kraken fighting a UFO, in the style of Rudyard Kipling), waving regally to the throngs:

The Pied Piper Plays Old School House -- Bowler1 -- this story had me dancing - which is a first in the challenges. added to the memories it revived and the rhythm, that damn rhythm, it was a shoo in for a vote
 
Some tremendous tales in this month's bundle. Really tricky picking even a long list, but I think I'm ready to vote.

So... long list, short list, *vote*

Masquerade - Cascade
All the Right Moves - Luiglin
Boto - Juliana
The Flame Of Love - KerryBuchanan

A Wicked Pack - Teresa
Meeting Of The Courts - Fishbowl Helmet
The River King's Daughter - Winterlight

A Beltane Celebration - Karn
Penny's Last Gleaming - Phyrebrat
Masquerade - Cul
*2005 - Perp*
The Legend Of Katrina - BigJ

Perp won it by the merest whisker from Phyrebrat for me, for the amount of depth that was packed into those words. Really got me thinking :)
 

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