Discussion -- March 2015 75-word Writing Challenge

Victoria, Thanks for the kind words and the new vocabulary. I had to look up bon mot.
 
I judge a lot of my 75 worders on the last line, and Parsons is one of the best/worst corny lines for me so far this month. Whimper(purr), well done lad. The in the moment inspiration can sometimes be the best. Rabbits last month... And maybe cats this month, who knows.

Cheers Victoria.
 
Bowler1 said:
I judge a lot of my 75 worders on the last line, and Parsons is one of the best/worst corny lines for me so far this month. Whimper(purr), well done lad
Click to expand...

Thanks Bowler1, I'm sure this proves that I'd better not do stand up comedy. A joke from the pulpit is about the best I can do. ---- (Laughter is a sign of a healthy congregation.)
 
Dearie me, I leave this thread for 5 minutes and 9 new stories pop up! What's wrong with you people!? :eek:

Better get reviewing...

@Glen - Running Out Of Time - what a clever concept this is! If you want to know the textbook method of squeezing 9 stories - or 9 iterations of the same story - into 75 words then this is the story for you. The fact that the story manages to throw in a rich setting and conflict between the characters in doing so is almost bewildering. Well done, sir!

@WinterLight - Pluton Thong 2 - Green Girl's Revenge - never mind about Malyra bulging with menace; Captain Lightrider looks like he's bulging with, erm, anticipation, by the end of this story. Comedy gold all round here, from the indignant response of the scentily-monikered fishmen to the knowing nod to a certain show that has borne the brunt of a great many nods and winks this month!
 
Grimward -- Elements of past and future combine to point out one of the many daily frustrations of the present.

kerrybuchanan -- This fast-moving story captures the feeling of grace under pressure, even in embarrassing circumstances.

chrispenycate -- With great good humor, the author pays tribute to the days of the pulps in this affectionate parody.
 
@Anne Martin - Caution: Cyborg In Training - Saal = Hal?? Even if he doesn't, there are enough nods to pop culture in this sarcastic short to raise a few unsettling questions: who is the prisoner and why is the cyborg looking after him? And we didn't know any better, I think it'd be a fair bet that it was the human part of the cyborg that was so eager to get going with the abuse. Quite a dark tale, but thankfully softened by the wry last line.

@alchemist - The Penultimate Countdown - Brilliant use of one of the all time classic sci-fi tropes - the countdown to self-destruct sequence - to give us the tale of two buff but bumbling space corps officers. Laughs galore at the expense of the two handsome halfwits. I for one hope that these characters appear again!

@SleepyDormouse - The Terrible Space Monster - proof that the monstrous is truly in the eye of the beholder. A clever, witty reveal that nevertheless comes at the expense of our craven cosmonaut. Proof that you have to keep a cool head in all situations when you're in space.

@High Eight - Not Funny Any More - A quite Batty riff on one of SF's most haunting and beautiful speeches. But hey, who hasn't died on stage at some point in their career? Comedians are like other life forms in some ways; that masochistic bent to continue living, to drive your battered Vauxhall Astro from nebula to nebula in the hope that someone somewhere is going to give you more life... or at least laugh at one of your nob jokes.

@Ursa major - I, Rowboat - Pun counters at the ready... So far in this challenge we've had aliens, cosmic wars, RAY GUNS, spiders and even psychotic ship computers, but here's the terrifying prospect of all... a ship that fancies itself as a stand-up comedian and isn't afraid to murder its entire crew for the sake of a great gag (and it was a great gag). What worries me is: what the heck does it do to people that don't like its jokes? In the words of That Bloke From Ghostbusters: "I'll take the next one."

@Parson - The End Of The World - Honestly. I mean, honestly. If Thomas Stearnes Eliot were alive to read this... he'd probably actually quite like it, given his fondness for feline friends. And though as I read through it my mind was screaming at me "CAT JOKE INCOMING CAT JOKE INCOMING CAT JOKE INCOMING" I still couldn't help but grin like a loon at the excellent payoff. I doff my cat to thee, sir!

@Grimward - Trystest - Have to feel for Talbert. If there's any scenario in real life where one can legitimately claim to know what it's like to try and rendezvous a shuttle craft with star command while a dogfight rages around you, it's having to navigate the roundabout where the A406 joins the A12 during your driving test. I bet Scotty never passed first time, either.

@Kerrybuchanan - Sparrowhawk Down - Does Captain Solitaire usually fly Solo by any chance? You know, I've got a sneaking suspicion this doesn't just cleverly undercut some of our favourite Space Opera heroes but also takes the opportunity to nod to a very recent news story involving the Captain. Layers upon layers of Chewy goodness!

@chrispenycate - Cover Artist Quickly, While They're Posed - Our randy researcher's getting a bit too hot under the collar in this smart comi-tragedy; is it me or does he make a boob when he goes for the discom-boub-ulator? A lesson to all young space cadets; keep your eyes firmly away from a lady's Event Horizon.

@Serendipity - Moon Jumping - Damn cats again. If they're not simpering us to death they're busy doing spacewalk selfie sketches around a gas giants when there are crims on the loose. Lovely imagery and a prickly love-hate relationship between Zacman and his robot cat makes for a slick entry.
 
DG, this was adapted from a larger story (incomplete/abandoned novel) and then changed almost completely when I edited down to 75. I won't divulge too much at this time.
 
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Many thanks Vicky and DG ;) for your comments - I really was worried that by the time I'd carved an sanded it down to seventy-five words I'd achieved incomprehensibility like last time.
 
D.J. thanks for the review. Did you hear the high pitched screech as the Cat joke was incoming? :D
 
I'm afraid we've had to remove a story again for being over 75 words. In this case, the story had two words joined by an ellipsis with no spaces (so word1...word2) which MS Word will count as a single word.

Just to repeat what we always say ... please don't rely on a program to count your entry for you.
 
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