DISCUSSION -- June 2015 75-word Writing Challenge

[Bowler1]

Mentions as follows - THE MIGHTY CHRISPY, Luiglin, Will Wallace, Glen, Starbeast, Victoria, Parson, Bob Senior and Michael Coorlim (welcome to Chrons).

The vote runners were Mosaix, Springs, Juliana and Culwich.

The final cut went to Springs for a second instalment that for me, was better than the first.

No clear front runner at all yet and only a scattering of votes. Where is everybody? Am I missing a party?

 

[Warren_Paul]

Was wondering that myself. At this rate we will have 5 or more people tied for the win.

 

[chrispenycate]

Mighty? Um, are you sure you're not thinking of somebody else? I know perfectly well poetical entries do not have the same potential readership as prose, but who's supposed to be challenged, the reader or me

So my clipped and pruned short list finished up (after lots of deserving stories were given blindfolds and offered cigarettes before being lined up against the wall) with :- hopewrites, Jo Zebedee, Michael Coorlim, Parson and TitaniumTi. I finally went for Jo, but a niggling little feeling that somehow writing the second half of a hundred and fifty word story was against the spirit of the squeeze moved me to hope for better (or worse)

 

[Remedy]

My dirty dozen:

telford - Gave me shivers, excellent last line.
chrispenycate - Vibrant and gritty in equal parts.
**Kerrybuchanan** - Absolutely loved Bittersweet from the first read. Well paced and whole. Fantastic twist. Vote
Tim James - We arrive and depart up'n'down. We go forwards and backwards, all in the shape of a spaceship? Genius.
Jo Zebedee - Wonderful continuation of voice and atmosphere.
Michael Coorlim - Clever Sci-fi-whimsy at its finest.
johnnyjet - Suspenseful tragedy well painted.
Juliana - Much story with few words. Focused description.
holland - Gripping concept and execution.
marmalade - Eerie and clinical in all the right ways.
AJB - A masterful cliff-hanger. Thought-provoking.
TheDustyZebra - Misdirection leading to a satisfying belly-laugh.

 

[Venusian Broon]

okay-dokey,

This took me two days to go through - so much variation and inventiveness it seems a shame to even try and order them. However here's my attempt.

• Special 'I-see-what-you-did-there' award to Robert Mackay (although I'm pretty sure I've never seen a Beckett play, I think I got the correct reference)
• Special 'My sister got that album when it came out, whoops showing my age there' award to Cascade.

The following people made it difficult to make my short list and so I'm going to name them: Cat's Cradle, Glen, Hopewrites, Tim James, Cascade, johnnyjet, Marmalade, Mr Orange, Bob Senior, TheDustyZebra, Robert Mackay.

The short list was then whittled down to - Jo, Juliana, Harebrain, Parson, but my vote goes for the Stewie-esque/Family guy shenanigans of Michael Coorlim's Re-Arrival.

 

[Bowler1]

Mighty? Um, are you sure you're not thinking of somebody else?

You are the MIGHTY CHRISPY, dragon king, grammar hammer (it rhythms) and one of the god Mods - I don't think I'm mistaken.

 

[Droflet]

Another mention, wow. Thanks Remedy.

 

[Luiglin]

As often can be seen in my writing I have a peculiar sense of humour tempered from many sources whilst I was an impressionable lad. From Rowan and Martin's Laugh In, Monty Python, the Goodies, The Young Ones, Red Dwarf, Father Ted, IT Crowd to more recent Big Bang Theory. Yet there is one series that I can watch time and time again. So to "stop messing about" my vote went to Glen.

 

[holland]

God’s Will - telford
Bittersweet - Kerrybuchanan *
Re-arrival - Michael Coorlim
Two for the price of one - marmalade
Guaranteed To Arrive On Time - Bob Senior
We've Got Mail... - mosaix

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Oops. Didn't think of it that way, @chrispenycate. All shenanigans were inadvertent....

Ty Bowler and DG for the votes.

 

[Kerrybuchanan]

Thank you, Remedy and Holland, for the votes and thank you for all the mentions too. One vote is incredible, but this might be the first time I've managed more than that!

 

[Juliana]

All shenanigans were inadvertent....

We need 'shenanigans' to be a challenge theme. I could really get my teeth into some shenanigans.

 

[holland]

I just realized I have a vote, thanks Germinad

 

[farntfar]

There once was a girl, we will call her Springs agin
She wrote a tale with the same folks in agin
Chrispy complained it was shenaninagin
Pour old writer Springs agin. Begin agin!

 

[Parson]

I finally went for Jo, but a niggling little feeling that somehow writing the second half of a hundred and fifty word story was against the spirit of the squeeze moved me to hope for better (or worse)

To be completely honest it did niggle at me a bit too. In the end I decided that it probably didn't matter.

Oops. Didn't think of it that way, @chrispenycate. All shenanigans were inadvertent....

I was sure you didn't or I would have called it to your attention. I did wonder a bit if the story is more effective because a person could know a bit of the background. But that amounted to the same thing as writing a story in the Star Wars, Dr. Who, or (whatever) style where the readers could be counted on to be knowing some of the background there too. Even my own story builds on the idea that you have some idea who Shakespeare was.

 

[johnnyjet]

My Long List: telford, chrispenycate, Venusian Broon, willwallace, Kerrybuchanan, Glen, alchemist, Starbeast, Victoria Silverwolf, Jo Zebedee, Cascade, Michael Coorlim, Karn, Vaz, Juliana, ratsy, marmalade, StilLearning, Xenosia, Phyrebrat, Bob Senior, crystal haven, mosaix, Parson

My Short List:
Kerrybuchanan - Bittersweet
alchemist - Bang
Victoria Silverwolf - The Ambassadors
Jo Zebedee - I'll Wait Very Hard
Michael Coorlim - Re-arrival
Karn - A Late Arrival
marmalade - Two for the Price of One
Phyrebrat - Blessed Matricide

And, in a tight race, my Favorite:
Phyrebrat - Blessed Matricide

And thanks for the listings, Victoria, Remedy & Venusian!

 

[Jo Zebedee]

To be completely honest it did niggle at me a bit too. In the end I decided that it probably didn't matter.
I was sure you didn't or I would have called it to your attention. I did wonder a bit if the story is more effective because a person could know a bit of the background. But that amounted to the same thing as writing a story in the Star Wars, Dr. Who, or (whatever) style where the readers could be counted on to be knowing some of the background there too. Even my own story builds on the idea that you have some idea who Shakespeare was.

I was thinking of them as two standalone stories in the same world, rather than linked ie that you didn't need to have read one to understand the other...

Um, mods, if it's a breach, feel free to disallow the entry. I will still talk to everyone next month.

 

[Juliana]

I was thinking of them as two standalone stories in the same world, rather than linked ie that you didn't need to have read one to understand the other...

Um, mods, if it's a breach, feel free to disallow the entry. I will still talk to everyone next month.

I don't see any breaching...
That would be a slippery slope, anyway, as then one would have to consider Luiglin's fabulous Dark Lord bits as part of a longer work. Or any meta entry that mentions earlier entries or Chrons in-jokes, or, or, or... You get my point!

 

[Zoe Mackay]

Or any story that might, or might not, have been inspired by major entries into the theatrical canon

 

[Serendipity]

Lots of good entries, but in the end my vote went to johnnyjet.

Runners up were Kerrybuchanan and Karn Maeshalanadae...

These are the ones that really made a big impact on my sensitivities!!!