Discussion thread -- August 2016 75-word Writing Challenge

Congrats to @StilLearning. A charming little story that richly deserved the votes it received.

My entry was heavily inspired by the only New Weird book I've read, China Mieville's Iron Council. It's set in an industrial revolution-era world and features a worker's uprising which got my mind whirring. Trying to marry that imagery - brick-built terraces, belching smoke stacks, coal and iron - with 'benevolent' was tricky and for a while I wondered about writing about something akin to a miner's benevolent fund. Eventually I stumbled across the clay golems and the Mould Breakers, which had an air of the loom-smashing Luddites about it which I liked, and fixated on the idea of a dictator who considered themselves benevolent but was in fact anything but.

I'm intrigued to know how much of this came across in such a short word count. I'd hoped with the addition of the title it was clear enough, but you never know.
 
I didn't get all the belching smoke-stacks imagery, I have to confess, but I got the golems and the loom-breakers vibe, plus the non-benevolent dictator, so that certainly came across, and the title fitted as being from his POV, so it worked for me!
 
Congrats @StilLearning and thanks to @Calliopenjo for the vote and others for the mentions.

I had two ideas this month both around a central character called Mr Benevolent. The first was a tale of a minor superhero with mediocre powers who rescued cats from trees and helped old ladies across the road. He dreamed of having his own minor nemesis like Doctor Ring-n-run or the Trash Tipper. In the end I couldn’t fit into a 75 and it didn't really match the genre.

So I turned to the darker side and the Mr Benevolent creature who feeds on your pain and anguish. A parasitic urban monster that everyone loves because they are too short sighted to see the truth. I was trying for a X-files / Twilight Zone vibe.
 
Shyrka said:
My entry was heavily inspired by the only New Weird book I've read, China Mieville's Iron Council.
Click to expand...
Mine piggy-backed on the first new weird book I ever read -- Miéville's Perdido Street Station -- which, unlike Iron Council, is set entirely within New Crobuzon (on the world of Bas-Lag). And like you, I found it difficult to find much benevolent in that er... Scar on the landscape city, hence the idea of a benevolent fund. (I chose Griss Mill as it is, according to New Crobuzon's wiki article, "A poor and industrial area characterized by industrial pollution, narrow streets, and the needy". Of course, most of New Crobuzon's districts are no strangers to poverty.)

After that, and not necessarily only because the story leading to the punch line wasn't that substantial, I indulged in a little punning (what, me?) and/or name dropping:
  • the band's name, Dancing Shoe Mountains, which I hoped might have made at least some of you think of a mountain of shoes (under the influence of Thaumaturgy**, with a flavour of the Construct Council) dancing;
  • Canker (the name of a tribute band) and the Tar (written as Ta! in the story) are tributaries (of the Gross Tar);
  • the Slake in Emerson Slake and [Palmer] hints at the Slake Moths;
  • as does the band's abbreviated name***;
  • the use of the word, remade****, to describe a reinvention of the band.


** - aka Magic.

*** -
ESP; Slake Moths eat minds.

**** - Remade.
 
Shyrka said:
Congrats to @StilLearning. A charming little story that richly deserved the votes it received.

My entry was heavily inspired by the only New Weird book I've read, China Mieville's Iron Council. It's set in an industrial revolution-era world and features a worker's uprising which got my mind whirring. Trying to marry that imagery - brick-built terraces, belching smoke stacks, coal and iron - with 'benevolent' was tricky and for a while I wondered about writing about something akin to a miner's benevolent fund. Eventually I stumbled across the clay golems and the Mould Breakers, which had an air of the loom-smashing Luddites about it which I liked, and fixated on the idea of a dictator who considered themselves benevolent but was in fact anything but.

I'm intrigued to know how much of this came across in such a short word count. I'd hoped with the addition of the title it was clear enough, but you never know.
Click to expand...

That's my favorite Mieville book. You should read the rest of the Bas Lag series - Perdido Street Station and The Scar. Ok, The Scar is optional - it's the weakest of the three, imho, but Perdido is a damned masterpiece. Also read ...everything else he's written, really.
 
Ursa major said:
Mine piggy-backed on the first new weird book I ever read -- Miéville's Perdido Street Station -- which, unlike Iron Council, is set entirely within New Crobuzon (on the world of Bas-Lag). And like you, I found it difficult to find much benevolent in that er... Scar on the landscape city, hence the idea of a benevolent fund. (I chose Griss Mill as it is, according to New Crobuzon's wiki article, "A poor and industrial area characterized by industrial pollution, narrow streets, and the needy". Of course, most of New Crobuzon's districts are no strangers to poverty.)

After that, and not necessarily only because the story leading to the punch line wasn't that substantial, I indulged in a little punning (what, me?) and/or name dropping:
  • the band's name, Dancing Shoe Mountains, which I hoped might have made at least some of you think of a mountain of shoes (under the influence of Thaumaturgy**, with a flavour of the Construct Council) dancing;
  • Canker (the name of a tribute band) and the Tar (written as Ta! in the story) are tributaries (of the Gross Tar);
  • the Slake in Emerson Slake and [Palmer] hints at the Slake Moths;
  • as does the band's abbreviated name***;
  • the use of the word, remade****, to describe a reinvention of the band.


** - aka Magic.

*** -
ESP; Slake Moths eat minds.

**** - Remade.
Click to expand...

Yes, and you did all of this brilliantly. Many gold stars and a standing ovation and a trophy and some cookies and maybe a pony.
 
I did what I often do and started taking apart words. Benevolent - bene volent - volant - flying. Flying something doing nice things.
 
Perhaps my flaw was not finding what other people defined this genre by. I have red Mieville extensively and thought my story fit right in. My wife wouldn't read it. She's too freaked out by things like parasitic mind controlling molds to even entertain the thought exercise.

Funny how I got so dark on what should have been a lighthearted subject. Alas, the thought took hold of me, and I was helpless to it. I'll take my vote and scattering of mentions and call it good. I'm just warning you, you never know when the mold will strike you. I mean muse. I meant to say muse.
 
To almost no one's surprise. I made the most of the benevolent side of things and and went for a benevolent spirit. I started with the idea of a "ghost in the machine" where the ghost would help some people making them brilliant programmers, or whatever, and not help others causing all kinds of consternation.

In the end my benevolent ghost helped by being a FTL warning system. I thought the idea of ghosts traveling FTL, was brilliant, obviously a thought not shared with many others. :oops:
 
Behind the Story

I had no idea what to do for New Weird. The description I got was part fantasy, part sci-fi, and part horror. I spent days looking around for inspiration. Until I came across The Long Black Train by Josh Turner. So. . . Long Black Train + Benevolent spirit = story. It was as close as I could get. I laughed when I put it up but I went with it. The story descriptions sounded a lot better than my story did.

I do these for fun and it was just that. Fun. I learned about a new genre in the process. :D
 
Calliopenjo said:
The Long Black Train by Josh Turner.
Click to expand...

Great song! My wife sings along with it every time we hear it. I don't want to think that it's his rumbling bass voice that might be peaking her interest. :rolleyes:
 
Parson said:
To almost no one's surprise. I made the most of the benevolent side of things and and went for a benevolent spirit. I started with the idea of a "ghost in the machine" where the ghost would help some people making them brilliant programmers, or whatever, and not help others causing all kinds of consternation.

In the end my benevolent ghost helped by being a FTL warning system. I thought the idea of ghosts traveling FTL, was brilliant, obviously a thought not shared with many others. :oops:
Click to expand...

Be sure you read our Explorations anthology when it comes out -- you may be pleasantly surprised. :D
 
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