Discussion Thread -- November 2016 75-word writing challenge

Congratulations Hex. I was unable to vote this month because i could not get beyond the shortlist. That shortlist consisted of aroubd 80% of the stories and as many made it over by a hares breath, maybe rather than a hairs breadth it would have been awfull to place a vote effectivley at random.
 
Congrats Hex... nice story

I'm sure almost everyone noticed that my story was inspired by Revelation's 4 Riders of the Apocalypse. I tried hard for a dystopian setting and I think I got it, but not positive.
 
Congrats Hex... nice story

I'm sure almost everyone noticed that my story was inspired by Revelation's 4 Riders of the Apocalypse. I tried hard for a dystopian setting and I think I got it, but not positive.

I did not but now I do. You did get theme Parson. I wonder if you've ever seen red dwarfs take on that story?
 
I did not but now I do. You did get theme Parson. I wonder if you've ever seen red dwarfs take on that story?

I've never even seen one episode of "Red Dwarf." I don't much like anything that is basically a send up, and the few little pieces of it I've seen is just one send up after another.
 
Way way way off.

I mean at least Mr Listers guitar Survived the crash!!!

I do wonder though, where is my goodnight kiss and do I want it?
 
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I'm not positive I hit the genre for this month's challenge. I wasn't sure if the "law men" taking everything would constitute a dystopian atmosphere.
 
I would say it's close enough. Dystopian is a pretty wide term but i would say a military police state, would be very dystopian.

The thought police 1984 or the Fireman Farenheit come to mind.

You could always check with the ministry of truth of course.

WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH
 
Indeed I had nothing for this one and put up some relative satire but you all wrote some wonderful dystopian 75 worders. I think now re reading If I was held at gunpoint I would have voted bowler1 because I like a dystopia to make me feel that it is not.

If that makes sense. We should be under the impression it's Utopian
 
Apologies for not voting. I was honestly overwhelmed by the amount and the quality. Congrats, Hex!

I'm going to share the origin of my story since it was kind of a pure moment for me.

It was post election. Needless to say, I did not vote for the winner. I was in a stage of mourning for what I thought my country was, and lamenting what it had revealed itself to be.

My wife said she only gives it a 5% chance of dystopia, so this was on my mind.

So, I had the privilege of playing on an Americana concert, the finale was Copeland's Lincoln Portrait. Powerful piece.

I got the idea of music being a healing agent, like the Leonard Bernstein quote that I lifted the title from, where he is talking about our response to violence (this case being the assassination of JFK) and honoring the spirit with each note.

Probably more than a 75 word concept, but I was thinking about my daughters growing up in a distopia and how I would miss real and high level music making. Music is perhaps a map of the soul.

No one voted for it, but that didn't bother me this time. It was pure and good and it was therapy to write.
 
No one voted for it, but that didn't bother me this time. It was pure and good and it was therapy to write.

It was excellent IMO. Whilst it didn't have quite the raw emotion that Coast's 'Lost' did (which is why that one got my vote), it conjured up a world rich with magic and mystery and a tangible sense of melancholy - hints of a struggle against hopeless odds that was bewitching. That it came out of your own dismay at the world is impressive. Kudos.
 
I think now re reading If I was held at gunpoint I would have voted bowler1

Generally speaking I'm your man for making a point with a RAY GUN, but not for the 75 words competition. Judge is very strict and she does worry me. Chrispy could easily smite me, so I try and placate this deity where possible (he is against human sacrifice, just as well for you lot, or you'd be it!), so no vote rigging allowed. TDZ is frothing at the mouth at the mention of me using my innocent RAY GUNs and that's before Brian or Pixie or any of the other MODs turn up. It's a tough site Ajid, where even undertones of menace can't be used to rig writing competitions.

But I tell you what (as Bowler1 points a RAY GUN at Ajid), I'll have your wallet while I'm here.
 
*SUPER SPINNY LIKY HUGS* a vote!?!
Beasty your the best!!

OK, so I promised to say more about the map elements in my story after voting...

Congratulations Hex! Too well written, I couldn't vote for it because I know too many moms who would endanger their kids by hiding their ticket to the future under their bed. Vast expansive world that ran off with my imagination into an epic of struggle that never guarantees success or even survival.
Clearly a deserved win.

But back to my not so mapped out dystopia.
I was sitting in the election office counting ballots, random songs sticking in my head, and "Winter Wonderland" starts playing but with off lyrics
"In the meadow we can build a snowman,
And pretend that he is parson Brown.
He'll say 'are you married?'
We'll say 'go man!' then 'you can do the job when your in town'"

I giggled and tried to imagine our @Parson as a snowman agreeing to marrying people in a snowy dystopia.
Next part
"Later on, we'll perspire,
As we scheme, by the fire.
Then face unafraid, the plans that we made,
Walkin' in dystopian underworld"

Sealed it! I had to write a parody.

But I still didn't know how to write a story about a map.

**hours of tedious mind numbing work later**
Still nothing, but the tune keeps dancing around and the world it's spinning gets darker and dirtier.

On a whim on a break I scribble it down, pretty much as posted, on a recipe for cookies one of my coworkers brought in (with the cookies we'd been enjoying the last two days)

In truth the map elements are just the landscape mentions. "Over the river and through the woods (to grandmother's house we go, the horse knows the way to carry the sleigh thru the white and drifting snow)" but now the woods are full of wolves... giant white dire wolves with venomous fangs and demonic eyes...
So I put in "howls of wolves make us shiver"
Later reduced to "howling wolves induce shivers" because word count.

Anarchy leads to war creates dystopia, "from the rubble we can build a shelter" and humanity's favorite game "then pretend that we are all OK"

What would be the least OK, and rhyme? nuclear decay, dissolving.

I gotta call this place something, it's not a wonderland anymore. Apocalyptic World is descriptive and the right number of syllables.


Needs more map...
But I loved it, so I checked my "is this one word or two" found I was within word count and in a fit of "I'll never have time to write something else this month and I love this despite its obvious defects" I posted.


So again, super special thank you to all my mentioners!
And a fistbump to @Starbeast for the vote!
 

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