Discussion Thread -- FEBRUARY 2017 -- 75 Word Writing Challenge

[Ursa major]

And the tie-breaker poll is up. It will be open until 23:59 on March the 2nd 2017:

Tiebreaker Poll -- February 2017 Writing Challenge

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[Parson]

My tie breaker vote goes for @The Judge .... I loved her story it was very close the first time around. But @Victoria Silverwolf .... had a Cracker Jack as well and was a near contender. And so far the vote is very, very, close.

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My thanks for all the last short listings!

@Phyrebrat, @Jo Zebedee, @Ashleyne. B. Watts

And huge thanks for the contender status!

@The Judge

 

[Calliopenjo]

Thank you for reading my story. I do appreciate it.

I have to admit, I had no idea how to write a fable. I looked it up and asked other writer buds how to do it. Well, I came up with what I could. Not an easy thing to do in 75 words, but that's OK. I think I needed a challenge at that point. If nothing else, I learned something new.

I voted for Starbeast because it gave me a good laugh. With about as many things going on at that time, it was good.

I cast my final vote and I wish good luck to both.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

And the list I hadn't made yet that almost got me in trouble:

Victoria -- The Woman and the Moon
Shyrka -- The Ivy and the Mushroom
Parson -- A Growth in Intelligence
Cul -- Cat and Dog
*DG Jones -- Seek, and Ye Shall Find*
Jo -- The Tale of Aster and Moss
TJ -- No More Mr. Nice Shrew
Stormfeather -- The Greatest Ash

And for the tiebreaker, I voted for Victoria, who was on my shorter list the first time (actually, in second place by a squeak).

 

[Cat's Cradle]

Tiebreaker, cool! Okay, these were my two favorites, and since I voted late yesterday, I think my vote must stay the same as it was then. So by the fabled thinnest of hairs, I voted for Victoria. Good luck The Judge and Victoria!

Also, thanks so much for putting my story in your final three, TJ! I'm very pleased.

(One good thing with the tiebraker - I won't be able to write my story at 3am on the first of the month, and post it shortly thereafter.)

 

[Parson]

@TheDustyZebra .... Hey, an after vote short list. What a nice surprise! Thanks

 

[TheDustyZebra]

(One good thing with the tiebraker - I won't be able to write my story at 3am on the first of the month, and post it shortly thereafter.)

Well, you could write one, but posting it would be difficult. On the other hand, that's why they call this thing a challenge, right? First you have to guess the theme and genre correctly, and then you have to post in a nonexistent thread. May the odds be ever in your favor.

 

[LittleStar]

Ooh a tie breaker. I don't know if I've been involved in any of them... maybe one?

My vote has to go to Vitoria, it was a great tale i thought, and beautifully written as always. Plus, she ran Shyrka close for my vote anyway.
Best of luck both

EDIT: and let's hope there're more votes to cone, cause I just tied it up again

 

[Glen]

Unless it can be proven @Victoria Silverwolf and @The Judge had unlawful assistance from foreign powers in their election success, and the tastes and good judgement of the Chrons can be significantly changed, it seems unlikely that I will win this month’s challenge. Time then to tell more about my story.

Two trilogies in two months is a record for me, if not for the site, and I’m on a hat-trick.

Last month I set myself a personal challenge to complete a third trilogy in a three month stretch of 75 worders. I felt sure there were enough Jenkins and Smythe stories to allow me to do this, but I found that before the destabilising engine series, there were only three, largely disparate stories: introduced in Sep 2012 as velociraptors in an alternate reality, hunting aliens in historical fiction in Aug 2015, and in Dec of the same year seeing a terrible future in the shape of reality TV.

I had to turn to Captain Fantastic. In Feb 12 his extraordinary powers were introduced along with the genesis of his relationship with the princess. In April of that year the relationship took a turn for the worse (if that was possible), and in Jan 13 the relationship took a darker turn in a deeply disturbing episode.

The second series began in May 13 with a glimpse into the origin of CF, and in Jan 14 the old relationship problems re-occurred. Now, in the final episode of the second series has the princess finally fallen for CF, or are they doomed...?

Three trilogies completed in a three month stretch:

• December - Pub with no Beer outback shenanigans #PwnB
• January - Jenkins and Smythe’s continuum destabilising engine saga #J&S
• February - second Captain Fantastic trilogy #CF

Hat-trick.

Boom!

 

[Mr Orange]

hmmm.... is it the first already? i was sure i had another day to vote. oh wait i do! thanks everyone for giving TJ and Victoria equal votes so i get a chance to vote this month. mine went to Victoria for a very well written story.

and thank you to all for the mentions.

 

[Hugh]

Really chuffed to get a vote before the deadline. Many many thanks @Jo Zebedee.

And many thanks also @Victoria Silverwolf and @johnnyjet for the listings.

And Congratulations to Victoria Silverwolf and the Judge!

 

[Dan Jones]

A tiebreaker! I will give both a re-read later today, but I feel rather gratified to have shortlisted both winners but voted for neither, so I can approach the breaker without prejudice.

Meanwhile, huge, greybearded, treestumped, life-lived thanks to TDZ, Mosaix, and Tommy Brauer for the votes, giving me my best month for quite some time. Proper thanks to come after the breaker.

 

[Kerrybuchanan]

Much as I loved Victoria's, my vote went to TJ for the second time. I just couldn't resist that shrew.

Many thanks to those who mentioned/shortlisted my story.

 

[Luiglin]

Went for the @The Judge once more.

Thanks for the mentions folks and the virtual vote @Vaz, glad it raised a smile (someone must have hacked the poll as it didn't appear )

By the way all, Bushy Tailed Annihilation's first single, The Doom Badgers Made Me Do It Baby, is out this Friday from all disreputable stores.

EDIT: Mouse is doing fine and is being discharged today, Hedgehog's spines having not penetrated too deep. Hedgehog has since taken up parkour.

 

[Culhwch]

Many thanks for everyone who listed or mentioned my story, and special thanks for those who sent a vote my way - Droflet, HazelRah, Cathbad, and Peter V. I spent most of the month with no idea what to write and thinking this was the end of the line for me in the seventy-five, so to get such a good response is fantastic!

Victoria was second to Shyrka first time around for me, so an easy vote in the tie breaker!

 

[The Judge]

Goodness, I didn't expect this. Usually I don't look at the poll until I'm doing my voting, but this time I did keeping peeping in over the last few days, and when Victoria overtook me, I thought that was the end of it, then I drew level, then she overtook me again, and I thought it was definitely all over. So mega nicely-plump and very un-shrewish thanks to Ursa for the last minute vote! Thanks, too, to Jo and TDZ for the further mentions!

Thanks all who've voted for me so far in the tie-break. All very welcome and appreciated, but I'm resigned to my usual tie-break fate...

Yikes! Didn't The Judge and I go through this back in December 2014?

Ah yes, indeed. One of my (many) losses on the tie-break.

*goes searching for the taffeta bridesmaid dress once again, but in primrose yellow for a change*

 

[Parson]

@The Judge .... Shouldn't there be some rule that when the same two people tie the other person has to win?

 

[Shyrka]

Wow, I totally missed the deadline for this month's vote - I'm still trying to finish the last few reviews! Silly, short months! Anyway, thankfully I got a second chance with the tiebreaker, and plumped for The Judge because writing fable is hard enough but writing a rhyming one with an amusing play on words finale... Hat tip to you, Ma'am.

Thank you to everyone who mentioned or voted for mine. I really enjoyed this month's theme and the entry actually came to mind quite easily (sorry!) - there are a bunch of trees that I walk past every day that are covered in ivy and the rest just kinda fell out of my childhood memories of Aesop et al.

 

[Shyrka]

Hope iz Purrfect, @Ursa major – A charming insight into the life of a young, internet-obsessed feline that proves that hope, any obstacle can be over come.

No More Mr Nice Shrew, @The Judge – It’s a classic case of ‘be careful what you wish for’ in this artful rhyme: the littlest animal in the forest realises, too late, the benefits of being small. The bigger they are…

The Giant’s Tale, @nixie – A twist on the classic fairy tale, this story flips the perspective to show how the best of intentions can be misinterpreted and how generosity may be taken advantage of by the unscrupulous.

Always Remember, @LittleStar – A sweet and charming insight into the life of a river, from source to the sea, that teaches us the importance of remembering where you come from.

The Arabian Night’s Tale, @Kerrybuchanan – It’s literally a case of 'be careful what you wish for' in this cautionary tale of duplicitous djinn.

The Greatest Ash, @StormFeather – Referencing Norse mythology, this artful and evocative rhyme tells the tale of the great world tree, conjuring rich images of a lasting, immutable strength.

Beloved, @Mad Alice – Rich with archaic language, this story of misbegotten love and regret teeters, literally, on a knife edge, until redemption intervenes at the last.

 

[Ursa major]

As my story has, for reasons I can't comprehend, not made it to the tie-breaker poll, I thought I'd point to the inspiration for the story and the "variant of English" I used.

And when I say point, I mean link to the first picture on this page.