DISCUSSION THREAD -- APRIL 2021 75-WORD WRITING CHALLENGE

[paranoid marvin]

Whoo-hoo, an early vote - thanks therapist!

My shortlist

Chrispenycate. I struggled to formulate a poem this month, but you got it spot on with your fine entry.
mosaix - neat idea, an interesting take on the theme
Parson - loved this tale of reconciliation

Winner goes to Perpetual Man for a beautifully poetical entry. As well written a story as I can remember reading in the Challenges.

 

[reddishbird]

Cat's Cradle dwells in the city of loss and regret.

Guttersnipe dwells in the city of community and altruism.

reddishbird dwells in the city of mortality and rebirth.

JS Wiig dwells in the city of loyalty and sacrifice.

Astro Pen dwells in the city of cruelty and exploitation.

Thank you, Victoria Silverwolf.

Must be a really good theme @Victoria Silverwolf. There are 5 stories up already!

@Cat's Cradle .... Rome .... reminds us that eternal is not truly applied to anything temporal.

@Guttersnipe .... Do Your Part .... brings to mind the famous quote "Let this cup pass from me. Yet not my will be yours."

@reddishbird .... Transfiguration .... helps us understand that time marches on and the circle of life continues its horrible/wonderful spin.

@JS Wiig .... Civic Duty .... explores the depths of duty to family and duty to place.

@Astro Pen .... Eternal City .... reminds us that evil pleasure might indeed be eternal.

Thank you Parson.

 

[G.T.]

Shortlist

@Marvin
@Perpetual Man
@BT Jones
@Starbeast
@Mr Orange

Vote goes to @Perpetual Man

 

[JS Wiig]

@Cat's Cradle
@Peter V
** @Bren G **
@Parson
@Mr Orange

 

[Parson]

My day is made! Three mentions already.

Sincere thanks to @nixie, @paranoid marvin, and @JS Wiig

 

[Parson]

Short list

An Age Old Problem by @nixie for the most ingenious and outrageous solution to a problem which "bugs" almost everyone.

Heavenly Abode by @paranoid marvin for a story that makes me want sigh because of it's truth and the frustration I feel about that truth.

Walls by @johnnyjet for an apocalyptic story that feels too possible.

Urban diaspora by @chrispenycate for putting a wonderful twist on the idea of an organic city.

PREFERENCIA by @Sinergio for making the idea of "uplift" unnecessary.

Sometimes there is one story that just calls out to me and I just know that's the story that I will vote for. There was no such story this month but after deliberation I voted for @nixie and her ingenious solution to litter.

 

[sule]

Shortlist:
Rome by Cat's Cradle
Urban Perfection by Perpetual Man
Urban diaspora by chrispenycate
Hunger by bingsubb

Vote:
A Tale of Two Cities. by Peter V

 

[Mr Orange]

many thanks for the mentions @JS Wiig and @G.T.

already doing better than last month!

 

[Perpetual Man]

I'm currently in the process of reading through the entries and rapidly realising I am going to run into the regular problem: they're all so damn good how do you choose one to vote for?

I'm also stunned and pleasantly surprised to find that I have four votes! I can't remember the last time I got that many in a challenge.

So thanks, to PM, Hugh, G.T. and Reddishbird for your votes, it is greatly appreciated, as are the mentions.

 

[Daysman]

So many new and disturbing neighborhoods to choose from, I doubled up this month — my fave top 10 and vote*

@Cat's Cradle
@Astro Pen
@Perpetual Man
@Peter V
@BT Jones
@pyan *
@M. Robert Gibson
@bingsubb
@Hugh
@Sinergio (Google translation)

Have a great Sunday!

 

[Pyan]

Thanks, @Daysman - glad you enjoyed the story.

 

[Wayne Mack]

There were a lot of good choices here.

My Vote:
Voice From The Past @paranoid marvin

Short List:
You want to be where everybody knows your name @Luiglin
Eternal City @Astro Pen
A Tale Of Cities 2.0 @M. Robert Gibson
The City and the City @Ursa major
Transfiguration @reddishbird

 

[paranoid marvin]

Hey , thanks for the vote Wayne, much appreciated.

 

[Bren G]

Thank you for the vote @JS Wiig! You made my day!

 

[JS Wiig]

@Bren G I’m a sucker for anything that involves asteroids decimating society as we know it.

Must be why Aenima is one of my favorite TOOL songs. Learn to swim.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

Perp -- Urban Perfection
Peter V -- A Tale of Two Cities
BT Jones -- Amendment X
M. Robert Gibson -- A Tale of Cities 2.0
Mr Orange -- Better
mosaix -- SIM Cities.
Sinergio -- Preferencia
*Ursa -- The City and the City*

 

[Ursa major]

Many, many thanks for the vote, TDZ.

 

[nixie]

4 votes, I'm stunned. Thank you, @Ian Fortytwo, @Moonbat, @Parson, @Starbeast.

 

[BT Jones]

What a good round. It was hard to even draw up the shortlist below:

• @The Scribbling Man
• @paranoid marvin
• @Perpetual Man
• @Luiglin
• @Dan Jones
• @chopper
• @chrispenycate
• @G.T.
• @Ursa major

Top four:

• @Peter V
• @Daysman
• @Bren G
• @M. Robert Gibson

In the end, Peter V's tale of the never ending class struggle struck the sweetest chord.

Thanks @G.T., @TheDustyZebra, and @Daysman for the mentions.

 

[Dan Jones]

It was great to be back in the Challenges for the first time in daaaaay. Good to see the old gang and a few new faces as well.
Here are my top ten stories for this month:

@paranoid marvin - you can take the boy out of the Earth, but you can't take Earth out of the boy.
@Perpetual Man - An organic, living twist on the Dark City-style city that comes alive at the witching hour
@Peter V - despite their wealth, the Elois know that the Morlocks will not be cowed forever, and every now and then... one of them will strike.
@BT Jones - the distance between the banality of centralised control and the havoc it wreaks upon the life of the man on the Clapham Hoverbus does nothing to lessen its horror
@pyan - we're always capable of convincing ourselves that our actions are just. I wonder if the banquet tasted ever so slightly bitter that evening?
@johnnyjet - even with a population of millions, when disaster strikes, a city can be a place of crushing isolation
@chrispenycate - a clanking, whirring system of imagery that brings to mind Howl's Moving Castle and the Sand People from Star Wars.
@Hugh - a stranger may find himself in a strange land, but some are more welcoming than others, especially on Valentine's Day.
@Sinergio - tal vez nuestro futuro es en la libre de la mar.
@Ursa major - one can have the most wonderful dreams, but only too late do we realise they were nightmares.

Well now! What a fine decembirate of diarists. After much deliberating and general faffing abaaht, I decide to give my vote to Peter V. Zehr gut!