DISCUSSION THREAD -- APRIL 2024 75 WORD WRITING CHALLENGE

[M. Robert Gibson]

Could have voted for
A Harmless Drudge - @Victoria Silverwolf
Lost in the Noise - @THX1138
Greenwashed Truth - @astrojosh
Antisocial Media AKA In Your Face Book - @Peter V
Turning the Tables Is Sweet Indeed - @Parson
Presentation Is Everything - @paranoid marvin

Voted for
Ghosts of a Digital Past - @Bren G - very neatly summing up one of the problems of everything being digital

 

[Bren G]

I struggled between these three...

@holland – B(l)ackmail - I thought it was a most original concept, well articulated and I like the contrasting writing format

@Parson – Turning the Tables – bonus points for embracing the theme full on and for dropping a great truth of our ultra-politicalized age

@paranoid marvin – Presentation is Everything – great take on the theme while humiliating an advanced alien race for the benefit of our primitive human egos.

PM edged the others out by a slim margin as it gave me a good laugh on an otherwise dreary day.

 

[Troyzan787]

Wow! Thanks @AnRoinnUltra and @THX1138 for the votes!

Mine went to @Cat's Cradle

This was a fun one, looking forward to next months!

 

[Hugh]

My vote goes to @Astro Pen for his take on digital assistants

Various others that touched my dopamine circuit one way or another:
@nixie
@Cat's Cradle
@emrosenagel
@Parson (punk?)
@Bren G
@Victoria Silverwolf
@Daysman
@Phyrebrat
@THX1138

 

[Bowler1]

Mentions - Cats Cradle, JohnnyJet and Christine.

I was split on Mosaix and PM, with PM getting the vote with a nice last line.

With no votes or mentions I'm off for a good cry, which I will start streaming once I have reset my password and online security - I'm not a bot and who cares about the number of bicycles in the pictures, just let me log in... Bowler1 finally has a reason to cry as he remains locked out of his computer.

Who posted this post - I've been hacked!!!

 

[holland]

Thanks for the vote Elckerlyc!

 

[emrosenagel]

My vote: Well, We Tried... by @mosaix

My shortlist: The Inadvertent Clumsiness of Leon Extrovert's AI Process Parsemangle by @AnRoinnUltra, A Harmless Drudge by @Victoria Silverwolf, Voices Not Forgotten by @Cat's Cradle, Guided Community by @Astro Pen, Perspective by @Troyzan787 and Presentation is Everything by @paranoid marvin

Thanks for the mentions @Hugh, @THX1138 AND @AnRoinnUltra !!!

 

[Starbeast]

In the Media

@Guttersnipe
@chrispenycate
@johnnyjet
@Bowler1
@mosaix
@nixie
@paranoid marvin​

 

[johnnyjet]

My Short List and *** Favorite ***:

A Harmless Drudge - Victoria Silverwolf
*** Voices Not Forgotten - Cat's Cradle ***
Disengaged – Culhwch
When Earth Cried Wolf – emrosenagel
Well, We Tried… - mosaix
So'rce Checked - Paul J. Menzies
The Oort Witch Project – Phyrebrat
Presentation Is Everything - paranoid marvin

 

[Bowler1]

Bowler1 dries his eyes and with a final sniffle, waves a thanks to Starbeast.

Picks up a pitchfork with a smile, normal service has resumed.

 

[Daysman]

We're all stuck in the middle this month, and oh wot fun…

My five faves, inc. vote:
@Victoria Silverwolf
@Cat's Cradle
@johnnyjet (vote)
@Luiglin
@Peter V

Thanks @Christine Wheelwright for your vote, @Parson and @Hugh for your shortlistings,, and of course @Victoria Silverwolf and (once again) @Parson for your incisive comments.

D

 

[paranoid marvin]

Thanks so much to Starbeast, Bowler and Bren G for your votes, and also to johnnyjet, emrosenagel, M.Robert Gibson, Provincial and Christine Wheelwright for the shortlistings.

 

[reebee]

My vote: @Troyzan787--for that perfect, last-line punch of irony that's so hard to sell in 75 words.

My shortlist:
@Victoria Silverwolf--the story really captures (ha) Johnson well.
@holland--really pulls off the text medium! And I love the immediate stakes of the first lines.
@Cat's Cradle--love the comparison of a futuristic technology with a historical one; adds both perspective and another layer of haunting.
@Culhwch--nails the pacing and the tight prose.
@Peter V--books have many uses!

 

[Parson]

@Parson (punk?)

Hm, I thought that word was near universal. It means a thought out practical joke intended to make someone look (feel?) really stupid.

 

[Ursa major]

​

The poll is closed and we have a winner:

Congratulations, Victoria Silverwolf!​

 

[Parson]

Congratulations @Victoria Silverwolf it's obvious that you've got these contested down to a science.

---------

It's obvious that my own story was written out of frustration. My observation is that every news outlet is something pretty close to a purveyor of one sort of propaganda or another. Some are less and some are more subtle than some others, but none of them seems immune. And what I once thought would be a bit of a tonic, lots and lots of news sources, has instead become a driving force for more and more radical shaping of the news to fit a predetermined agenda, probably because people want to hear stories that fit with their predispositions.

But I also want to thank everyone who mentioned my story. All of them were beloved.

 

[THX1138]

@Victoria Silverwolf Congratulations!
And thanks for the mentions too.
I'm out at sea on holiday and on my tablet, so there is a limit to what I can do right now.
Cheers!

 

[paranoid marvin]

Congratulations Victoria!

Thanks again to those who voted/shortlisted my entry, and to Parson and Victoria for their insightful reviews.

 

[Elckerlyc]

Congratulations @Victoria Silverwolf!

 

[Provincial]

Congratulations @Victoria Silverwolf and to everyone who got a vote or a mention.