55-fiction, anyone?

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Rainbow Daydreamer
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55-fiction, anyone?

Post by Rainbow Daydreamer »

So I wondered if anyone here was involved in the fine art of 55-fiction. If not, it might be interesting for you to give it a go.

55-fic is one of those ideas that sounds incredibly simple and rather pointless, both of which remain the case until you actually try it. After that, it's brilliant, challenging, and addictive.

Write a story in fifty-five words. Not poetry, not an expression of opinion; an actual story with events and characters. Hyphenated expressions are counted as two words, with the exception of things like "re-entry"; contractions like "won't" are counted as one.

I like these because they give me an entirely new writing style. I never thought I was good at twist endings before, but the twist ending is a classic element of 55-fic and to my surprise I can do it.

Mine aren't the best examples, but I'll let you see them anyway. If you're already hooked, there's more at 55fiction.com and 55-fiction.org.


Oops, I meant "edit" not "reply". You saw nothing, 'kay?

_______________________

My 55-fics... in all their amateurishness.






Forced Surrender

General Susan Taylor surveyed the battlefield. Though her fierce opponent had hit her forces hard, she refused to admit defeat.

Suddenly a dread shadow fell over the ruins of war: the one enemy neither strategist could conquer.

“Susie, Kevin, come inside at once. Playtime was over five minutes ago. And clear up those toy soldiers.”


--------

Sweet Deception

"No place for a beautiful young woman," they muttered, eyeing her. "Monsters... bloodthirsty, ruthless werewolves…” The offers of ‘protection’ unnerved Lucy more than the legends.

Pushing past locals in the suddenly terrifying moonlight, she ran upstairs, slammed the door, shoved a chair against it. Then she collapsed, exhausted, her furry head dropping to the pillow.

---------

The Betrayal

Liaisons without consequences, the advert screams.

After your romantic night at our agency, we'll scientifically erase your memory of it completely, for a guaranteed guilt-free morning.

Intriguing concept… though of course I'd... never...

No. These liars need telling not to scam the public.

I stride in. The receptionist glances up.

"Oh, hello again, Mr. Jackson!"


----------

Innocence/Prejudice (True story: can you figure out what we were watching?)

This show last aired twenty years ago.

Now I sit with him. On screen, sunlit, alone: a monster, dying. In its past, dark destruction.

Innocent, I see nothing but a lost and lonely creature, far from its one- time home.

He sits astounded, wordless, as his daughter cries over the terror of his childhood nightmares.



-------

So, anyone else up for a try?
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EofS
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Post by EofS »

Hmm. I've written drabbles before (100 word stories) but never tried only 55 words. I might have to have a go at this.

I like yours, The Betrayal especially. Fantastic twist to that one :0)

You might find <a href="http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.1 ... tml">these six-word stories</a> interesting, though it's an old article so you might have seen them before. A lot of them are rather bla, but there are a few gems in there.

On a similar theme, the <a href="http://www.tinyghosts.com/">web'comic'</a> ('comic' because it's often intended to be thought-provoking rather than funny) tells stories in only two sentences. A lot of the best are about war. Here are some favourites from a random sampling: <a href="http://www.tinyghosts.com/archive/tinyg ... tml">34</a>, <a href="http://www.tinyghosts.com/archive/tinyg ... tml">12</a>, <a href="http://www.tinyghosts.com/archive/tinyg ... tml">55</a>, <a href="http://www.tinyghosts.com/archive/tinyg ... tml">49</a>, <a href="http://www.tinyghosts.com/archive/tinyg ... tml">32</a> and a particular favourite, <a href="http://www.tinyghosts.com/archive/tinyghosts044.html">. I'm sure they're not everyone's cup of tea, but they're an interesting experiment in storytelling certainly.
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Rainbow Daydreamer
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Re: 55-fiction, anyone?

Post by Rainbow Daydreamer »

A new 55.

Whiteout


The correction fluid bottle seemed to glow in her withered hand. The first spilt drop on the autobiography was accidental. Then, though, she felt a compulsion to keep erasing.

His death. Children. Their marriage.

"Grandma? It's Tony..."

Who was...?

The last words faded. The little girl flapped her wings playfully, stepping into the dazzling sunshine.
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Rainbow Daydreamer
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Re: 55-fiction, anyone?

Post by Rainbow Daydreamer »

Apologies for the double post; will edit if the mods don't like.

Liebestod

She writes unimaginably beautiful murder mysteries with her friends as characters.

Ben took the world's most exquisite bullet to the heart. Lucy's final flame burnt brightly. Nothing could have been more bittersweet than the poison in the glass Rachel drank willingly.

Her talent thrills my soul.

But I remain alive. Because she'll never notice me.
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