May I have the Envelope Please?

I know you are all out there waiting with bated breath (go ahead – I double-dog dare you to look it up), so I’m proud to announce: it’s time! (cue the fireworks) Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived! Yessir, it’s time to announce the judges choices for The Best of the Let’s Be Brief contest!

First the obligatory thanks to the participants and their entries, all of which are listed here for posterior posterity. You guys did a stupendous job, and I thank you all for your tireless efforts in making this contest the overwhelming success it really was. Thanks a bazillion, and a wave of the blue flipper to you!!

Just so you know, each judge labored independently of the others to determine the ones that somehow stood out above the rest. Our judges, Shawn Callahan, John Koetsier, Andy Nulman and Yours Truly would like to express our thanks and admiration for the both the quantity (435 total, include mine and Mrs. MZM’s which were excluded from judging) and the quality (which ranged from weird to fantastic) of your stories. Amazing! Extraordinary! Mama Mia! Magnifique!

So without further ado (that noise you make when you sneeze with a stopped up nose), here’s our picks.

John Koetsier:

From indigoGlyph:
She shouted – lied – cried. He packed.

From Ben Yoskovitz:
“Marry me Susan.” “Yes.” “Really?” “No.”

From Denise Aday:
Found in empty nest: lost self.

And honorable mention, from Eric Turkewitz:
Need publicity. Start contest. Six Words?

Shawn Callahan:

The one I enjoyed the most, from Candice Broom
Dear kids: have a nice life!

It is a sad little story. It conjured up for me pictures of an elderly parent writing a note to the kids as one of the last things she ever does. Like many of other good six word stories, I could easily identify the protagonist and the story immediately generated strong emotions. Well done Candice.

Funniest, from Hi Kooky
Chili dinner leads to separate beds.

Creepiest, from indigoGlyph
“Nice skin”, he said, replacing it.

Cleverest, from halfnuts
Inability to complete thoughts continues to

Most Dramatic, from Moda de Magno
Yes, I really do hate you.

Most Suspenseful, from Dennis McMullin
Go ahead; nobody will ever know.

Robert Hruzek:

My Favorite, from Ben Yoskovitz:
“Marry me Susan.” “Yes.” “Really?” “No.”

This one caught me by surprise. Not only is the scene a common enough one in most people’s minds, but the last word turns an otherwise ordinary story into a truly unexpected one! Good one, Ben!

Most Tragic, from Chris Edgington:
She dove. He lunged. Lost forever.

Best Suspense, from nowcleomind:
Full moon, snapping branch, I whirled.

Most Upbeat, from mitchgroup:
Mom, dad together. Son daughter better.

And honorable mentions to:

Most Enigmatic, from Director Tom:
In between her smiles, despair danced.

Best Film Noir, from Daniel Scocco:
Smoking, thinking about his lost passions.

And this one, although not a story, would make the Best Bumper Sticker, from Hartley B. Singer:
Pets don’t mind if you fart.

There were also two who took up the “Whole New Energy Level” challenge and submitted these:

From Metapilot:
Earth heaved and mountains were born.
Water flowed and valleys peeked through.
Eneregy coalesced and naively became animate.
Variation thrives, it struggles, it expands.
Awareness, instinct develop into identity, values.
A collective mind boldly parses space.

And from Kate Anne:
Trust. Things work out. Soon, please.
Things happen. God’s time. Not mine.
Tears shed. Prayers whispered. Answer awaited.
Sleep now — all will be well.
Closed eyes. Dreams beckoned. Daylight awaits.
Blessings counted, and counted upon. Faith.

Andy Nulman

The first surprise is how many people responded to the challenge! Yikes…there went my Monday evening. The second surprise was the caliber of the stories. As Shakespeare said (in six words, no less), “Brevity is the soul of wit,” and indeed it is. It was also the soul of much drama (like “The final course was Roger sorbet”), action (“Martians attack. United Nations at last”, insight (“Liked fatty meats. Bought the farm”) and inspiration (“One testicle. Two children. Cancer lost.”). Seriously, sincerely, I was very impressed.

What I looked for, more than a mere “Gasp!”, was if the author could actually capture a thematic arc in six words, and paint a picture in my head. Many entries were great “headlines” per se (like “Jeb elected president. George W. pardoned”), effective at Surprise, but limited in their actual creation of what could be labeled a “story.”

That said, without any further adue, comes the winner, from indigoGlyph:

“Nice skin,” he said, removing it.

A Few Parting Thoughts

For the most part, we found there were many good beginnings or even good endings, but the goal was to write a story that was complete in and of itself, and that was much harder (as you no doubt discovered). Overall, though, you guys did a great job, exercising your creativity in some really surprising ways.

Our choices are entirely based on our own preferences, etc., so of course you may have your own thoughts about which ones were better or worse than others. Feel free to add your comments if you like. In fact, please do – I think everyone would benefit.

Oh, by the way, the title for this post was my favorite story from Mrs. MZM.

IT’S OVER!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the Let’s Be Brief contest has officially come to a grinding halt (that grinding noise you hear). To all those who participated, let me just take a moment to express my appreciation to you for a stupendous effort! What a fantastic response! Good job, everyone, good job; it wouldn’t have been a success without YOU!

(If you want to see the contest entries, click here.)

Even as we speak (uh, so to speak) the judges are working feverishly to tally up the scores (we’re even using specially-made dart boards).

Please bear with us – we’re coordinating our efforts from three different locations around the world. Rest assured, as soon as I have the results I’ll post them here, so check back occasionally.

I also want to say thanks to all who sent in kind words about the contest. It’s been great fun, and I hope it was for you as well. You are of course all invited to drop by the Zone anytime – you never know – you might like what you see, and occasionally we might even talk about serious stuff once and a while (seriously)!

Well, It ain’t over yet, folks… but it’s close!

Instead of a progress report today, I need to say a few words regarding Judgement Day. (I know we’re not supposed to be all judgemental and everything, but sometimes ya just gotta make the call.)

Anyway – once the floating contest notice is gone, folks, it’s over. BUT (and that’s a BIG but), if you are still in a creative mood, by all means keep ‘em coming. I’ll be happy to keep posting them as long as you want to keep writing ‘em. (At least until I, you know, die. Or something.)

However, once the contest is closed (when the contest notice disappears), I’ll ship the sealed list of contest entries via special courier (OK, email) to our all-star panel of judges, who will then deliberate over them until they either run screaming from the room, or successfully identify the winners (whichever comes first – so cross your fingers).

Anyway, what we’ve got here is what you might call the pregnant pause (Get it? A pregnant dog? With paws? A pregnant paws? Oh, forget it.), that period of time between the end of the contest and when the winners are announced. So please bear with us a bit (one of the judges, Shawn Callahan, lives in Australia and he has to sleep sometime, you know). So keep your eye on this space – hopefully it won’t take too long.

And speaking of winners, I think each and every one of you should consider yourselves winners! I mean it! You guys were stupendous! What a great response to a simple idea – I’m truly honored and humbled to have been your host for this little exercise.

I want to take this moment and again thank you all for your fantastic effort and participation; all I can say is:

‘way to go!

T-minus 1 and counting! There’s only one day left in the Let’s Be Brief contest, and I’m sorry to say time is rapidly running out! At the moment, the current totals are:

Story count: 307
Authors: 61

Who woulda thunk it? You guys are unbelievable! And to think it all started with a dream. (Cue the violins.) A dream to reach out to my fellow bloggers; to encourage you to break out of the box a bit and see what you’re capable of when the chips are down. A dream to – (sound of needle scratching across a record).

Ah, who am I kidding? I just wanted to have some fun!

And now the Last Day begins. As of midnight tonight, you have just one more day to think of and submit your six-word stories before this contest passes into the annals of history. Just think, your name will be preserved for all time as one who took up the gauntlet, prevailed against all odds, feverishly worked day and night, and then submitted your stories for all the world to see (and, by the way, judge).

So who ever heard of quitting just before the finish line? You still have plenty of time left before the deadline. And speaking of deadlines, since there are really no geographical boundaries here the actual end will probably be a bit “fuzzy”, if you know what I mean. But know this – once the stories are handed over to the judges – baby, it’s over!

So dare I hope that we can get the total up to 400? Is it too lofty a goal? What say you, my friends? Do you accept the challenge?

Ready… set… GO!

Holy short stories, Batman! This is more fun than sneaking out for midnight burgers in the Batmobile!

Yessir, ladies and gentlemen, it’s been quite a day here at the Zone with the total number of entries in the Let’s Be Brief contest surging from 199 yesterday to 247 by 5 pm today. Mama Mia!

Let’s see now: multiply by 4, carry the 3, divide by seven (hold on while I get my other shoe off) – that’s 1,482 words, written six at a time! I think we’re well on our way to writing that great American novel.

I am also gratified and honored that the inspiration for this contest, Roger von Oech, mentioned it with a link at Creative Think. Thanks a herd group bunch, Roger! Y’all go check out his blog – it’s chock full of tasty stuff about innovation and – you guessed it – creative thinking.

Well, as day 5 draws to a close (sound of shade being pulled down), I just know you will be tossing and turning in bed tonight, feverishly thinking of more six-word stories that you’ll toss this way tomorrow. (Please don’t disillusion me!)

So take a break and get some rest, friends, because tomorrow’s going to be a big day!

Two days left!

Alas, I’ve discovered an unexpected consequence of focusing so much on the Let’s Be Brief contest: now I constantly find myself thinking of ways to convert everything into six-word sentences! Even Mrs. MZM is getting in on the act, leading to some hilarious conversations at home.

It made me wonder, though (it’s that noise you hear), about how far we could go with the concept.

Sure, six-word stories aren’t that easy, at least at first. With practice, though, you start seeing them everywhere! (Even now, it’s taking superhuman effort to keep from writing this post entirely in six-word sentences!) But what if you wanted to, as Albert Einstein might say, “Take it to a whole new energy level?”

Therefore, to those who are getting bored with simple (hah!), ordinary (what?) six-word stories, try this one on for size: Write a six-sentence story, where each sentence must also be its own complete six-word story! Here’s an example of what I mean:

Moving On

The breakup was hard, but inevitable.
Her future was looking strangely bleak.
“Can I go on?” she wondered.
Suddenly, a knock at the door!
It opened; he stood there, smiling.
She ran gladly into his arms!

Hmm, not bad for a first try, if I do say so myself. In a way, it’s actually easier than a single-sentence story because the other sentences provide more context. The hardest part of the six-word story challenge has always been packing enough context into only six words such that readers will perceive it as a story, and not just an ordinary sentence.

So your mission, Mr. Phelps (should you choose to accept it) is to come up with a story in the form shown above. For the sake of this mission, remember to make each sentence complete and able to stand on its own. (As usual, should you or any of your team be caught (oops!) or killed (ouch!), the Secretary will disavow all knowledge of your actions.)

Now all we need is to think of a name for such a construction. How does hexanumdrum sound? Dodecawordiphone? Polywordaphonic?

Suggestions, anyone?

VERY interesting day today – now with 199 entries (rats! didn’t quite make 200) from 42 people, we’re getting over the hump now and going for the gold. We’re rounding second and going for third. We’re over the 50 yard line and heading for the goal line. We’re coming in for the home stretch – hey, what’s with all the sports analogies, anyway?

I just gotta say – you guys are doing fantastic! As a group you’ve displayed extraordinarily wonderful creativivity (is that superlative enough?), and I’m continually being surprised by what I’ve been reading.

Prior to starting this contest, I had no idea just how far this meme might spread. I knew it might get some traction, but (I’ll freely admit it) probably like most bloggers I fantasized about getting on the front page of Digg (at least once in my lifetime). Of course, I always hoped it would be for, you know, something I said or did, like a genuinely workable plan for world peace, or cold fusion or… something profound!

Ah, well, c’est la vie.

I do have an exciting new development to share with you, though. Andy Nulman, of the always-surprising POW! Right Between the Eyes! blog has agreed to join your extinguished distinguished rank of judges in a special capacity: Andy will determine the story with the best surprise ending!

When I issued the invitation to Andy, I have to admit I truly expected to be turned down. But wouldn’t you know it – to my surprise he not only accepted the challenge, he even posted about it on POW! What a guy! Thanks, Andy, and when you come down to Texas, how about bringing some of that warm weather with you?