Writing Challenge: Write a six-word story

[GrahamLewis]

Suddenly the birds fell fully quiet.

 

[JLT]

You know, if a story needs to be explained, then there's something missing in it. Stories should be complete in themselves, or provide enough context for the reader to go away and look it up. Otherwise, you're actually using up more words than the form allows.

That's why Hemingway's classic story is a story - "Baby shoes for sale. Never worn." - it provides an entire implied backstory that a reader can pick up through intuition, as well as subtext in what is essentially the conclusion.

You have a point there. My own definition of a "six-word story" is that it makes the reader curious to know more. In Hemingway's story, I want to know what happened to the baby to make it never live to wear those shoes. And how did the parents adjust to their child's death? Tell us more!

In my last story, "He never saw the streetcar coming," I imagine the reader wondering what happening afterward. How badly was he hurt? Did he die? How did the onlookers react? Tell us more!

 

[Naomasa298]

You have a point there. My own definition of a "six-word story" is that it makes the reader curious to know more. In Hemingway's story, I want to know what happened to the baby to make it never live to wear those shoes. And how did the parents adjust to their child's death? Tell us more!

Right, but what I mean is, you know (or assume) there was a baby, it never got to wear those shoes so it must have died, the parents are dealing with the aftermath. There's a backstory and stakes, and characters who we sympathise with. That's despite none of that ever appearing in the text.

Your story is the same. We know there was a streetcar, the protagonist was hit by it, and he was either badly injured or died, and at the present time, we are talking about the aftermath. You never tell us any of it, but it is strongly implied.

That's what I mean by them being stories, not just statements or clever phrases. Inciting incident, stakes, conclusion, all of that is there. Hemingway was always about heavy subtext and what isn't said doing a lot of work around what is said.

It's a worthwhile writing exercise if people look into it and think about what a story actually consists of, and enjoy Hemingway's minimalist style of storytelling - kind of an extreme form of flash fiction.

 

[Rath Darkblade]

You know, if a story needs to be explained, then there's something missing in it. Stories should be complete in themselves, or provide enough context for the reader to go away and look it up. Otherwise, you're actually using up more words than the form allows.

That's why Hemingway's classic story is a story - "Baby shoes for sale. Never worn." - it provides an entire implied backstory that a reader can pick up through intuition, as well as subtext in what is essentially the conclusion.

All right. I simply thought the story of Churchill nearly being killed in 1931 was interesting, and deserves to be shared, because it's interesting to imagine the rest of history if he had been killed.

And a six-word story:

The dogs barked once, no more.

 

[Louanne Learning]

Wars lost - dead sons, angry mothers.

 

[GrahamLewis]

"Pro patria mori." The noble lie.

 

[transplant]

Pushed too far, bottom rising fast

Pushed to far, far's closer now

 

[Amontillado]

Six words. Writer's block. Hopeless.

 

[edamame]

Much ado about writer's block revisited.

 

[Rath Darkblade]

Writer's block? Thought it was Brideshead.

 

[Heartlet Happer]

I found happiness and stole it

 

[Donnie]

Hey where did my happiness go?

 

[GrahamLewis]

Here only the insane are happy.

 

[Selluwud]

Happiness here today, not guaranteed tomorrow.

 

[Rath Darkblade]

Come on over! Sanity's overrated. NARF!