Or Winter Marathon Challenge, as it were, for Southern Hemisphere challengers.
Post discussions and questions here, entries only on the entry page please, and votes and comments after September 22nd.
Posting opens today, the summer solstice, and continues through the vernal equinox, June 20th and September 22nd, respectively. Voting to follow thereafter. Anyone may vote and comment when voting opens.
Voting: 1st place 5 points, 2nd place 3 points, 3rd place 1 point. Best title 1 vote.
Enter as few as none or as many thirteen lines submissions as self-selected. One entry per post, please. Entry posts are open submissions, under user member name, not blind submission. Please include a title per entry and number entries sequentially in the order they post. These former are as per axeminster's challenge model, as given for recent prior challenges in the Challenge forum.
Three prompts:
Futuristic
Complete dramatic sequence of a complication-conflict: start-preparation, middle-suspension and anticipation, end-satisfaction
emotionally charged attitude, make a scene on the page, get emotionally carried away about something
Please include a title with each entry and number entries sequentially in the order they post.
Any genre, any narrative point of view welcome; that is, narrator or viewpoint persona; first, second, or third grammatical person -- any and all entries welcome, multiple entries, too.
posted
See Microfiction Monday Magazine, online, for a treasure trove of thirteen lines-like complete, standalone narratives.
The magazine contains no fantastic fiction content, though not expressly prohibited; the submission guidelines insist upon no more than one hundred words and no less than fifty. One hundred words approximates somewhat thirteen lines roughly one hundred thirty words: well, thirty or so to spare.
The content does exemplify segment sequence structure; that is, start, middle, and end; preparation, suspension-anticipation, and satisfaction parts. The narratives entail motivations and stakes and tone -- tone with punch and surprise. Plus, they favor overall the specific rather than the general.
An observable feature often part of micro-short prose is that specificity matter transcends its closeness and becomes larger than life from expression of universal moral human conditions.
Fantastic fiction's topos bases -- recurrent fantastical motifs, like faster than light travel and magical abilities -- rely upon target readers knowing those topos and for their fictitious though accepted as real to their milieus' extents. How to incorporate the fantastic is consider the essentialness of a fantastic motif to the contest at hand and that the contest entail a specific matter of the moral human condition.
Take a look, imitate one or more for the Summertime Challenge.
Posts: 6037 | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
I fully intend to enter, but ideas have been scarce the last few weeks. I'll poke at the ol' brainpan and see what comes out over the next couple of days.
Posts: 745 | Registered: May 2015
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posted
Very. My study of narratives at Microfiction Monday Magazine has proved both most insightful and complicating. One, story time elapsed compression and narrative time elapsed expansion are optional conventions of short fiction. The magazine has published a few fantastic microfictions of late, too.
Two, incorporating fantastical motifs and dramatic movement imply required microscopic temporal focus. Story and narrative times elapsed and a singular transformative antagonal event that nonetheless is larger than life is itself expansive for its narrow specificity. Subtext, in other words, or immediately interpret-ible figurative meaning in any case. Plus the trend for fantastic fiction's non-one-to-one literal-figurative motif correspondence further complicates fantastic microfiction.
Flash Fiction Online does publish fantastic microfiction, albeit with the rigors of five-hundred to a thousand words, though as yet, frankly, probably not as fully realized as I desire from the form and genre and I believe for which it is capable.
Posts: 6037 | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
About a month remains open for Summer Marathon Challenge entries.
Of note, the English loan word "marathon" derives from the site named for a victory over Persians, from which a marathon-plus-length runner carried news about the victory.
Of note also that oratory contests were part of the ancient Olympic games. That tradition and custom carries on today through literary prize culture; for examples, the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future contest, the Pulitzer, the Nobel literature laurel, etc.
Posts: 6037 | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
The September 22nd cutoff looms twelve days away. I'll post one more challenge entry by then. More entries and contestants are welcome.
After which, too, perhaps someone could do a fall challenge!? One that's not as difficult as this one.
Posts: 6037 | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
Sorry, I can't come out and play. The task of conflating a 1,000 word idea into a 350 word story is beyond me in my present condition; I upped my meds on June 6th and am dealing with the consequences.
posted
Your entry contributions will be missed. Your votes and commentary are nonetheless welcome. I'd offer strategy advices to overcome the challenges . . . Although such suggestions may be persuasive, those might also be unwarranted passive-aggressive implied imperatives and which evoke issues.
Of all the shortfalls of cathartic processes, one that most challenges me, and is most desirable for me of similar circumstances, is that of transformative transcendence. Coping is a far behind next-best option. One reason why I write -- for cathartic transcendence outcomes.
posted
Thanks for the thoughts, extrinsic. The situation isn't dire, in fact it's the opposite. My ability to write has returned with a vengeance; it must be those four years of study and thought about writing when I couldn't actually do it.
The problem right now is I just can't be bothered getting what's in my head onto a page. Bummer! But, this too shall pass; I just need patience.
Phil.
[ September 21, 2016, 02:55 AM: Message edited by: Grumpy old guy ]
Posts: 1937 | Registered: Sep 2012
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posted
A Hurricane of work came in so the fragment I had on the front burner for s second entry didn't make the deadline.
Like summer has come to a close, challenge submission entries have come to a close, Voting and comments are now open and any member may vote and comment. Please do vote for a best title too.
Voting: 1st place 5 points 2nd place 3 points 3rd place 1 point Best title 1 vote
Posts: 6037 | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
First week of voting has passed. One week left for votes. Through October 7th. Any Hatrack member may vote and comment, or just vote, or just comment of whatever length and constructive content suits self-selection.
Posts: 6037 | Registered: Jun 2008
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