Monday, March 29, 2010

Writing Exercise to Challenge Your Brain


Ernest Hemingway was once challenged to write a story in six words. His response?

"For sale: baby shoes, never used."

Wow, right? Six words was all he needed to paint a very powerful picture!  So, I thought I would try this exercise and man, oh man, is it ever difficult.  Sheesh!  Tell a story in six words?  Oy vey!

I finally wrote something that I was satisfied with.  But, it's 7 words.  I wonder what Papa Hemingway would say? But for what it's worth, here's what I came up with:

Bankrupted woman seeks employment at gun factory.

What do you think of my 7-word story?

Try it!  It's very challenging...but it will give your brain a great workout.  I truly believe that less is more. And I would love to hear what you come up with.

9 comments:

  1. Super cool assignment Debbie! Do you think there are happy ones? My mind immediately went to disaster. Here goes...

    Red wine: What happened last night?
    Plus sign: What to do now?
    It's over: sad sigh of relief.

    Thanks for the challenge. Am going to try to think of a less depressing one.

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  2. Wow, 6 words IS tough. Here is one with 7...

    Lost: Wedding band in red-light district

    I saw an old tombstone from the 1920's that this assignment reminds me of. Three names, two children and a mother. Children died first, within a few days of each other, then the mother. Inscription read "Of consumption". I got chills imagining what it must have been like for them.

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  3. Yeah, this is an interesting challenge. I love to write short-short stories. Keep up the good work.

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  4. Acid tripping general contemplates pushing button.

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  5. I really like this Debbie! now let's see...
    Sun shining, heart racing, feeling...lovely

    So debbie, tell me what do you think?

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  6. Yikes. Hemingway did it again! In only six words. Way to go, Papa. Dare I try. Let's see. "Newlywed wondered why his wife got a headache on the first night." Wait. That's much too long -- twelve words. How about, "Wife is in the other room while I type away." Nope. Still too long, but only ten words. Can I produce a shorter story? "Man lived alone and hung himself." OK, I did it. Not very good. I better stop. By the way, thanks for a thought-provoking post. -- MikeB

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  7. My attention span is... ooh, shiny!

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  8. Thats The Way I Like It

    was the first thing to come to mind..

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  9. How about this:

    "Found: Wedding ring without the diamond."

    I confess it is no match for Hemingway. But it is an original MikeB.

    -- MikeB

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Let me know what you think!