STORY CHALLENGE

Short Story Challenge

Scott Andrew Bailey16 Comments

Looking at my author page www.scottandrewbailey.uk there is one gaping hole. There are no short stories.

I have written quite a few in the past but it was some time ago and they need some editing and polishing before I put together a collection. In the meantime I have decided I need to start writing some new ones.

Short stories are the form I find most challenging – and that I most want to get a grip on.

So I have decided to set myself a challenge and give myself a proverbial boot up the jacksy!

I recently joined a local online writing community and one of the members posted a list of genres – which he is trying to write a story for each. I have appropriated that list but extended it terms a bit. To each genre I have added a constraint – that will make the writing harder but hopefully spark a better creation. So for example one of the options is an action story. So my constraint for that one is to set it in a confined space.

I am posting this list here and will post links to the relevant stories if and when I write them – and its a big if one this one.

But I also thought others might like to take up the challenge. If you do I am happy to post links to your resulting works of art here beneath each section.

I am going to try to work through in the order posted but that’s optional and if I get inspired I may skip to a particular one.

Here is the list

  • Action – set in a confined space
  • Comedy – about an act of terrorism
  • Crime – Set in a police station with CCTV watching
  • Erotica – set in an un-erotic place – such as a sewer
  • Espionage – set in either MI5 headquarters or a cell
  • Fantasy – Set in a shopping centre
  • Historical – Set in the future
  • Horror – A children’s story
  • Noir – based around colours
  • Political – In a hippy commune
  • Post-Apocalypse – In a book club
  • Romance – In a divorce court
  • Sci-Fi – In neolithic times
  • Space Opera – From a droids POV
  • Superhero – In medieval times
  • Thriller – In a Cricket or bowls match
  • Western – From Native American POV
  • Whodunnit – With no apparent crime

Let’s see what happens.

Not Enough Sleep

Scott Andrew Bailey6 Comments

Today’s blogging101 task was Try (Another) Blogging Event

So I chose this one – TAKE THE 50-WORD STORY CHALLENGE

It has ten prompts – I have only done one so far but will try to update all ten before the month is out! As if I didn’t have enough deadlines and challenges.

This is the first

 

Not Enough Sleep

By Scott Bailey © 2015

No time to sleep, Must get on. Much to do. Can’t be late. Sleep when you’re dead my old man used to say. Who’s coming I wonder? Here come the cars. Just take a peek Not many! Expected more at my own funeral! Oh well, what’s next?

#blogging101
#theCommons