55-Word Stories?

[george c]

Hi Folks,

 

I’ve been writing, in the sense of putting words to paper, for 30-plus years. And, I have finished little.

 

Yes, Novel-in-a-Month six times. High word count 108,000. But, never finished any of them.

 

What I have finished are 55-word stories. I find writing them fun, enjoyable, and entertaining. Also, use some of them as an outlet for a somewhat-civilized-way of ranting.

I use a max of seven words in the titles and 55-words for the story. I primarily write about religion, relationships, politics, and what I call the human condition.

If any of you are interested, let me know and I’ll post a few here. Hope I’m posting this in the correct forum.

 

Best regards,

 

George

[Arcadian]

Hi George,

 

Just visited your blog and read a few of your stories. They're really good! I like your style, and the way you give a humorous twist to stories. Keep 'em coming!

 

 

- P.

[george c]

Hi George,

 

Just visited your blog and read a few of your stories. They're really good! I like your style, and the way you give a humorous twist to stories. Keep 'em coming!

 

 

- P.

Thanks for your kind words. Actually, I had forgotten that my blog was shown in my signature. That said, I have another book finished except for editing. Here are a few stories from that book.

 

Best regards,

 

George

 

 

Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen

 

“Captain Jones, welcome aboard Acme’s flight 624. We’ll cruise at 35,000 feet. Hope we don’t have turbulence, as that stuff really scares me. If we’re lucky, we’ll be in Chicago in a couple of hours. Oh! Co-pilot informed me we’re scheduled for NY. Dang, I always get them confused. Relax, the drinks are on us.”

 

 

Squirrels Getting Ready for Winter

 

Preparing for winter, Sam and Sallie cleaning house, dragging in more insulation, Sam steadily hauling acorns. Occasionally, he’d come huffing and puffing up the tree with a can of beanie-weenies.

At the base of the tree with a brown bag, Sam yelled to throw the rope.

“For you, Sallie.”

“Holy cow, watermelon vodka! My favorite.”

 

 

They Had Been Together for Ten Years

 

Had their ups and downs, but seemed to make the relationship work.

Lately, she didn’t seem herself. He asked her about it, but she had no response.

Woke one morning and she was gone. What had he done, he wondered?

Phone rang. “Hello.”

“We have your puppy. Luckily, your phone number was on her collar.”

 

 

Accident left him in a Coma

 

Happened Christmas 2015 and was doubtful he’d regain consciousness.

Family worked in shifts to be by his side in case he awoke.

He did, December 2016.

“Tell me, what’s new in the country?” he said.

“Trump is president-elect and Palin is considered for VA secretary,” his brother, said.

“Please, put me back in a coma!”

[Newjelan]

These are great and I'm going to try some for myself. Thanks

[Sasha Royale]

THE DOORMAT OF HEAVEN IS PURE BLUE. (7)

 

The air was dead calm at thirty thousand. Our Intruder was zero visibility in clouds. We emerged briefly into the clear. The sky was a blue, unlike any blue before or since. I remember it as “pure blue”. Then, we were back into the clouds. Forty years have passed. I never saw that color again.

(55)

[BT_Summers]

The trouble with Jack

 

The trouble with Jack was that he was only good for one thing, he was OK with that.

 

You just got the sense that he didn’t want to be hurried, little by little.

 

At the end he would just wait for you to do what you had to do.

 

And let the car back down.

[george c]

Newjelan, thanks for your kind words and interest.

 

Sasha and Smiffy, thanks for your stories.

 

On my more grandiose days, I sometimes write about what I call the human condition. In my second book I started adding comments after some of the stories. Often, a little about where I got the idea.

 

Here's another....

 

Regards,

 

George

 

 

It Was Baseball Tryout Day

 

All the kids gathered at the ball field.

The coach arrived.

He explained that there would be teams for everyone who wanted to play.

He started around the circle of kids.

“Johnny, what position would you like?”

“Catcher.”

“Sam?”

“Second base.”

“Tommy, what position for you?”

“Pitcher.”

“Bobby, what position would you like?”

“Batter, please.”

 

December 12, 2016

 

 

We don’t know what we don’t know. Sometimes it’s just a little embarrassing-but at other times can be disastrous, causing us to make poor choices, spend money needlessly, and start doomed relationships. A little wariness and skepticism never hurts.

 

Yes, this actually happened many years ago. In fact, about 67 years ago! Wow, 67!

 

At the time, I attended a boys’ school in Philadelphia. Girard College is not a college as such; it’s a 1-12 school. An interesting place. Do a search, if you’d like to know more.

Edited August 2, 2017 by george c

[amberleadavis]

George, Please join us in this thread too:

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/324252-weekly-writing-topics/

[penrivers]

Daddy rich, left him 20000 acres and cattle, lost all, alcohol, women, and cards, now has to wake up at 3 am to gather the remuda for another ranch, cries , cries, and cries.

[penrivers]

Bukovsky almost deceive me with his jab but I elude it and throw my right hand in his chin, and a left hook to the liver , he fall completly knocked in the canvas, Marlene Dietrich was looking at me, I said c´mon Hemingway lets see what you have.

[AlohaLani787]

The Excitement of a New Color Darkroom

 

She had great difficulty developing the first photo in the new color darkroom. Sheet after sheet of Kodak paper soaked in the tray. Alas, over and over the finished photo was devoid of the anticipated color. And this is what happens when the first photo in a color darkroom is a black and white cow.

[george c]

Hi Folks,

 

I hadn't stopped by here for a while. Great to see the postings.

 

Here's a couple more from me.

 

BTW, if I ever get this next book in print, the comment will be included.

 

The Last Hurrah!

Past few years, he’d, somewhat macabrely, wondered who would go first.

He 77 with heart disease, she recently diagnosed with cancer. In dog years, they were the same age.
Decided they’d take a trip. Get away from it all.
Car packed, ready.
Chest pains, toppled over. Tossed her the keys. “Drive carefully and have fun.”

 

January 4, 2017

 

This one’s pretty uplifting, hey! I wrote this when I accepted that my pup was pretty sick. She died January 15, 2017.

 

 

 

The Dogs’ Way

They demand nothing and expect little.
Always patient.
Understanding and forgiving.

Never vindictive.

Always by our side.

Will protect us till their death.
Won’t question what we do, but will always support us.
A simple treat will make their day.

If there was a God who was fair, they, the pups, would be walking us.

 

January 21, 2017

 

 

Pen and Paper-So Much Potential

 

“What do you mean?”
“You can write.”
“What?”
“Great American novel, poetry, short stories, satire, politics, philosophy, and on and on.”
“Wow.”
Gave him pen and paper.
“Now what?”

“Just write….”
“Ahh, what?”
“Anything that comes to you.”
“This is a lot of fun man, but, hey, I need to get back to my Xbox.”

 

January 21, 2018

 

 

They’d Been Carryin’ On for Years

Like many affairs, started with lunch and went from there.
Now, he 85 and she 81, on Social Security. Couldn’t meet at either of their houses, their spouses would be there.
The motel bills were taking a toll on their limited income.

“I’ve got it,” he said. “Check into a hospital and Medicare will pay.”

 

January 3, 2017

 

If any of you are interested I have "some hints" about how to write these stories. If you let me know I'll post them.

 

Best regards,

 

George

[penrivers]

She was gorgeous, beautiful.

But, she was good at math, a genious.

Always intimidated me.

[Arcadian]

Hi Folks,

 

I hadn't stopped by here for a while. Great to see the postings.

 

Here's a couple more from me.

 

BTW, if I ever get this next book in print, the comment will be included.

 

The Last Hurrah!

Past few years, he’d, somewhat macabrely, wondered who would go first.

He 77 with heart disease, she recently diagnosed with cancer. In dog years, they were the same age.

Decided they’d take a trip. Get away from it all.

Car packed, ready.

Chest pains, toppled over. Tossed her the keys. “Drive carefully and have fun.”

 

January 4, 2017

 

This one’s pretty uplifting, hey! I wrote this when I accepted that my pup was pretty sick. She died January 15, 2017.

 

 

 

The Dogs’ Way

They demand nothing and expect little.

Always patient.

Understanding and forgiving.

Never vindictive.

Always by our side.

Will protect us till their death.

Won’t question what we do, but will always support us.

A simple treat will make their day.

If there was a God who was fair, they, the pups, would be walking us.

 

January 21, 2017

 

 

Pen and Paper-So Much Potential

 

“What do you mean?”

“You can write.”

“What?”

“Great American novel, poetry, short stories, satire, politics, philosophy, and on and on.”

“Wow.”

Gave him pen and paper.

“Now what?”

“Just write….”

“Ahh, what?”

“Anything that comes to you.”

“This is a lot of fun man, but, hey, I need to get back to my Xbox.”

 

 

January 21, 2018

 

 

They’d Been Carryin’ On for Years

Like many affairs, started with lunch and went from there.

Now, he 85 and she 81, on Social Security. Couldn’t meet at either of their houses, their spouses would be there.

The motel bills were taking a toll on their limited income.

“I’ve got it,” he said. “Check into a hospital and Medicare will pay.”

 

January 3, 2017

 

If any of you are interested I have "some hints" about how to write these stories. If you let me know I'll post them.

 

Best regards,

 

George

 

I really enjoy your stories! Thanks for posting more of them :-)

 

If it's not too much of a bother, I would be very interested in your hints for writing them. My own writing has been paralyzed lately, so I could use a perspective to jump start it!

 

 

- P.

[penrivers]

In the late fifties I saw him maybe in 7 rodeos, never could stay upon a bronco, so he never married a rich woman.

Edited July 28, 2019 by penrivers

[george c]

Arcadian......

 

Just stopped by.

 

This is something from my next book. Hope it helps.

 

Regards,

 

George

 

 

Should You Write 55-Word Stories?

 

Obviously, I’m a 55-word story advocate and promoter. First off, I think we should all be writing. Period. Whether we write in a journal, start the Great American novel; write short stories, or our favorite recipes. Just write. And, write regularly.

Want to write 55-word stories? Here are some ideas that may help you.

 

1) What do you want to say, if anything? Do you want to bring attention to what you see as one of societies’ injustices or absurdities? Want to write something light and funny, maybe joke-like? Want to poke fun at politicians? Have a personal experience, funny or not, that you’d like to write about? Want to satirize something? Do you have a hobby you want to write about? Are you ticked-off about something? Ahh, and one of my favorites, the human condition. Have a philosophy of life? A way to live and conduct yourself? A cautionary tale-what went wrong? What not to do? Something that wasn’t what you thought it was?

Need an idea for a story? Just look around you at your friends and relatives, coworkers, folks you observe while out eating lunch. Start being a watcher and observer of the Human Condition. Everyone “out here” has a story.

Observing a couple having lunch together and neither speaking. What’s going on? Don’t see anything…think, what if? And, make-up a story.

CNN, CBS, and so on and your local newspaper.

 

2) OK, you have your idea. Now, ignoring the number of words, write out your idea, your story. Just start pounding away on your computer or attacking a piece of paper with your pencil. Keep in mind; use up to seven words for the title. If you get stuck after the first couple of sentences, if you’re able, write the last sentence of the story and see if that helps.

3) When you finish your story, count the words. I’ve found that with few exceptions I end up with far more than 55 words. Now’s the time to start cutting words. I do not worry about sentence structure or grammar. Concentrate on telling your story. I use the word counter which counts a hyphenated word as one, not two. Some folks writing 55-word stories count hyphenated words as two. You pick which way you want to count your words. If the first round of word cutting does not get you to the 55 words, you may want to just let your story sit for a while…a few minutes, hours, or days. Then come back and start cutting again. Occasionally, I’ve found that I can redo the title, possibly moving a few words from the story to the title, which will allow cutting more words out of the story. Many of my stories start with eighty or so words. So far, I’ve never tossed a story because I couldn’t get to the necessary 55 words. Don’t get frustrated!

 

4) Ahh. Your story is now 55 words! Congratulations. Sit back, read, and enjoy your story. Is it saying what you wanted it to say? Making your point?

Remember, it’s your story and you’re reading it. Here’s what’s important, if a person who is not familiar with the story and why you wrote it, will they understand the story and get the point?

Due to the few words, we’re working with, sometimes when we’re whittling away, the meaning of the story, and the point we’re trying to make can become ambiguous or obscured. We may not notice it because we know what the story is. Ideally, anyone reading your story for the first time should understand the story and get what you are trying to say.

 

Send it to a friend and ask for comments. Also, remember, even after your story is finished it’s possible you may see a way to make it better. But, don’t obsess! And, I’m sure you’ve already started working on your next story. Createspace will print a book with as few as 24 pages. Hey, you could soon be published and FAMOUS! OK, at least published.

 

And, lastly, get a small notebook and keep it with you. As soon as you think of a story idea, write it down immediately. You may soon find you really like and enjoy writing the stories but at times, you may struggle to come up with a story idea. Don’t let your story ideas get away from you.

[george c]

Yes, started working on my third book, again.

Here are a few more stories.

 

They Had Been Together for Ten Years

Had their ups and downs, but seemed to make the relationship work.
Lately, she didn’t seem herself. He asked her about it, but she had no response.
Woke one morning and she was gone. What had he done, he wondered?
Phone rang. “Hello.”
“We have your puppy. Luckily, your phone number was on her collar.”

 

January 1, 2017

 

There Was Tension in the Office

George had worked for the company for 10 years when Lynn was hired. From her first day, there was an undercurrent of tension between them.
Recently, they were having conflicts almost daily.
She screamed, “If you were my husband I’d poison your coffee.”
He shouted back, “If I were your husband I’d gladly drink it.”

 

December 8, 2016

 

I got this idea from a cartoon.

 

I Want to Know You Better

“What do you mean? Have sex?”
“Oh, love just being around you, your work ethic, enjoy our conversations, eating lunch together at work. You have a brilliant mind, a unique intellect, personality is enchanting.”
“And?”
“Ahh, well, I ahh, have us a room at the Hilton.”
“Sounds good, bring me a note from your wife!”

 

December 19, 2016

 

Two Old Codgers Discussing the Latest Motorcycles

Both still had motorcycles but rarely rode.

“The Kawasaki ZX-14R goes 208 mph!”
“Dang. That’s something. Does it have all the fancy stuff: suspension, big disc brakes, and so on?”
“Yep, has all of that stuff.”
“Any new fancy electronics?”
“When it hits 175 mph it automatically calls the police department and the funeral home.”

 

Wish I could take credit for this one. But, alas, I got this idea from my friend, Eddie. Good one, Eddie.


Hope all of you folks are well. If you're staying in, now's a good time to write a few stories.

 

Best regards,

 

George

 

 

[BaronWulfraed]

Does "Ten Years" qualify as a shaggy dog story?