#SixWordStoryChallenge – 9th June 2018

Challenge open Saturday 9th June 2018 – Thursday 14th June 2018

Welcome to the Six Word Story Challenge.

For those who have never dropped by before, a new prompt is posted every Saturday morning at 9am GMT, either on this site or that of fellow blogger Wonderwall. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to plot a story on that subject… in just six words.

Six words? How is that even possible? Surely six words is just a sentence, a phrase, an idea at best…? You can’t tell a story in as little as six words. Or can you?

The most famous example of a six word story is probably Hemingway’s legendary: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn”. While most of us who participate in this weekly challenge would be far too modest to compare ourselves to Hemingway, it’s still a great inspiration and proof that six words can be enough to sum up a story and convey a bucketload of emotion. If you’re interested, but don’t know where to start, check out this page for more examples and ideas.

So, without further ado, this week’s prompt is:

Magic

What else could it be, as I’ve spent my Friday evening curled up in bed with my daughters watching a Harry Potter DVD? (Actually, ‘Pringles’ or ‘chocolate’ might have been equally apt, but no matter. Magic it is!)

And with a nod to Harry Potter, here’s my attempt at today’s challenge:

His charm concealed hidden dark arts

See what you can come up with, and enter your six word story in the comments below.

So how does it work?

1. Leave your story in the comments until Thursday 9pm (GMT).
2. Like, comment & engage with other authors
3. On Thursday, I publish a poll – and this is the important bit – don’t forget to come back and vote for your favourite!
4. Bask in glory if you’re a winner.

Never tried microfiction before?

Never fear, help is at hand. You can get a few more hints and tips about writing six word stories here.

Can I share my story?

Of course – in fact, please do! The more people who take part in this weekly challenge, the merrier. Tell your story and inspire others to have a go. Write a blog post, send me a pingback, share your six word story on social media or reblog this post to encourage your own followers to take part. There are various different hashtags floating round t’internet, so you can use any of these to reach a wider audience – #SixWordStoryChallenge #6words #sixwordstory #microfiction #flashfiction #fiction #amwriting. The most common one we’re using at the moment is #SixWordStoryChallenge, so linking up to that hashtag should help you connect with other participants.

How is the winner chosen?

I close entry to the Six Word Story Challenge on Thursday at 9pm. I open a poll at 10pm which remains open for 24hrs. Anybody and everybody is invited to vote in this poll, the winner is the story with the most votes at 9pm on Friday. Simples!

Click through to this page to read the full rules of the challenge.

Good luck! Remember to share your entry on social media using the sharing buttons below! Let’s tell everyone about our challenge, the more the merrier! and don’t forget – use the hashtag#SixWordStoryChallenge.