May "100 Words Or Less" Writing Challenge

[Emily Wright]

A picture is worth a hundred words.

Here's the picture:

     It's a picture of two people seemingly out for a fun drive and somehow things have gone terribly wrong. The ominous title the author gave this 1939 story seems to suggest even more danger but we don't know.

     That's where you come in.

     Your challenge: Write an exciting - or humorous - blurb for this book that will make readers want to buy it. Tell us how this handsome couple came to be in the situation we see above.  Things to ponder:  Why is he in a white tuxedo? Where did she get that sexy dress? Does he really think she's that good a driver??  Tell us what events got them on the road and what dangers might loom ahead. And (if you're good - we mean really good) we'll award ten bonus points if you include the seven magic words that will have us racing for the book store check-out stand. (Everyone's going to be so embarrassed that they didn't think of it.)

     HOW TO ENTER: Simply fill in your entry as a "comment" to this blog (below) and then click on "Add comment." One entry will naturally follow another as they're added, so we can enjoy each one and see who the author is.

     Remember the two basic rules for this month's challenge:

Write an exciting blurb

that will help sell "There's Always Time to Die,"

and

Write it in 100 words or less.

     Remember to count your words before you click on the "Add comment" button!

     The DEADLINE is high noon, Thursday, May 31st!

     BEST ENTRIES will be lauded and applauded at our General Membership Meeting, June 2nd, at the Glendale Public Library. If you're chosen the best, be prepared to stand and read your entry to the admiration and envy of everyone there. Of course, we'll have the illustration displayed right behind you.

     Remember to be creative and have fun!

[Emily Wright]

AWG May "100 Words Or Less" Writing Challenge Winners!

 

1st Place: Ryan Esteban Stabile

 

2nd Place: Gerald Aho

3rd Place: Vic Cabrera

 

[Ryan Esteban Stabile]

@Emily - thank you so much for the commentary. It is very constructive and I greatly appreciate it.

[Emily Wright]

No one won the ten bonus points by using the phrase that always has this kind of book selling like hotcakes:

"SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE!"

[Lauretta Coumarbatch]

When meek nun trainee, Anna, met red-headed rake, Luke Hansum while visiting the Vatican, she never imagined that she'd be driving him down the street half-naked as he shoots back at the red-headed thugs persuing them.

Worse, poor Anna can't fanthom why the "Band of the Red" wants Aunt Kitty's old letters. Now Luke wants Anna to skip her convent vows to flee to Morocco with him to nurse him back to health and all Anna can think of is his dreamy eyes.

Will Anna listen to Mother Superior or risk love and life for an adventure!

 

Emily's Review:  The judges had a wonderful time, Lauretta, laughing over the opening line and the images it painted. We only wish the next graph kept us laughing; instead it went into ambiguous details  ("Band of Red?") ("Aunt Kitty's old letters?") that left us a little perplexed as to what was going on. Good closing question (that should have had a question mark, Lauretta!!) "Fanthom?"  "Pursuing?"  Remember to check for spelling and typos, everyone. Little mistakes like these slow down a story's momentum and the reader's enjoyment.

[Brian Dalton]

What do cyborg waiter assassins, bloodthirsty amazons and an unrelenting game of laser tag have in common? Discover the answer to that question and more when There's Always Time to Die!

Emily's Review: A wondrously terrifying opening question, Brian.  We wish you had taken the possibilities another fifty words or so to give us a larger picture of what might happen.

[Lauretta Coumarbatch]

 

THERE'S ALWAYS TIME TO DIE(DYE--tehee)

 

Mega-stars Madonna and Clooney have faced many dangers on screen and off but they are not prepared to face the worst danger ---  The consequences of a Red Carpet fashion disaster!

Read this exciting adventure full of intruige, bullets and chiffon, as this dynamic duo evades the harpies from the Fashion Police.

Madonna: "Luckily, I'm wearing my cone-bra. Now my hands are free to shoot while "the girls" drive."

Will Madonna live to complete her Blond Ambition tour? And should she?  Will George regret his choice to go red? Most importantly, do their drapes match their rugs?

Read it!

 

Emily's Review: That's what we like about you, Lauretta - you don't give up! You just keep writing and submitting entries! You had a lot of funny one-liners but the "fashion police" thread gets left behind.  Nice try!

[Karin Masden]

Are you ready for the ride of your life? Crack open the pages of There’s Always TIME to DIE and be instantly transported into a world of untouchable politicians and the women who do their dirty work. Will Eva’s turbulent love affair with the “man with the mustache” result in a fairy tale ending or a tragedy more catastrophic than anyone could have ever imagined? Is Marlena really just a harmless ingénue or is she expertly seducing information from an unknowing audience? Only you can answer these questions, and only after you’ve read There’s Always TIME to DIE!

 

Emily's Review: Judge's Award for "Best Blurb Writing." It always effective to open with a question that challenges the would-be reader.  "Crack open," and "instantly transported" move the answer into focus, but the proposed plot-line questions ("Will Eva...?" " Is Marlena...?") seem to peer into the future  from the feminine viewpoint a bit too much.  I would have liked the questions to split the male-female point-of-view and centered on the action at hand rather than romantic postulations for the future. Stay with the picture, Karin. That's what the challenge asks you to do.

[Ryan Esteban Stabile]

He is a loose cannon used car salesman who can't be stopped. She is a fast talking lady of the night with a penchant for trouble. When she gets kidnapped and left for dead in the trunk of a car on his used car lot, no amount of haggling will stop these two worlds from colliding. Now the two are out for revenge for the one who stuffed her in that lemon, but when he starts to fall for her sweet side, will she become his main squeeze? Pucker up for There's Always Time to Die!

FIRST PLACE!

Emily's Review: GREAT use of staccato, machine-gun rhythm at the top, Ryan, but I would have preferred the use of casual talk contractions ("He's..." "She's...") instead of the more formal stuff ("He is..." "She is....").  The concept of a "loose cannon used-car salesman" had me laughing out loud. Sort of cringed when I  came across your take on the old saw "when worlds collide."  Everyone seems to love using some version of it.  Also: "but when he starts to fall for her sweet side, will she become his main squeeze?"might read better if both side of the equation follow the same proposition, i.e., "but if he starts to fall for her sweet side, will she become his main squeeze?" And I almost expected that he might "fall for her sweet ride" rather than "sweet side." Still, the flow of your words was terrific! Congratulations!

[Vic Cabrera]

When the There's Always Time to Die Driving School had their Prom interrupted by a heartless Meter Maid, all hell broke lose!

Forget "defensive driving!" 

Now it's personal!

THIRD PLACE!

Emily's Review: Congratulations, Victor. Who needs a hundred words when you can set off fireworks in just 28?? Great two final lines.

[jim calocci]

comment by jim calocci

 

you've heard the saying,

A  pictire is worth a  100 words

well, you need to find the following answers

so,you have no choice but to buy

"THERE'S ALWAYS TIME to   DIE"

you've got to KNOW

what situation are they in

YOU have to find out

why is he wearing a   WHITE TUXEDO ???

I mean  R-E-A-L-L-Y

you 've got to KNOW

where did she get that dress

I mean RED and BLACK TRIM

        G-E-E-Z-E

you've heard the mantra

a picture is worth a 100 words

you have to find these answers,so ,go RIGHT NOW.buy

"THERE'S ALWAYS TIME to   DIE"

Emily's Review: The judges had kind of a rough time trying to figure out what you were going for here, Jim.  The format suggests it could be a free-form poem or... something.  I personally had a little trouble trying to follow your reference to the woman's "red and black trim" dress.  Have you calibrated the colors on your monitor recently?  Anyway, nice try!!  I hope to see another entry from you in our June Writing Challenge.