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Simplifying the Short Story to the Extreme
“Simplify, simplify,” advised Henry David Thoreau, to which Ralph Waldo Emerson wryly, and wisely, replied: “One ‘simplify’ would have sufficed.”
Another writing master, Ernest Hemingway, once accepted a challenge of simplifying from colleagues who bet him he couldn’t write a complete story in a mere six words. The master wordsmith made them pay up with this gem: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”
Ernest Hemingway , according to literary lore, once won a bet with a masterful six-word short story.
It is the work of a genius, indeed, for the reader can instantly imagine another 1,000 words to fill out the story.
With this in mind, I challenged some friends and social media pals to write their own six-word story of fiction or memoir.
My good buddy Jeff McElroy, an accomplished author who is familiar with Papa Hemingway’s complete body of work from long to supremely short, responded thusly: “Here’s an attempt to make the most heartbreaking shortest story into a happier one: ‘Free baby shoes. Well-worn.’ ”
Here are a few more six-word stories . . .
From Marcella Williams: “The skiff landed. My life metamorphosed.”
Mitch Gold: “My kids are my greatest achievements.”
Scott Harris: “He was blessed with good friends.”
Karen Biedebach-Berry: “Sun, surf, sea-glass, Pierpont Beach house!”
Terry Wieser: “I tripped but never fell hard.”
Arlys Tuttle: “My phone rang; never guess who.”
Deborah Sutherlan-Hocamp: “Last surviving human hears the doorbell.”
From Ed Wehan, an ultra-marathoner who conquered the Western States 100 Mile Race in his younger days and is still a long-distance marvel at age 72-going-on-52: “I ran but age caught me!”
Allyson McAuley: “Read books, traveled world, shared books.”
Tom Koenig: “Viewed, pursued, aged, still pursuing her!”
Karen Lindell: “Her heart gently listens, loves, aches.”
Jill Shaffer: “Life is short, cherish every day.”
And my own mini-memoir six-pack: “Tries to make today a masterpiece.”
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Seeking even further simplicity, I posed a second challenge of brevity: write a happy story – fiction or memoir – in only four words.
Houston Wolf: “Lived happily ever after.”
From Allyson McAuley: “It wasn’t too late.”
Randall Richman offered, “Peace on Earth occurred,” and Kris Young echoed: “World peace is here.”
Teri Hu: “My kids are home!”
Susan Goodkin: “I’m at LAX arrivals.”
Elizabeth Black: “Then I saw you.”
Rebekah Reddy: “And then they hugged.”
Sandy O’Brien: “We named him Bennett.”
Irene Henry: “Babies’ unconditional loving smiles.”
Here’s three vivid images: Nancy Kirk, “I see a rainbow”; Althea Carlson, “There are puppies everywhere”; and Susan Jorgensen, “Yum, so much cake!”
Jon Gold: “Pastrami sandwich, half price.”
David Spruill: “Reading ‘Harry Potter’ again!”
Tom Spence: “It’s in the hole!
From Jayce Yeh, “Your son’s vitals stabilized,” and similarly from Mark Jasper, “My child is healthy.”
Toni Tuttle-Santana: “Family growing and thriving.”
Mike Davis: “Joy in my heart.”
Lisa Iannucci: “Smiled often, laughed much.”
Steve Cook: “I painted all day.”
Lisa Iannucci: “My screenplay was sold!”
Anne Kallas: “I adopted a dog/cat.”
From Joe Siddens came “Will you marry me?” to which Jill Shaffer added this happy sequel: “She said ‘yes!’ ”
From Keith Pillow, “Then she loved me”; from Jim Gstettenbauer: “She laughed, I smiled”; and from Josh Crowder, “We found love together.”
Nicole Marsella-Jensen: “Passport, a new stamp.”
Cary Ginell: “Trump falls off cliff.”
From Suz Montgomery, “I am cancer free,” and similarly from Deborah Sutherland-Hocamp: “The X-rays were negative.”
Ronna Streeton, “I have four grandchildren!” and Carol Roth, “Seven grandchildren equals joy!”
Wayne Kempton wrote a matrimonial memoir: “48th anniversary with Shari.”
Barry Sackett offered, “She loved the puppy,” and my former Star colleague Melissa Eastman Wantz made it happier yet with this slight rewrite: “The puppy loved her.”
Annie Elizabeth: “My heart is full.”
And Michelle Rogers wrote this heartwarming gem, which is memoir not fiction: “I donated my kidney.”
The last four words come from yours truly: “Column written for me.”
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Woody Woodburn writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com.
Check out my new memoir WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece”
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