"For sale: baby shoes, never worn." That's my favorite short story by Hemingway.
There seems to be a mini-revival of mini-tales. Bloggers Virginia Backaitis and Robert McEvily seek very short stories ("What can you say in six sentences?"). Some of the sentences in the contributions there are very long. And many of the topics tilt towards the physical. Mat Honen offers one-sentence treasures, one per page.
Wired Magazine was even more stringent in its rules. (Reminds me of the winners' word limit at The Webbys.) It invited some novelists to try their hands at six-word science fiction. Some of my favorites:
It’s behind you! Hurry before it
- Rockne S. O’Bannon
Longed for him. Got him. Shit.
- Margaret Atwood
With bloody hands, I say good-bye.
- Frank Miller
Wasted day. Wasted life. Dessert, please.
- Steven Meretzky
K.I.A. Baghdad, Aged 18 - Closed Casket
- Richard K. Morgan
Starlet sex scandal. Giant squid involved.
- Margaret Atwood
