It's time for Literary Game No. 7. But first, let's discuss Literary Game No. 6, which I pushed out last week. We have three entries. Please take a moment to read them, then vote on the ones you like best. Offer your support, because the winner of this game will win 3 HBD.
And now ... for the entries!
Literary Game No. 6 Entrants
We had three entries into the contest for Literary Game No. 6. Writers were asked to draw four cards from an ordinary deck of playing cards (or use an online random card generator). Each card represented a phrase that must be used in the story they wrote for the contest. If you want to see the phrases associated with each card, see the rules for Literary Game No. 6.
Without further ado, I present the three stories for you to read and vote on this week, in order of submission:
Sample:
There was a sound from somewhere under the floorboards. Soft, like breathing. More like something calling.
"Do you hear that?" Isby asked.
Penny did hear it. It was practically a voice, begging for something. Begging for its name back.
Sample:
The delivery guy didn't even wait for me to sign. He just dumped the velvet box on my porch and took off like his butt was on fire.
Sample:
It was Patsy's frantic scribbling that made him look over. She was scratching away in a tight circle with a red pencil, almost tearing a hole in the paper. The picture she'd drawn was a caricature of Dave, and at his feet, turned through ninety degrees was a childlike drawing of a woman. It had to be Mary, the picture clearly showed her perfect dress. And Patsy had scored a deep crimson hole where Mary's heart should have been.
Each of these stories is worth a read in its own right. I encourage you to read each story and give each one a weighted vote according to your preference. The winner of the contest will be determined in part by order of submission, total payout, and my opinion. The first payout is in less than five hours, so make haste. Remember: You have a say in who the winner is.
Happy reading!
Literary Game No. 7
This week's literary game is simpler. Below are three sentences. Your task is to incorporate all three sentences into a story. Any genre. Any length between 100 words and 1,000 words.
The sky cracked open, but no one seemed surprised.
She carried her silence like a weapon, heavier than a two-handed sword.
They found the note tucked inside a shoe, written in a language no one remembered learning.
Now, for the rules to Literary Game No. 7.
- Upvote and reblog this post. Follow me if you haven't already.
- Using the above three sentences, write a story between 100 and 1,000 words. Publish it to your Hive blog using any frontend.
- Tag your story #literarygames.
- Deadline: Tuesday, July 8, 12:00 UTC
- Read other participants' stories. Comment on them and upvote them. No self-voting!
- You can post your stories in any writing community as long as you follow that writing community's guidelines.
- After publishing, drop a link to your story in the comments below.
- Have fun!
The winner of Literary Game No. 7 will receive 3 HBD as determined by three criteria:
- Order of submission (25%)
- Total payout after 7 days (25%)
- My opinion (50%)
The winner will be announced on the first Wednesday following the last payout (two weeks from today). Next week, the winner of Literary Game No. 6 will be announced.
Go forth and write!
Original image by ChatGPT.