NetFinds: SF in Six Words

By John Freeman on July 9, 2008

A nice little find this evening… back in November 2006, Wired Magazine published the results of an appeal for some very short SF stories – six word stories to be precise.

The challenge to sci-fi, fantasy, and horror writers from the realms of books, TV, movies, and games was inspired by Ernest Hemingway, who once wrote a story in just six words (“For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”). He is said to have called it his best work.

Dozens of writers put their words to paper and while Arthur C. Clarke refused to trim his (“God said, ‘Cancel Program GENESIS.’ The universe ceased to exist.”), the the rest obliged with some concise masterpieces, including Alan Moore (“Machine. Unexpectedly, I’d invented a time”), William Shatner (“Failed SAT. Lost scholarship. Invented rocket.”), Frank Miller (“With bloody hands, I say good-bye.”), Charles Stross (“Osama’s time machine: President Gore concerned.”) and Orson Scott Card (“The baby’s blood type? Human, mostly.”).

(Netfind courtesy of Michael Norwitz: “”Human infertility? Gengineering! Results tasty, too.”)

• Read all the six word stories here on the Wired site.. and perhaps post your own here…

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.