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Clarion West is having a fund-raising Write-a-Thon. Which raises money by . . . well, to be perfectly honest, I have no idea how they get money out of it. If I were the sort of person who understood that sort of thing, I'd probably be far too rich to give them a helping hand. Writers write and somebody pledges -- maybe the writers themselves, maybe other people. The details are here.
Anyway, it's traditional that I support the cause with some stunt or other. Last year I crashed and burned rather spectacularly because I was writing a novel and had no time for and therefore no business in getting involved in the 'Thon at all. So this year I decided to make up for my self-created fiasco. Because I have plans that require a great number of podcast scripts and stockpiled flash fiction, I've committed myself to writing a short-short or script for every day Clarion West is in session. That's six weeks, for a total of 42 stories-or-scripts.
To make things interesting, I'll commit to writing one item per day Monday through Friday. To keep my weekends free, I reserve the right to create those stories/scripts ahead of time should I so choose.
And just to make sure that at least some money goes to CW as a direct result of my efforts, I'll be selling Tuckerizations for ten bucks a pop. If you give Clarion West ten dollars, your name, and a few random facts about yourself, I'll write a short-short for you and post it online.
I'll share the details of the mechanics of this just as soon as I learn 'em. The workshop -- and the challenge -- begins Monday.
Above: I was at the Pook & Pook auction house yesterday and took a snap of an antique rocking horse's head. Isn't that a sweet expression? It looks a lot like the horse in Gahan Wilson's ". . . and then we'll get him!" cartoon.
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How about every author that is involved in the CW program writes a short story for the sole purpose of selling/raffling off to the highest bidder? Something sorta like your Bottled Story kinda thinger... the author retains the rights and all that but the story would be a one of a kind, and pending on the author, well I think they could get a fair chunk of change for a one and only short story from ___________! Just an idea.
ReplyDeleteIt's a good idea, but . . .
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that writing is not a single skill but a wide range of skills that result in a superficially similar product. Some writers can churn out a story on demand, while for others merely trying to do so will freeze their creative juices solid, rendering them incapable of ever writing a word again.
The mechanisms of writing are subtle and mysterious. Best not to mess with 'em.
It's a good idea, but . . .
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that writing is not a single skill but a wide range of skills that result in a superficially similar product. Some writers can churn out a story on demand, while for others merely trying to do so will freeze their creative juices solid, rendering them incapable of ever writing a word again.
The mechanisms of writing are subtle and mysterious. Best not to mess with 'em.
"I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold ..."
ReplyDeleteBesides, $10, and some guy tells me I can have my arse in space for free.