Week 4 Story Lab: Microfiction

     

A magnifying glass for reading tiny stories (Wikimedia Commons)

    Well, that was certainly interesting. I don't know how I feel about it quite yet. On one hand, it is really fascinating to have an entire story crammed into such a small space. On the other, I want to know more! I just want to read some of these stories as fully fleshed out things. My imagination is fun and all, but I want more from some of these authors.

    Also, this has made me even more conscious of my word count. (Even if it doesn't seem like it here.) I am studying film and television production here at OU with a focus on screenwriting. One of the biggest lessons to learn in screenwriting is the importance of brevity. There is no room for purple prose on a script page because every word is meant to translate to something on screen. You don't write, "He ran as fast as he could out of the door, smacking his shoulder on the frame of the doorway on the way out." You write, "He runs out. He smacks his shoulder on the door frame." It has been one of the hardest lessons for me to learn. I love writing big, long paragraphs of description. It's just fun for me. It's like painting without actually learning to paint. However, it's bad form in my field. I think reading and writing some microfiction stories might help with that.

    I have never really read a lot of microfiction before. I'd definitely never seen it under that name. There is a subreddit called r/TwoSentenceHorror that I happen across sometimes. It's name is pretty self explanatory. It's a community on Reddit in which people post horror stories condensed down to two sentences. Typically, the title of the post is the setup and then you open the post for the ending or reveal. They can be pretty entertaining and unsettling at times. However, most posts there are pretty formulaic and only the cream of the crop are worth reading for the most part. Most stories in that community go something like, "My neighbor has been missing for three days, now. I had almost finished cleaning the blood up when the police arrived." It's a mysterious setup followed by some hint of evil presence. Maybe a chill comes over the protagonist, some slime oozes from the wall, or we find out our protagonist is the villain. It's fun, and it really boils down the essence of horror. Incidentally, it makes most of them very similar. The really good and creative ones are just that much better for it.

    I really liked the idea of six word memoirs. I genuinely felt like I could understand and relate to those people with just six words. I understood who they were because they said, "Hey, here's who I am at the core." I know that Mojo Hershman is an overactive chef who is likely a lot of fun in the kitchen even if he can be a bit much some times. I know that Mojo probably has a pretty hectic life and probably feels a bit overwhelmed at times. I know, or rather I think I know, these things because Mojo Hershman summed up his life by saying, "Hyper chef bouncing off the wall." It may not be the most profound or poetic six word memoir but it told me so much about who Mojo is besides a guy with a cool name. 

    I think the six word memoir will be something I'll use in my writing going forward. If I can tell you who my character is in six words, I probably have a pretty good grasp on them. Even better, hopefully, you have a pretty good grasp on them as well. Being able to describe who someone is at their core in six words would be so helpful for screenwriting because I can fit that in a character introduction. "KARA (22), a wild youth, free with hope, opens the door." Bam! The scene has started and immediately the person I'm pitching this script too can understand Kara's essence. 

    This has been a very interesting and helpful experience. I will definitely be taking the lab option from here on out. 

Bibliography. Can You Tell Your Life Story In Exactly Six Words by NPR                                 https://www.npr.org/transcripts/123289019