washwords

A WASHWORDS CONTEST!!!!!!

Write me the shortest short story you can.

Winner gets a prize! (tbd) Reaaaddddy setttt gooooo.

In my “work” fun for DCBlogs, I noticed over the last few weeks that content across the area seemed to be… well, shrinking.

Chalk it up to the beaaauttiffffull weather or maybe (probably) I’m/we’re still not looking in the right place. DCblogs founder Pat had another thought: Writing reducer, thy name is Twitter!

He has a point; not only were there fewer (DC-related, clean, funny, sweet, or otherwise engaging) posts out there, but some that did catch my eye, were literally only as long as their title. That got me thinking….

Twitter’s “thing” is that you leave status lines of 140 characters or less only (think facebook, if you’re umm new to this whole interweb thang; or IM, if you are really new, or umm the p.s. at the end of a letter to your BFF (best friend forever) at sleepaway camp if you have NO idear what i’m talking about.

Full disclosure and/or comfort if you’re in that latter group: I had a brief romance with Twitter, early in my blogging time, and admit being pretty solidly in the “eh?” category now. But what I DO like about twitter: the simplicity, the parsimony of saying something in very few words and letters, as few as possible.

Many former journalists, wanna-be-writers, editors, readers of 8 million page reports put out by government agencies can appreciate that I bet.

So, with a nod to the loverly six-word memoirs, and sites such as this, I present: A WASHWORDS CONTEST!!!!!!

Write me the shortest short story you can.

Winner gets a prize! (tbd) Reaaaddddy setttt gooooo.

The fine print:

• Leave all entries in comments and/or present a link on your blog.)
• Deadline Next Thursday April 30, 6 p.m. (when I usually work on my Friday DCBlogs entry.)
• My scoring algorithm is still in development completely at my whim, but I can tell you there’s points for story, points for short, and bonus points for working in Washington and words.

contest, words, washington, writers, six words, twitter, short short story, short story, writing contest

UPDATE: the movie’s outtttt. once they show crabcakes at the fish market look for meeeeee. i’m that blur of a hat zooming past, behind Russell Crowe. Aren’t I brilliant? Lotsa fun for all dc’ers. Yah, so they get a few things “wrong” but lots right, lots of shout outs: the metro, crystal city, kennedy center, a “hospital” across the street from spezie. heh. Enjoy this flashback history of Wash’s movie career

******************

So everyone’s abuzz about the Oscars. Me, well i finally saw ONE nominee Frost/Nixon yesterday. And that’s where it happened:  a trailer for “my” movie, State of Play.

State of Play, for those new to the blog, or who somehow missed their E! update of how WW is involved in this major motion picture, event, is a new film starring Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck, based on a BBC miniseries of the same name.

And it was filmed IN DC, and, well more specifically, at WASHWORDS PAD (well okay, at a “nearby building” so near that they asked me, WW, to place lights in my window to backlight the scene! and paid me for it! so near that if a friend and I were to jump up and down behind the fake sheers they taped up to look like curtains in my living room, in our jammies, you might, just might catch a glimpse of us.)

And then, not only that, but they asked me, Washwords, to play the vital role of “Fish Market Patron” in a critical scene. I don’t want to be a spoiler or give away anything, but let’s just say … watch closely should you happen to spy a Fish Market Patron in a brown coat and adorable baseball hat-style knit cap, looking verrry cute. I mean I didn’t want to steal Russell’s moment or anything… but… talent can’t always be held back, y’know?

So look closely at this trailer below.

See the scene where Ben Affleck is being a Congressman at the CAPITOL? yah, that’s the Masonic Temple on 16th Street. See that sheer curtain over Ben’s head while Russell is yelling at him? I’m pretty sure WW might be right behind there. And see second 1:31 and then again at 1:34? It’s… the fish market!!!

Needless to say the producers didn’t want to let me be seen in a trailer but look closely, cause, I’m just about to or have just slammed right into Russell (okay, a few feet behind him) and in a later moment of cinematic glory, I’m going to … purchase some fish!!!! Really! and “fake make change with the fish monger!”

I KNOW! yah, it’s a gift. And hey, at least it seems not the entire fish market scene is cut. I have hopes.

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Peeking yellow, red
Tulips break the cold, dark, earth
Yet, still I shiver

Tired of winter
sniffling frozen noses
Grey, slow, roll of cloud

Yesterday, one ray
pierced straight through concrete path
I caught a glimpse: spring.

for more Washwords’ (and friends) haikus see Haiku You