Wednesday, July 27, 2011

It Was a Dark and Stormy Night - The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest 2011

On the way to dinner last night, my husband mentioned how funny the winner of the "dark and stormy" opening line of a novel winner was this year. He couldn't remember the name of the contest, but I found it online this morning.

The Bulwer-Lytton homepage boasts: Where “WWW” means “Wretched Writers Welcome”. Rules for the contest can be found on their page:

http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/

Inspiration is taken from the opening of Edward George Bulwer-Lytton's Paul Clifford written in 1830

It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents--except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness.
The winner of The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest for 2011 is Sue Fondri, from my native state, Wisconsin. Sue wrote:

Cheryl’s mind turned like the vanes of a wind-powered turbine, chopping her sparrow-like thoughts into bloody pieces that fell onto a growing pile of forgotten memories.
The runner-up was Rodney Reed from Tennessee:

As I stood among the ransacked ruin that had been my home, surveying the aftermath of the senseless horrors and atrocities that had been perpetrated on my family and everything I hold dear, I swore to myself that no matter where I had to go, no matter what I had to do or endure, I would find the man who did this . . . and when I did, when I did, oh, there would be words.
For more giggles, you can check out the other winners and notable entries here:

http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/2011.htm

Also included on their site are links to The Dark and Stormy Night board game, which looks highly amusing and a link to Swig Bar in San Francisco featuring a cocktail called "The Dark and Stormy".

And if that wasn't enough humor for you, you can always depend on the Sticks and Stones page where actual bad author quotes abound. This page will make any writer feel better!

Gear up and get ready for next year, folks!

As always, happy writing and happy reading to all!

2 comments:

Erin O'Riordan said...

"...oh, there would be words." Hilarious!

Anonymous said...

You can get the game, It Was a Dark and Stormy Night, on Amazon and they offer free shipping.