Writing Genre Swappers [potential M-VSL]

[Raiyuu]

[QUOTE]A man arrives at a drinking establishment. He asks a question of the woman serving. When he knows the answer, he leaves once more.[/QUOTE] [color=DarkGreen][size=1]Here's a little experiment in the same sort of style as the rip-roaringly successful [i]55 Fiction[/i] thread. Above is a generic short story. The idea is, we see what works of literary art everyone can come up with based within the restrictions of those events.

All you have to do is not stray outside the events outlined. So for instance, a woman can't enter and ask a question of a man. But the man could be anyone; the question could be anything; he could leave for any number of reasons. You can add other characters as long as the two mentioned don't stray outside their events. There are theoretically infinite ways in which this can be done; it could be horror, romance or sci-fi, the establishment could be a bar, a Wild West-style saloon or a drinking fountain. You can write in the style of your favourite author, make it a poem or a playscript, or insert your favourite anime or manga characters into it. It can be as long or as short as you like, but try not to describe events that take place before or after the event unless you use characters' memories.

Here's one to start you off, in the style of William Gibson.

[QUOTE][color=DimGray]Hathaway came in from the cold and rain of Akihabara to see Lani.

Lani worked in one of Akihabara's theme bars, the ones the Japanese seemed fixated, fetishistic, about these days. This one, 'Live Forever', was a British Rock bar; the doors, Western saloon-style like those old movies, were LPs, mint, still sealed clean in plastic Union Jacks. There were guitars on the walls, some of them these weird shapes like stars and hearts, that [i]need[/i] people had then, to stand out, not just be a face, only then they ended up just a guitar. The karaoke stage at one end, silent, its presence hardly acknowledged, like an embarrassing spot or sore on the face, noticed but by tacit agreement never mentioned.

Lani, behind the bar, that purple forelock over her face the way he liked, except when she noticed him come in through the swinging LP saloon doors she pushed it up and around, behind her ear.

Eye to eye now, but she just looked away, down towards the pump handles and the sawn-off he knew was down there because he'd seen it that time they'd made love down there, and she'd made him promise not to mention it to the law because they weren't meant to have that kind of firepower in here.

"Well?" The word just there between them now, pinned where her eyes came up and met his. No reply, not even a gesture, a shake of the head, but her meaning clear and cold as snowmelt, cascading down over him.

Hathaway knew her eyes weren't on him as he swung the LP saloon doors back again, but he told himself that he couldn't see, he couldn't see so she could be watching him leave. She could.[/color][/QUOTE] Over to all of you. Have fun with it!
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