Flash Fiction Challenge: The Unexplainable Photo Challenge
Some brief administrative fol de rol:
Last week’s worldbuilding challenge, wherein I exhort folks to write new myths and gospels for the invented gods and goddesses of Blackbloom is live — I will casually note that, entries so far are quite low. We need more, if possible (elsewise I’ll interpret it as a sign that it’s time for the worldbuilding experiment to end). Have you tried your hand, yet?
The prior week’s fiction challenge — “An Affliction Of Alliteration” has plenty of entries, and is in fact why I’m being so slow to pick a winner. Reading fifty-one 1,000 word stories is like reading a short novel. In other words: holy crap. Expect an answer later today, which will be posted at that page.
Now.
This week’s is a doozy.
A link that recently whirled and pirouetted its way around the Internet is this one:
50 Unexplainable Black & White Photos.
They are equal parts hilarious, absurd, abstract, disturbing, and downright creepy.
Your job is to choose one.
And write a story about that photo. In this way, you are “explaining” the “unexplainable.”
Any genre. Up to 1,000 words.
You should identify the photo you’re choosing both by description and by the photo’s numerical identification found at that Buzzfeed link above. Post the story at your blog. Link here. Point the way.
You’ve got one week.
Friday, December 23rd. Day before the day before Christmas. Ain’t that sweet?
Jump in, get weird, start writing. See you on the other side.
December 16, 2011 @ 9:03 AM
“I’ll interpret it as a sign that it’s time for the worldbuilding experiment to end.”
Don’t even say such things. Wash your mouth out with erm… whiskey? whiskey should work, right?
I imagine the entries to this weeks challenge are certainly going to be interesting’, image number 2 is leading me to some very grim thoughts.
December 16, 2011 @ 9:23 AM
Chuck! Put the gun down, and step away from the Blackbloom. Do it now! I’m writing, OK? See? Look at my fingers fly! Just put. The gun. Down.
Great choice of picture for this post. Crystallizes the unexplainable nature of the photos very well.
Joy and Sorrow | Darlene's Stories
December 16, 2011 @ 11:03 AM
[…] http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2011/12/16/flash-fiction-challenge-the-unexplainable-photo-challenge… […]
December 16, 2011 @ 11:08 AM
Joy and Sorrow:
http://darlene.underdahl.net/?p=112
December 16, 2011 @ 11:17 AM
I have been wanting to jump into the Blackbloom thing but I have just been mired in too many other projects. I promise to try and throw in some thoughts next round.
As for the pictures…. I think I understand David Lynch a little more now.
December 16, 2011 @ 11:39 AM
so, if i don’t have a blog or website?
December 16, 2011 @ 12:38 PM
@JKeller —
Can post here in comments or use something like Tumblr or G+. 🙂
— c.
December 16, 2011 @ 1:16 PM
“Put the gun down, and step away from the Blackbloom.”
I couldn’t have stated it better. Thanks, Ryan.
Pretty please with sugar and aminiotic fluid on it, Chuck, don’t terminate Blackbloom. I need something to get me anxious.
December 16, 2011 @ 1:46 PM
Forgive the blog-challenged here, stupid question incoming:
Tried to post a comment and it didn’t show, thought it maybe didn’t go through so i tried once more (so sorry if i double did something somewhere) Am I not doing something right or is there a delay between submit comment and it showing up or something?
December 16, 2011 @ 4:22 PM
@Samantha —
Sorry, you got spammified!
You are rescued from that spammy oubliette.
— c.
December 16, 2011 @ 1:54 PM
I love this. There were so many I wanted to play with, but #2 stood out as particularly fertile. Here’s my contribution: “Stitch and Bitch”. http://jamiewyman.blogspot.com/2011/12/black-and-white-flash-challenge.html
December 16, 2011 @ 3:26 PM
I will be very laconic due to lack of time.
A kid with chicken phobia and nightmares is trying to hide from a homicidal zombie-rooster. In a parallel universe this is how the end of the world starts – the rooster ate a crop out of a mad alchemist’s farm and became ill and evil – even more evil as roosters go – then he pecked the kid (who obviously is not very good at hide-and-seek) to almost/death and then.. Well, we all know how the zombie apocalypse goes.
The picture was delivered to our universe by one of the last people from the other universe who could time and space travel (because in That universe they could do that on daily basis) as a warning.
So, Be Warned!
December 16, 2011 @ 3:48 PM
Thank you for getting me into the flow of writing again! http://thepantslesswonder.blogspot.com/2011/12/flash-challenge.html
December 16, 2011 @ 5:00 PM
Woot! Rescue from an oubliette, always perks up the day lol
Posting my Blackbloom entry while I think on this one and hoping not to feed the spambot anymore today *fingers crossed*
December 16, 2011 @ 5:19 PM
Can anyone here not think of the movie Labyrinth when they see/hear the word oubliette? Maybe its just me.
I really hope Blackbloom doesn’t get shot down, its got so much going for it, and I think the idea of world building as a group is fantastic.
Anyways, Dance magic Dance!
December 16, 2011 @ 9:25 PM
I played this week!
Less than 300 words, but here it is – MOUNTAIN MAGIC:
http://josinlmcquein.blogspot.com/2011/12/flash-fiction-unexplainable-photos.html
A Quick Update | J W Manus
December 17, 2011 @ 10:25 AM
[…] you need a boost and maybe a hankie-break, check them out. Meanwhile, Marina Bridges tipped me that Chuck Wendig is hosting a fiction challenge, the subject being a set of the strangest, funniest, most […]
December 17, 2011 @ 6:11 PM
I was inspired by Photo #48. You can find my story, JUST RIGHT, here:
http://katherineowens.blogspot.com/2011/12/when-just-right-is-just-wrong.html
Marina's Horror Short Stories
December 18, 2011 @ 9:27 AM
[…] decided to join Chuck Wendig’s latest flash fiction challenge. I recently finished reading Chuck’s book Double Dead. If you like vampires and/OR […]
December 18, 2011 @ 9:32 AM
I came up with an explanation for photo #41, basket boy. You can find my story here… http://horrorshortstories.wordpress.com/2011/12/18/367/
Thanks for the fun challenge!
December 18, 2011 @ 9:39 PM
OK…my first person-I-don’t-know-but-whose-work-I-enjoy challenge. I hope I am worthy enough to be here, lol! 😉
http://kellyashew.blogspot.com/2011/12/perfection.html
December 19, 2011 @ 5:46 AM
So I did #39… It’s called Ruminations on Death and Betrayal by a Slightly Dramatic Ten-Year-Old.
http://samanthajmathis.tumblr.com/post/14451429266/ruminations-on-death-and-betrayal-by-a-slightly
December 19, 2011 @ 7:44 AM
#27. Woof, motherfuckers.
http://www.blueinkalchemy.com/2011/12/19/flash-fiction-the-unexplainable-photo-challenge/
Flash Fiction: ‘Food For Thought’ | | The Zombie ChimpThe Zombie Chimp
December 19, 2011 @ 10:05 AM
[…] weeks Flash Fiction Challenge ‘The Unexplainable Photo Challenge‘ from the oft visited Terribleminds.com asked us to look at these 50 bizarre […]
December 19, 2011 @ 10:09 AM
Here is mine. I based it on #46. I call it ”Food for Thought’.
http://www.thezombiechimp.com/2011/12/19/flash-fiction-food-for-thought/
Flash Fiction: The Unexplainable Photo | The Happy Logophile
December 20, 2011 @ 2:31 AM
[…] and make sure you pop over and read the other entries, […]
December 20, 2011 @ 2:34 AM
Those photos are… interesting. I went with number 14 for my story: Solsitce Magic.
http://wp.me/p1teED-jM
(It’s nice to be back after missing a few of these challenges!)
December 20, 2011 @ 3:42 AM
I find it odd they included the ones with the kids smoking. Most of those are likely attributable to Tom Thumb. He apparently enjoyed dressing in kids clothing and acting like an adult around people who didn’t know.
December 20, 2011 @ 9:25 AM
Couldn’t help myself. Did a second one that also coincides with Thomas Pluck’s challenge. For #43 – “A Man of Discerning Character” http://jamiewyman.blogspot.com/2011/12/twofer-tuesday.html
December 21, 2011 @ 3:26 AM
Remember the Safe Word for Safe Fun everyone!
https://chriswhitewrites.wordpress.com/2011/12/21/308/
December 21, 2011 @ 8:04 PM
Another great challenge, Chuck. Thank you.
My offering is a story around #14. It’s called Little Mike Billy. Enjoy — and thanks again, Chuck
http://warnerkirby.blogs.com/clintonaut/2011/12/little-mike-billy.html
December 21, 2011 @ 9:19 PM
okay.. so pic #28 screamed “me me me me” and I had to “explain” it.
I hope you’ll read it before looking at the picture again.. but that’s me.
Title: Interchangeable.
My site is down (i’m a lazy web designer), so I used Issuu… requires Flash to view.
http://issuu.com/ansatsusya/docs/interchangeable
December 22, 2011 @ 12:46 PM
#48.
Wishful Thinking.
http://metagamers.com.br/2011/12/the-unexplainable-photo-challenge/
Flash Fiction Challenge: “Christmas In A Strange Place”
December 23, 2011 @ 7:34 AM
[…] up, last week’s challenge — “The Unexplainable Photo” — is live and worth checking out. Killer stories there. If you’re looking for […]
Hello world! « epenymous
December 23, 2011 @ 9:26 AM
[…] challenge that I couldn’t stop thinking about, at the fantastic blog terribleminds. It was a challenge to write about one of these 50 unexplainable black and white photos, crazy photos! I set myself […]
Flash Fiction Challenge – 50 unexplainable b&w photos « epenymous
December 23, 2011 @ 11:20 AM
[…] this terribleminds flash fiction challenge, it was difficult to choose! More than a few of the photos screamed vivid […]
December 23, 2011 @ 11:25 AM
Solstice Ball #28:
http://www.casondrabrewster.com/?p=324
December 23, 2011 @ 11:39 AM
Penguipocalypse #8
http://epenymous.com/2011/12/23/flash-fiction-challenge-50-unexplainable-bw-photos/
December 23, 2011 @ 12:01 PM
Inspired by #26: http://paultevis.com/blog/2011/12/23/sjdbeck-farm.html
December 23, 2011 @ 1:52 PM
I missed the deadline, but thought I’d offer my contribution regarding #45: http://lesannberry.com/2011/12/blind-mary.html
December 23, 2011 @ 8:45 PM
My contribution to the fray:
http://pdhinson.com/?page_id=123
Patrick O'Duffy » Blog Archive » Black Veil and Gloves
December 25, 2011 @ 5:45 AM
[…] a lot of my flash fiction, this one’s a response to one of Chuck Wendig’s flash challenges, this time to create a story based on one of these 50 Unexplainable Black & White Photos. […]
December 25, 2011 @ 8:36 PM
So hey, I know this is a couple of days late, but I wanted to put it on on Christmas Day as a present to my blog readers.
So here’s ‘Black Veil and Gloves’, a story of boxing and love gone wrong as inspired by image #15:
http://patrickoduffy.com/2011/12/25/black-veil-and-gloves/
Shared Misery | I Dream, and Wake, and Wonder
December 31, 2011 @ 10:06 PM
[…] Wendig challenge– this one involves choosing a picture from Buzz Feed’s “50 Unexplainable Black […]
Twofer Tuesday | Nerdmaste
March 17, 2013 @ 2:43 AM
[…] Tuesday Posted on 19/12/2011 by Jamie in Uncategorized. Last week I used Chuck Wendig‘s challenge to jump back into the flash fiction pool with “Stitch and Bitch“. Well, there was […]
Black and White – A Flash Challenge | Nerdmaste
March 17, 2013 @ 2:44 AM
[…] get back to some flash fun. This morning I checked out Chuck Wendig‘s blog and he had a good flash challenge up for the masses to chew on. With the standard 1000 word limit, we penmonkeys are to craft a story […]
Twofer Tuesday | Nerdmaste
March 20, 2013 @ 3:31 PM
[…] by Jamie in challenge, flash fiction, writers, writing. Last week I used Chuck Wendig‘s challenge to jump back into the flash fiction pool with “Stitch and Bitch“. Well, there was […]