This post is for the Sometimes Stellar Storyteller’s Six Word Story Challenge. This week’s theme is horror. I tried out several different approaches to this one but then couldn’t decide which to actually use so I decided to include three different ones! I hope you like them.
Empty swing creaks: a mother weeps.
Screams echo as darkness slowly creeps.
Hand clutches the blood-soaked knife.
As I can’t post all three of the six word stories on the challenge page I would love it if you could let me know which one you like best in the comments below. The one that receives the most votes will be posted on The Sometime’s Stellar Storyteller’s page . 🙂
I vote for the second one! 🙌 it screams of a horror story waiting to be told.
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Thanks for the vote, Ameena. 🙂 1 and 2 are currently tied!
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Yay! Cant wait to hear which gets most votes in the end
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The first one is more sad than horror and therefore my favorite. However if the theme is horror, the second one is outstanding. The third, excellent as well, is more suited for a gruesome theme. They’re all wonderful so take my opinions with a grain of salt!! 🙂
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Thank you, Sabina. 🙂 I’ve so far had eight votes apiece for one and two so I’m still not sure which to post on the challenge page! I’m very glad you like them.
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Screams!
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Thank you. 🙂
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I like the first.
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Thanks for the feedback. 🙂 There seems to be a real divide between one and two – they’ve each received eight votes!
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Wow! An even split.
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The first one! Every mother’s worst nightmare
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That’s exactly what I was going for! Thanks for the vote, Kay. 🙂
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My pleasure 😊
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I like all 3 as each one has its own “scare” quality but depends on whether the reader is visually stimulated or would words create more demons in their head? I would pick #2 for a horror piece as darkness and fog combined speak of unknown forces and your caption seals the deal. screams would send chills up my spine.You are very talented!
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Thank you very much for the feedback, Singledust. 🙂 So far there’s been a clean divide between one and two with each of them receiving eight votes! I’m glad you liked them.
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It was something i really enjoyed reading and thinking about, so cool that you wanted our feedback and appreciate that you took the time to read everyone’s response. When will you post the final results? I wish I had a quarter of your talent in weaving a story!
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Thank you for your lovely comments. 🙂 I’ll probably include the results at the end of my next post – which might be a photography post if I have time to put one together after I get home from work tonight (which is where I am at the moment).
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First one. No question. “An empty swing. A mother weeps!” Beyond distrubing!
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I wanted to express a different type of horror with that one – more a mother’s worst nightmare than the eery / gory horror story approach of two and three. I’m glad it came across that way. 🙂 Unfortunately both one and two have eight votes so I’m still not sure what to post on the challenge page! Thanks for visiting and voting.
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I would have gone with the first thought that came across to me. For me the first response to an idea works better. I tend to out think myself sometimes.
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In between the time I saw the prompt and the time I sat down to write I’d actually had about eight different ideas! My imagination can sometimes be over-productive!
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Yeah, I understand that. But in a larger piece you can change on the fly. Cant do that in six words.
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I like the first one. It’s very sad and speaks of a tragic back story.
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I really wanted a picture of a ‘missing’ poster to illustrate that one, to give more of a sense of the back story I intended. Unfortunately I couldn’t find one. Thanks for voting, Ali. 🙂
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Screams slowly echo is my choice
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Thanks for visiting and voting. 🙂
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The second one – much creepier and suggests the horror 🙂
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Thanks for the feedback, Haylee. 🙂 So far one and two have the same number of votes so I’m still not sure which to post on the challenge page!
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Decisions, decisions! I’d personally toss a coin… Then go with the opposite!!
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I may well end up doing that!
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Wonderfully written! Each one is great but the first seems to be more grief than horror. And the second one is the creepiest out of the remaining two, in my opinion=)
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I’m glad you like them. 🙂 Your feedback is appreciated. One and two are currently tied so if I have to make the final decision myself I’ll be taking your opinion of the first one into account. Thanks for visiting!
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The first
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Thanks for the feedback. 🙂
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The first one…..the horror you live with the rest of your life…every single day!
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That’s exactly what I was going for – a mother’s worst nightmare! Thanks for the feedback, Jessie. 🙂
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I like the first two equally but if I need to vote, I’ll opt for the first.
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Thanks for the feedback, Mum. 🙂 One and two are currently tied with eight votes each!
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I’d be happy to see either of these two posted.
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I vote for the first one! Great horror story, Louise! They are all great but the first one has vivid images in my mind of a child missing.
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That’s exactly what I was going for! I really wanted a picture showing a ‘missing’ poster to illustrate it properly but unfortunately couldn’t find one. Thanks for the feedback, PJ. 🙂
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Well done!
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The first one is sad…for ‘horror’ the second and third one are perfect! 🙂 …
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Thank you for the feedback, Maniparna. 🙂 One and two are currently tied so I’m still not sure which to post on the challenge page!
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I hate the story behind the woman’s tears. Any mother’s nightmare.
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Well, for pure horror, ya gotta go with the bloody knife! But I find the swing a little creepier and scarier overall.
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I vote for number 2 for the chill of the six words. Although I have to admit the graphic image of the blood-soaked knife also chilled me.
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I have to go with the swing….I shudder, knowing the content of the post, just looking at it….
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I like “Screams echo as darkness slowly creeps.”… and the accompanying photo. To me the first one is more loss, and the last more gore… whereas the second one says horror to me. All three invoke scared feelings, though. 😀
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I love scream echoes as darkness slowly creeps!!! it sends a shiver!!
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Thanks for the vote, Cybele. 🙂 It was a very close thing but the first one just managed to beat the second! I’m glad you liked it.
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yes I felt that also, but for some reason that one made me too sad!!
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Greetings! I’ve been following your web site for a long
time now and finally got the courage to go ahead and give you a shout out from New Caney Tx!
Just wanted to say keep up the great job!
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I know I’m a bit late to matter but 1 is my favorite and seems the most successful at telling a story. Two is also good and is more successful adhering to the challenge of horror. Three just seems like a description of the image rather than a story. Which did you finally post? Oh, I’ll just take a run over and see.
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Thanks for visiting, Emilio. The first one just managed to overtake the second in the final day before I posted it onto the challenge site!
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I’m glad you went with the empty swing in the end, I only post a prompt and it’s up to the author how they interpret it. Some people have used it as a genre this week and some have used it to represent very different types of personal horror. To me, as a mother, the empty swing would be my personal horror and is the one that gave me the chills the most this week. Well done and thanks for entering the six word story challenge this week again.
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If the vote had remained a draw I probably would have still posted the empty swing – I liked taking the more personal horror route. I’m glad you liked it, Nicola. 🙂
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Too late for votes,loved the second one though as it’s so mysteriously appealing.
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Thank you. 🙂 It was the second one that was voted favourite in the end. I’m glad you liked it.
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Oh,was it?I just loved the pale diffused light contrasting the darkish shadows 🙂
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Hand clutches the blood-soaked knife
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I was writing a few stories and went searching for a fresh horror story around and stumbled upon your Six Word Story : Horror. It is late for me to suggest a choice now but I would’ve said the swing as well. It’s achingly chilly.
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These are excellent! 🙂
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Thank you. 🙂
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