Friday, March 12, 2010

Words

This morning I am unmotivated at work, so I am reading through my favorite news sites: Huffington Post and NY Times. I usually get through "World" and "Politics" and go back to work, but it's a rainy Friday so today I am venturing into the lighter topics. Enter the Living section of Huffintonpost.com. I loved the one article about Six Word Memoirs. Read it here.

The idea is to tell a story in one six word sentence. Which promotes tact and mindfulness in your writing. She quotes the Strunk's "Elements of Style" book that I use often at work and have been using since my first Journalism class:

Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all his sentences short, or that he avoid all detail and treat his subjects only in outline, but that every word tell.

SO I thought I'd play around with a few of my own.

External beauty, an added bonus only.

Rainy Fridays lack motivation at work.

Small-minded people are usually lonely.

Running to get that runner's euphoria.

Some pairings:
Without family there is no love.
Family need not be blood related.

Living alone is freedom and quiet.
But it's nicer when you visit.

I gave up on this place.
You came and changed my mind.

There is a great one on the author of the article's blog - it's a short story of sorts using only six word sentences. I loved it. Check it out.

1 comment:

Tom said...

I like the six word stories even more : http://www.sixwordstories.net/

My blog is:
awkwardsmalltalk.blogspot.com