100-word Microfiction
What does it take to write a story in 100 words?
Happy Thursday!
Last spring I was looking to entertain myself from home and found NYC Midnight, a website hosting “Inspiring Challenges for Storytellers”. For each contest, applicants were tasked with writing an original story in 24 hours utilizing a given genre, action, and word. Here’s my entry for the 1st round of the 100-word Microfiction Challenge:
Round 1
Genre: fairy-tale and/or fantasy
Action: sleepwalking
Word: betray
Title: Mycelial Attractions
Buzz maneuvered his loop daily. Down to every blossom, remembering was his life’s purpose—ecosystems depended on his diligence. How a chicken sexer intuits male versus female, Buzz felt disparity before seeing. Beside his beloved bluebell, Buzz spotted a toadstool. Mature in appearance, novel in recollection—upturned soil betrayed its youth. An aura glistened around it while sparkling spores dispersed in the wind.
That night in his somnambulism Buzz returned. Twinkling in the full moon light, the spores showered down to Earth. Extending wing to spore, he awoke. They say curiosity killed the cat, but this time it was blossoms.
The story pushed me through to the 2nd round, where my luck ended as I was tasked with the tricky genre of “horror”. Although the 100-word limit and assigned prompt were constraining, I appreciated the practice of writing concisely and recognising where I habitually used superfluous words. This newsletter will be a constant challenge for that as well…
Two weeks ago today, I worked my last day as an Academic Interventionist (paraprofessional) at Frank Church High School, an alternative high school in the Boise School District. In the future I hope to devote more words to this school year experience—touching on the philosophy and purpose of public education for varying student socioeconomic backgrounds—but for now I simply want to mention a documentary we watched in Environmental Science during the last days of school.
The documentary is called Kiss the Ground, and it discusses the harmful farming/agricultural practices (monocrops, over-tilling, artificial fertizilers) which have harmed and dwindled Earth’s topsoil reserves, stripping away the vital nutrients necessary for organic life. Perhaps the most frightening statistic mentioned was the estimation that, at our current rate, the world has roughly just 60 seasons of crop-yielding topsoil left. The film appears all doom and gloom, but ends optimistically, noting how regenerative agriculture practices are gaining momentum, leading to a more holistic management of the only planet we have.
Kiss the Ground can be found on Netflix (https://www.netflix.com/watch/81321999?source=35), with additional information and resources available at kisstheground.com. If the subject of sustainable agriculture interests you, I also recommend looking into Joel Salatin, who operates Polyface Farm and goes by the nickname “The Lunatic Farmer”. Salatin is mentioned heavily in Michael Pollan’s 2006 book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma.
Have a wonderful Friday and weekend!
-Kyle