Hi everyone! Welcome to Microcosms 96. 🙂
UK entrants – PLEASE NOTE: In the UK, Daylight Saving (BST) ended last Sunday, and the clocks went back one hour Daylight saving in New York (EDT) will not end until Sunday 05-NOV. So the closing deadline for entries this week will be one hour earlier than usual (04:00am rather than 05:00am). Normal time difference we resume next week.
I couldn’t find any odd holidays or historical events that struck a chord with me for today, so I thought I’d go rogue and use something completely different.
One of my favorite movies of all time is You’ve Got Mail, a romantic comedy that, according to the director (on the commentary track), is as much a love letter to the city of New York as it is anything else. One of my favorite lines (among many) is when Tom Hanks’s character Joe Fox asks Meg Ryan’s Kathleen Kelly, “Don’t you love New York in the fall? It makes me want to buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly-sharpened pencils, if I knew your name and address.”
I think that one line, more than anything, has romanticized New York for me – particularly New York in the fall. But I think there’s something to that for most major cities, so this week’s prompt is all about big city love, whether it’s New York in the fall or Paris in the springtime… or something completely unexpected. I’ve thrown a couple of curve balls in there, but you can bet that most of the choices will be inspired by something romantic that I’ve seen in a movie, once. (Despite my dark nature, I’m a sucker for romantic movies.) It’s almost sweater weather here in Phoenix, and the cooler fall air is making me nostalgic for a city I’ve never even been to.
I’ve also included the “Your Choice” option once again. If you do use/choose the “Your Choice” option, please specify what it is that you’ve chosen.
KM
(If YOU have an idea for a future contest and would like to be guest host, please contact us.)
Our contest this week begins with THREE things: character, setting and genre.
We spun, and our three elements are – character: Bar Owner, setting: Tokyo, and genre: Crime.
Special Challenge: Include one of the seasons. (This may or many not help you win – I’m not judging.)
Remember, if you do use/choose the “Your Choice” option, please specify what it is that you’ve chosen.
Write a story using those OR feel free to click on the “Spin!” button, and the slot machine will come up with a new set – character, setting and genre. You can keep clicking until you have a set of elements that inspires you.
*** HEY! Remember to include which THREE elements you’re using AND a title for your entry ***
*** NO FAN-FICTION, PLEASE, and NO USE of COPYRIGHT CHARACTERS ***
- Cab Driver
- Bar Owner
- Writer
- Bookseller
- Businessperson
- Photographer
- Superhero
- Wedding Planner
- Teacher
- Detective
- Your Choice!
- New York City
- Tokyo
- Paris
- London
- Berlin
- Moscow
- Seattle
- Casablanca
- Sydney
- Your Choice!
- Horror
- Memoir
- Sci-Fi
- Crime
- Steampunk
- Comedy
- Poetry
- Western
- Post-Apocalyptic
- Historical
- Drama
- Alternate History
- Fairy Tale
- Choose Your Own Adventure
- Your Choice!
Judging this week is MC 95 Judge’s Pick, Matthieu Cartron.
All submissions should be a maximum of 300 words in length. You have until midnight, New York time (EDT) to submit.
*** If you are new to Microcosms, remember to check out the full submission guidelines. ***
All being well, results will be posted on Monday.
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