Murder They Wrote, or How They Killed The English Language (The Best of The Worst)
Lightning
scratched across the sky like chalk on a blackboard, and was just as irritating.
Or perhaps ....
Typing isn't easy when you're a teddy bear with paws.
Billy
is more of a two-thumb typer and does like 16 wpm.
The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest
Part I
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Goofy name
for a contest right? So what is it all about? Your
mission (if you choose to accept it) is to write the opening
sentence to the worst
of all possible novels. How
did this all begin? "It
was a dark and stormy night..." is what many people quote
when joking about starting a mystery novel. Its original author
is Edward George Bulwer-Lytton, in the novel "Paul Clifford"
written in 1830. This dumb cliché is 173 years old! I
wonder if Mr. Bulwer-Lytton ever dreamed his bad sentence would
become the basis for future writers and be the name for such
a bad writing contest? You see, he is famous for "almost
just right writing." <wink>
So who thought
of creating a contest where you are suppose to write badly?
The BLFC was started in 1982 by the English Department at San
Jose State University and the inspiration of Professor Scott
Rice. For an accurate description, further information or to
enter go to the Bulwer-Lytton site.
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Part II
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The
contest is now over 40 years old and has resulted in 5 books
compiling the winning worst sentences as well as others. The
books are all paperback and published by Penguin Books. Here
they are in the order in which they were published, starting
in 1984. 1.
"It Was A Dark and Stormy Night - The funniest opening
sentences from the worst novels never written." - Scott
Rice 2.
"Bride of Dark and Stormy - Yet more of the Best
(?) from the Bulwer-Lytton Contest." - Scott Rice 3.
"Son of "It was a Dark and Stormy Night - More
of the Best (?) from the Bulwer-Lytton Contest." - Scott
Rice 4.
"It was a Dark and Stormy Night: The Final Conflict
- Yet more of the Best (?) from the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest."
- Scott Rice 5.
"Dark and Stormy Rides Again" - Scott Rice I had to use Bookfinder.com to acquire the older books no longer in print. |
Part III
Now for the really really fun stuff!
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I've created one page with excerpts from
4 of these books to get you inspired or to help make you smile.
This page c CLICK the BOLT!
To get shocked by the best of the worst! NOT RECOMMENDED FOR YOUNG CHILDREN! |
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