Over the years, I’ve seen explanations in six words popping up in a lot of places. I found it so interesting, and once it was in the back of my mind, I found it more often than I would have expected. This was supposedly sparked by a legend that Ernest Hemingway was once challenged to write a story in only six words. His story: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”
Amazing what kind of emotion you can invoke in 6 words.
There are even a few books by the same writing pair around this concept:
It All Changed in an Instant: More Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure
Six-Word Memoirs on Love and Heartbreak: by Writers Famous and Obscure
I Can’t Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure
Here’s mine: I am never that brief. Seriously.
As for some other fun results:
Create a motto for the United States of America in six words (Freakonomics Blog):
http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/28/and-the-new-six-word-motto-for-the-us-is/
Very Short Stories – more creative takes on the concept (Wired)
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.11/sixwords.html
And their awesome graphic interpretations: http://www.wired.com/culture/design/multimedia/2006/11/sixwords?currentPage=1&slideView=5
Describe religion in six words: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/spiritual-shorthand/
