Thursday, February 10, 2011

FOR SALE: A short short story by Susannah Breslin [Updated]


Are you looking for a truly unique Valentine's Day gift for the object of your affection?

I sure am!

Would you like to see yourself come to life in literary form, finally?

Oh, boy, would I ever!

For the first time in the history of the universe, I've decided to create a custom-made, 1,000-word short short story, or "flash fiction," for a special person.

Wait, what's "flash fiction"?

Basically, it's a short short story. Wikipedia says: "Flash fiction is a style of fictional literature of extreme brevity." It's the wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am of fiction. This one will be 1,000 words long.

OK, how does this work?

Send me an email describing your short short story idea in 100 words or less. For example: "I would like a story that features me and my one true love, we live together on COROT-7b, where it rains rocks, and I would like the story to have a happy ending." In your email, include what amount (in dollars) you'd like to pay for the story. At this time, you can send in only one email and only one story idea.

I decide how much I'll pay for it? Wassup with that?

I thought I'd let the market set the price. Or however a business person would say that. This is an experiment. What's the story worth to you? Let's find out!

That's cool. Will you pick my idea?

Out of all the submissions, I will pick only one story to write, for now. I hope to will announce which story I've chosen tomorrow, Friday, February 11th as soon I chose one. If your story idea is picked, you will receive an email stating that your story has been chosen. (If your story idea is not picked, you will receive an email stating that your story has not been chosen.) We will arrange a payment method. After that, I will write a short short story based on your idea. Finally, I will email you the 1,000-word story in a Word document within 24 hours.

That sounds awesome, but who are you?

I'm a journalist, author, editor, photographer, and blogger. I've written for Details, Harper's Bazaar, Newsweek, Salon, Slate, The San Francisco Chronicle, Variety, The LA Weekly, and Esquire.com, among many other publications, and I've appeared on "Politically Incorrect," CNN, and Fox News. I'm the author of a short story collection, You're a Bad Man, Aren't You?, and my short stories have appeared in print, online, and in anthologies. Currently, I'm writing a novel about the adult movie industry.

Hey, can I read a story you wrote?

Sure. Here's "The Boy Who Wore His Heart on His Sleeve." It's about a man who wears his heart on his sleeve ... literally.

One more question. Does this mean I can tell people I wrote this story?

No. I will remain the author of the story. Technically, the copyright of the story will belong to me. Metaphysically, the spirit of the story will belong to you. Any future use of the story must be agreed upon with me prior to usage. The story cannot be resold. It is a special thing and should be treated accordingly.

I WANT A STORY!

*No refunds, revisions, or layaway plans available.

Update: A story has been chosen! Expect an update on this experiment next week.

Update 2: Want to know how this story turned out or order your own bespoke story? Go here.