6-Word Memoirs — A Fun Read!

Ernest Hemingway, as legend has it, was once challenged to write a story in 6 words. He came back with, "For sale: baby shoes, never worn." Some say he called it his best work; others dismiss the anecdote as a literary folktale. Either way, the 6-word story was born, and it's been popping up around the writing world for years.

Re-inventing the art of story-telling, SMITH Magazine decided in 2006 to give Papa Hemingway's form a new, personal twist: What would a 6-word memoir look like?

Short, life-affirming stories like these are now submitted daily to the SMITH web site:

• Anything's possible with an extension cord.
• Perpetual work in progress; need editor.
• I colored outside of the lines.
• Always working on the next chapter.
• If there's more, I want it.
• Drew on walls, creative for life.

Join the battle of brevity at www.sixwordmemoir.com. Read more memoirs and write one of your own. In fact, since Somerby is all about igniting that certain spark deep within you, share your creativity by responding to this email with your own 6-word memoir. We just may publish it in an upcoming issue of The Somerby Spark.

You may also want to pick up the book that served as our resource – Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure, edited by SMITH Magazine and published by Harper, 2008. It's a fun read — and certainly one we recommend, no matter what your age.

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