Six-Word Lies Challenge, the Art of the Story Arc, Amazing Illustrated Six-Word Memoirs & More
Contest: Tell a Lie in Six Words
For the month of April, we’re asking Sixers to write their best lies. You’ve risen to the duplicitous challenge with timeless white lies ("I've read the terms and conditions") and hungover promises ("I'll never drink that much again"). Some lied to themselves to avoid embarrassment ("Nobody will think that's a zit”) and suspicion (“Wasn’t sleeping! Just resting my eyes”). Sixes twisted the truth to keep up appearances ("The Tooth Fairy dropped the money"), or didn’t reckon with reality’s cruel truths until much later ("Until death shall do us part"). What’s your Six-Word Lie? We can’t wait to hear it (honestly).
Remember to leave a comment on the contest page at sixwordmemoirs.com for a chance to win a Six-Word Memoir book of your choice! The contest ends on April 31st.
Celebrity Six: Jane Goodall
In preparation for Earth Day, we’re diving into the mind of famed primatologist and conservationist, Dr. Jane Goodall. Her groundbreaking work with protecting chimpanzees from extinction redefined species conservation. Her memoir in our book, Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure, gives insight into her perspective: “Forest peace, sharing vision, always optimistic.”
Now it’s your turn! Here’s how it works: We pick the celebrity, Jane Goodall, you come up with a Six-Word Memoir for that person and leave it in the comments on our Substack landing page. The winner will receive, Not Quite What I Was Planning, our New York Times bestselling book in which Jane Goodall’s memoir appears.
Draw It in Six! Illustrated Six-Word Memoirs
Many among the thousands of illustrated Six-Word Memoirs that our community shares are from middle schools, high schools, and art schools. These “Sixers” create whimsical and imaginative images to accompany their memoirs, and their words are often intertwined in the picture itself. The illustrations add an expressive dimension to the memoir and communicate even more significance through handpicked colors, clever concepts, and unique self-portraits. Thousands have shared their illustrated stories which we showcase on the Six-Word Illustration Gallery, as well in our Six in Schools blog. Below, we share few recent submissions.
Short Cuts: Six-Word Reviews
In each issue of our newsletter, we celebrate another Substack newsletter that shares our passion for storytelling, as well as a project from the rest of the world.
From Substack:
The Whippet, self-described as “a newsletter for the terminally curious,” explore life’s random, fun discoveries and findings like the discreet night-moving companies which help people vanish from their old lives, unsettling Irish curses, and inescapable irreversible binomials. It’s a biweekly Wunderkammer, a cabinet of curiosities, directly delivered to your inbox.
Six-Word Memoir intern Danielle Shum’s Six-Word Review: “Curated oddities, eccentric vocabulary, bizarre headlines.”
From the world:
In The Anthropocene Reviewed podcast, John Green reviews everything in the human-centered planet, from Canadian geese to love at first sight, on a five-star scale. The reviews are funny, heartwarming or heart-wrenching, and teach you more than you will ever need to know about topics you don’t particularly care about. The podcast has inspired a book by the same name, to be published next month.
Six-Word Memoir Community Manager Hannah’s Six-Word Review: “Niche history, personal stories. Five stars.”
The Craft of Storytelling: Tip #4 Tell A Story
A few years ago, my dad went to see the movie Frances Ha, a “mumblecore” breakout hit to which my indie-loving mom dragged him. Surprised and delighted that my father agreed to see it, I asked him what he thought of the film. “You know, Larry,” he said, “I’ve only looked at Facebook a few times and don’t really understand what it is, but it seems to me, it’s like this movie: a lot of people talking and not really saying much at all.”
You see, my dad’s not one to dive into a character study, or at least not a character study that doesn’t also have a clear and compelling story. I, on the other hand, enthusiastically take in both strong story-driven experiences and slow character studies (one reason why when I recently had a choice to stream just about any movie in the world, I chose Phantom Thread, a brilliant movie in which a guy makes a couple of dresses in two + hours). Among the many elements of personal storytelling — whether your story is six words or much longer — is the need to tell a story with a clear narrative arc. That arc may take us through a few moments, a few years, or a lifetime, but within that span, the writer takes the reader through a moment of personal change. Here are a few of my favorite Six-Word Memoirs that reveal change. And change is good. So why not share your own story of change at sixwordmemoirs.com?
“Found myself, but lost my hair.” —David Thorpe
“We were banned from Wal-Mart forever.” —Kristin S.
“Ex-wife and contractor now have house.” —Drew Peck
“Painful nerd kid, happy nerd adult.” —L.J. Williamson
“Nobody cared. Then they did. Why?” —Chuck Klosterman
When you tell a compelling story—even in just six words—you can expect to hear my favorite three words: Tell me more.
Video Backstory: Joe Loya’s "Memoir explodes myths, family boat capsizes."
Speaking of “tell me more,” writer and master storyteller Joe Loya shares the backstory of one of his Six-Word Memoirs, "Memoir explodes myths, family boat capsizes." Joe shared this story at a “Six Words Live” show, an event in which storytellers start with Six Words and then share the backstory in under ten minutes. We’ve held these shows in theaters, museums, alleys, and on a houseboat as part of San Francisco’s legendary Litquake Festival. Click play and let Joe’s story roll in a wave of storytelling that will hit you hard.
This sentence has exactly seven words.
Sorry I'm late, blame the traffic.