The Hemingway Challenge: Can One Sentence Tell a Story?

One of the most interesting tale in literary history begins with a simple challenge.

According to the legend, Ernest Hemingway was dining (or drinking) with a group of fellow writers when the conversation turned to his remarkable ability to write with precision and economy. Someone claimed that no one could tell a complete story in just six words.

Hemingway took the challenge.

All drunk, he took a napkin and wrote: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

Conversations stopped. For a while no glasses clinked. The room fell dead silent.

In six ordinary words, readers imagined a family, hopes for a new child, and a heartbreaking loss. Hemingway had supposedly proved that a great story depends not on length, but on the emotions it awakens and the spaces it leaves for the reader to fill. Did it really happen? Probably not.

But the Hemingway legend also reminds us that powerful stories come in many forms.

Some of the world’s most celebrated works of microfiction are astonishingly brief:

• Augusto Monterroso: “When he awoke, the dinosaur was still there.” 
• Franz Kafka: “A cage went in search of a bird.” 
• Margaret Atwood: “Longed for him. Got him. Shit.” 
• Fredric Brown: “The last man on Earth sat alone in a room: there was a knock at the door.” 

With that in mind, we invite you to accept a challenge of your own.

One Sentence Story Contest

Entries open August 1.

Can you tell a memorable story in just one sentence? Surprise us. Move us. Make us laugh. Make us think. Show how much can be accomplished with carefully chosen words.

• Entry Fee: None.
• Prize: $50 and an annual membership for the winning entry.
• Publication on The Hemlock’s Blog
• Maximum Word Count : 20

It’s your time to write a power-packed One Sentence Story and submit to us

Submissions open on Aug 1st