After a brief hiatus (of two weeks) I’m back to taking part in Chuck Wendig’s Friday Flash Fiction competition. This week the challenge was to write a complete story (beginning, middle, end) with the theme of revenge. But instead of the usual 1000 words, we only have 100 words to play with. This story is just a bit of fun. Hope you enjoy!
Meta What
Greyson was ready to reveal his magnus opus. He stepped forward. The finest literary agents in New York sat and watched him take the stage.
“Welcome to my book launch,” Greyson said to his audience.
They didn’t speak. Their mouths were covered with tape.
They didn’t clap. Their hands were taped to their chairs.
“You may have rejected me, but I published my book anyway. It’s called: No More Gatekeepers.”
He started to read.
It was in chapter six that an agent broke free and beat him to death with his own book. No one likes meta fiction anymore.
Jo Eberhardt is a writer of speculative fiction, mother to two adorable boys, and lover of words and stories. She lives in rural Queensland, Australia, and spends her non-writing time worrying that the neighbour's cows will one day succeed in sneaking into her yard and eating everything in her vegie garden.
The Happy Logophile 
Good one. That made me laugh.
Thanks. 🙂 Just because it’s about revenge doesn’t mean it can’t be funny, too!
This is odd and fun! I’m not sure who was avenged.
Thanks. Little of column A, little of column B, really. Glad you thought it was fun — I had a blast writing it. 🙂
Okay, this really is great. It’s good as a story, sure – I loved “They didn’t speak. Their mouths were covered with tape.” But not as much as I loved all the layers of meta-ness, piling up to make my brain hurt. Rock on.
Thanks, Brian. I’m really glad you liked it. You should have heard me giggling to myself while I was adding those deliciously painful layers.
Awesome! You should enter it into the 100 words or fewer contest! http://www.100wordsorfewerwritingcontest.com/
Thanks! I hadn’t thought of that… *goes off to ponder*
Ha! Very nice!
Thanks!
Not sure I know what ‘meta fiction’ is…? (Eek!) but this was really good – punchy and made me chuckle too!
Keep up the good work.
Thanks — glad you liked it!
(‘Meta fiction’ is kind of ‘fiction about fiction’. So this whole story is meta fiction. About meta fiction. Meta meta fiction?)
Haha! Nice. Thanks for giving me a chuckle this morning!
You’re welcome. Glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
OK..that made me laugh. Glad I “found” you. Love that the agent got to pulverize him.
Stuart
The Rule of Three Writers Challenge
Thanks! I quite enjoyed writing that line.
writing about a writer writing meta on a writer’s blog? that’s so meta.
hilarious!
Glad you liked it. 🙂
Heh – that’s great. Some of my favourites in this challenge have been funny. The 100-word format seems to practically demand a punchline.
I’ve noticed the same thing. I like a bit of last-minute humour.
😀 I like it! Very funny.
I love this. Imagine if all writers who were rejected did this. And imagine if all agents beat their writers with their own books D; There’d be none of us left!
Thanks. 🙂 I’m glad to have been able to capture the absurdity of the current publishing industry.
…and he beat him to death with his own book. Classic. I love that line.
thanks for the laugh.