Whitechapel - HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T08:53:18-08:00

My froglike wombdarlings, I bring you news of new and exciting Things. I love "Remake/Remodel" like it's my own broodspawn, but I want to open-up the art fun to a wider field than just design/pinup stuff. So let's have a play with the crazy hazy world of Illustration.

I've introduced you before to my highly talented pal Lee Barnett, yes? Well I'm turning this puppy over to him. He will be along very shortly to tell you How It Will Work.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T09:19:09-08:00

You know, I was going to call this The F-art Fiction Challenge, but Si overruled me.

As some of you may be aware, I had a writing thing going for several years entitled The Fast Fiction Challenge. The rules were simple: people challenged me with a four word title and a word to use in the tale and I wrote them a story of exactly 200 words.

I answered about 500 challenges, and in 2010 wrote 150 stories in 150 days. And yes, I published a couple of collections of the stories.

Well, Si and I got together over Christmas and decided it was about time I did some more of the stories. And it felt like an opportunity to widen the spectrum of art-challenges for you guys on this board.

Hence this new challenge:

The Art of Fast Fiction

OK, THE RULES.

Monday morning, 9th January, I’m going to put up a previously written Fast Fiction. It’ll be exactly 200 words, as previously stated.

Artists here will have until Saturday evening, say midnight British time, (4pm Pacific) to put up either a one panel spot illustration or a two page comic book depiction of the entire story. Hey, I’m limited to 200 words – you’re limited to two pages. The art can be pencilled, inked, coloured, lettered... entirely up to you.

Saturday night/Sunday morning, Si and I will pick a winner and announce it. The winner gets to pick a new four word title and word (no matter how weird or mundane) and let us know, and I’ll write a new story which will go up on Monday at noon UK time... which will start the whole thing running again.

So you get six days, (Monday through Saturday) to showcase your art and/or story-telling abilities.

Something we have to be very firm on upfront: this isn’t a call for anyone else to write new prose stories here or to suggest story ideas. As has been stated here before, the moment we start inviting folks to post their own fiction we get into all sorts of trouble. So: this is ART ONLY. The only thing the winner gets is to suggest the title and (occasionally, at my whim) possibly an extra challenge to make it a bit more fun for everyone involved.

(As an example of the latter, I was once challenged me to write one in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet; someone else wanted one in which more than 50% of the tale was told in dialogue, and yes someone once challenged me, entirely within the rules of the challenge, to write a 200 word sex scene.)

OK, let’s see how this goes, yes?

See you Monday Morning.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T09:34:47-08:00

Well now, THIS is interesting...

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T10:20:23-08:00

BE AFRAID, ARTISTS

BE VERY AFRAID

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T11:52:23-08:00

doesn't scare me, bring it on!!!

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T12:01:08-08:00

*wishes he was better at this kind of art*

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T12:16:59-08:00

I <3 this. Also, I want to read your sex story.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T13:24:51-08:00

Bwahahahahaaaa

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T13:32:58-08:00

This promises to be vaguely cathartic and that special kind of awful that makes you keep looking even after it hurts ... I'm looking forward to it.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T15:33:52-08:00

@Paul - I hope so!

@keyofsilence - What's the matter - don't you trust Si and me?

@Imaginarypeople - we're bringing it... in about twelve hours.

@RenThing - as the R/R threads show, non professional artists can come up with astonishing work. Please, have a go at a spot illustration.

@glukkake - was pretty sure someone would ask, if only because I didn't supply the link.

@Greasemonkey - okaaaaay.

@Beserker - Hope you enjoy it!

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T16:53:22-08:00

Can't wait to see how it goes.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T17:47:30-08:00

New breed of awesome and epicness.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-08T18:51:08-08:00

oooh this sounds like fun! Count me in!

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-09T02:29:29-08:00

This could be ... entertaining.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-09T03:23:04-08:00

Morning's ticking by fast...anxiously awaiting the story!

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-09T04:17:47-08:00

If anyone's still waiting, the first story went live about 35 minutes ago...

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-10T19:14:36-08:00

Bah. I wish I could just give random story ideas forever. Since I have too many to possibly write them all. Anyway; looks fun :)

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-13T02:32:01-08:00

What exactly does the 'four word title and word' mean? I get the four-word title bit, but what's this 'word' bit? Is it the first word of the new story?

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-13T03:35:21-08:00

@dnewling: You give budgie a word, and he has to use it in the story.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-13T11:51:32-08:00

@Kperkins: Thanks!

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-13T13:24:50-08:00

Someone should give him the word Pangolin. And SpinalFluid. And potato chips.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-13T20:40:05-08:00

@Rootfireember: That person has to win the challenge first. No suggestions, remember.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-13T21:40:34-08:00

I figure I'm not going to win the challenge, so I can just enthuse over here.
Though I coulda sworn I've read the current story challenge before somewhere.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-13T23:53:15-08:00

@Rootfireember: Yes, it's going to be real challenge for the judge as well because he can only select one winner. It must be tough enough for Daddy Si to pick entries for Bleedingcool, and at least he is able to pick several of them.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-14T12:47:57-08:00

I thought Rich picked out the entries for BC.
hrm. Guess he can't really BE everywhere though. LOl.

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-16T18:08:03-08:00

this looks like fun and it's a really clever concept. a great way to jump into my 2012 resolution of doing more art :-)

HEADS-UP: A New Breed Of Art Challenge, Starting Monday 9th Jan

2012-01-22T04:20:04-08:00

My apologies for not realising there were unanswered posts on here, folks...

@rootfireember - the reason you may have seen the original challenge before is because, as I said in the first post in the challenge, I wrote it several years ago as part of the fast fiction challenge I wrote over several years. That particular story was in response to a challenge by Regie Rigby, comics commentator, a friend, and all around good guy.

It seemed, on review, a pretty good story to use here as well.