Limilines

Timed

2008-04-03T05:10:00.000-07:00

A man gives himself twenty minutes to find a girlfriend, learn a new language, reconcile with his parents, and write the novel of a lifetime.

How does he do it?

The Wild Robe

2008-04-03T04:57:00.000-07:00

A woman wakes up to find her robe has inexplicably disappeared, sending her to her wit's end as to its cause.

where did the robe go? what does the robe want? is her mind playing tricks on her?

The Journal

2008-04-03T04:51:00.000-07:00

Laura whizzes time away writing in her journal, blatant lies mostly, to make her life appear more interesting to her imagined offspring, until each of the scenarios she pens start to unfold in life.

what are Laura's concoctions? how does she get out of the quagmire on the page?

A Vat of Butter

2008-03-28T05:19:00.000-07:00

A mean-spirited old woman falls into a vat of butter on her way home, taking her on a journey into beauty she has long forgotten.

what does she see? who does she meet? how does she emerge from the vat?

faust.com

2008-01-29T05:20:00.000-08:00

A man from Timbuktu places an online ad offering his soul in exchange for a trifling amount; soon after he gets a taker, offering much more.

What happens? How does Timbuktu figure in the arrangement?

Story Development Challenge:

2008-01-28T03:28:00.000-08:00

Those interested in developing a short story from a limiline for possible inclusion in Greenbeards Magazine, write it and send it to greenbeards@gmail.com before the 15th of February.

Booking Delight

2008-01-23T08:39:00.001-08:00

Having researched the best prison systems in the world, a man seeks to get arrested for life in hopes of securing a nice, clean space to live. The only problem is finding the perfect crime.

What does he do? Is he able to get arrested - how?

I Take Me

2008-01-23T08:30:00.000-08:00

A man's burgeoning sense of self brings him to face his worst fears: that he can't marry himself.

What does he do to marry himself? How does he fall in love in the first place? What's the courtship like? And the fights...

Anna on the Verge

2008-01-08T07:25:00.000-08:00

A girl goes into the bathroom; it locks her in. After many exasperating hours she is struck by a revelation which has her making a pact with an entity that lets her out on the condition that she fulfill it.

Who is the entity? What's the pact? How did she get locked in? Does she honor the agreement? If so, what happens? If not, what happens?

Moving On

2007-11-22T04:00:00.000-08:00

After many years of a nomadic lifestyle, Gael decides to settle down in one place, only to discover that it's not her destiny.

What is her "destiny" as it were? How does destiny work exactly?

The Fin Land

2007-11-20T00:30:00.000-08:00

Over a sauna chat with an acquaintance, a man mentions his young daughter's uncanny gift of reading thoughts and on his return home finds her inexplicably gone. In trying to find her, he must develop an ability of his own while trying to careen through "the interference. "

interference - how does it function? how does the girl describe reading minds? what ability does the father develop? what happens to them? where do they find themselves? how does he find her? how did the girl disappear? what is their internal/external landscape like?

Little World

2007-11-19T00:21:00.000-08:00

Days before her 40th birthday, a woman decides to fulfill a lingering wish still dangling from her childhood, setting out on a plan of action that illuminates the "little" world around her.

what is the wish? what's the "little world"? what's so important about realizing it? how does her life change as a result?

Keeping It

2007-11-16T01:39:00.000-08:00

On his way home, a drifter befriends a wealthy man who dies shortly after, leaving all of his possessions. On his way home with the money, the drifter meets another wealthy man but dies shortly after.

What happens?

Sources

2007-11-14T01:36:00.000-08:00

A woman wakes up one morning and begins to write a book, effortlessly, finishing it in no time at all. Of an innovative, highly unusual bent, it instantly becomes the new literary souffle. Only now a respectable widow wants the proceeds from the sales, claiming its author is none other than her dead husband.

what will the woman do to substantiate her claims? is the book really an example of psychography (channeled from beyond)? how does the woman, the author, feel about her initial inspiration? what happens then?

Boiling Pods

2007-11-12T04:51:00.000-08:00

A woman living with her father hires a contract killer to get rid of bad old dad. Only dad had the same idea about his bad little girl, hiring the same guy and giving identical instructions for its fulfilment.

Why are their motivations? What are the instructions? What's the assassin like? What happens?

Flashing Bulbs

2007-11-09T02:52:00.000-08:00

Three sisters living in a dilapidated house shut off from the outside world find themselves pregnant - mysteriously so since there hasn't been a man around for years - rousing the wrath of their mother, a powerful witch.

who's the father? how did the impregnation occur? what's in store for the sisters?

The Clown of Tears

2007-11-08T03:48:00.000-08:00

A girl whose tears were stolen by a vengeful clown has to follow the world's circuses to track him down in hopes of bringing them back.

where does the clown keep the tears? what does he do with the tears? is this some kind of hobby of his and if so, how and when did it start?

Our Old Story

2007-11-08T03:21:00.000-08:00

On a boat trip to the Mediterranean, an embittered woman meets and falls in love with a young man, a cartographer, and from piecing together a series of coincidences, discovers he's her son.

--what do they do? how does the story end?what are the coincidences?

A Frank Man

2007-11-07T00:49:00.000-08:00

All his life Frank has never been good at anything. Other than failure, that is. Sparked from yet another insult, he decides to teach a course titled "Sabotage 101 - how to ruin anything and everything." It turns into an overnight success.

how is Frank changed by the newfound success? what skills does he teach in class? what are the "rules" of sabotage? what were his previous jobs?

Libre

2007-11-05T04:33:00.000-08:00

A miopic bird accidentally knocks himself out on a wall, landing smack in the middle of a simmering bowl of soup whose cook is a failed opera singer now given a second chance at success, but with that comes the ever constant need for the extra ingredient.

what do the birds do? how does the cook catch the birds? what happens after the birds start disappearing?

Connections

2007-11-05T04:23:00.000-08:00

Good Morning
- She's nice.
- Yes she is.
- He's funny.
- He so is.
- They're perfect.
- Sure is.
- We're the best.
- Yeah!
- It's awesome!
- No doubt.
- I'm incredible.
- You really are.
- You're...good too.
- Only because of you.

Good Afternoon
- He's a jerk.
- I know...
- She's a slut.
- You're telling me...
- They're morons.
- Tell me about it.
- It's so lame.
- Couldn't be lamer.
- We're here.
- We are?
- I'm tired.
- Oh...poor thing.
- You go get me a scotch, will you.
- Sure thing!

Good Evening
- He's sweet...
- You think so?
- She's stupid.
- If you say so.
- They're fuckers.
- I knew it.
- It's fine.
- It is.
- We're over.
- Who said?
- I'm sick of you.
- Me too.
- You stink.
- With you.

The Tree of Me

2007-11-05T02:26:00.000-08:00

A woman discovers she has a tree growing inside her. With nurture, it shoots outward, exposing itself; with neglect, it wilts inward, killing her slowly and surely.

What does she do to inhibit its offshoots? When/how did she discover her "roots"? How does she live her life knowing this?

The Nose

2007-11-02T03:59:00.000-07:00

A girl born with a gigantic, bulbous nose decides to take recourse in plastic surgery, only to find herself harassed by the nose ever after, ruining her life and demanding she restore him to his rightful place.

--how does the nose chase her? how does the nose ruin her life? what's the nose's personality like?

Fortuna, Leave Me Alone

2007-11-02T02:27:00.000-07:00

On a whim, Fortuna takes a liking to one sister while shunning the other, requiring daily sacrifices to win favor which get increasingly outrageous, until an odd sage introduces a novel way to fight back.

--how does Fortuna communicate her demands? what are some of her demands? what does the sage suggest?

Receptors

2007-11-01T02:56:00.000-07:00

On a walk to a sacred site, a man gets suddenly struck by lightning, endowing him with mental channels into others' lives, which at first annoys him, but later turns more and more enticing at the risk of turning off his own life.

`what are the channels? how does he get there? does he literally walk into others' lives? what are the side-effects of the portal?

DOG DAYS

2007-11-01T02:42:00.000-07:00

A hand chases a dog accross town, which propels more and more hands to join the hound, but when the dog revolts and bites the hands, new alliances are formed.

`what are the alliances? what does the first hand do? do dogs dream?

Interlude - Inde's dream

2007-11-01T02:05:00.000-07:00

I was on a job interview for a high level position. I traveled there on the train with all my suitcases. My interview was first and I made an excellent impression. Intelligent, creative. Then the others were to be interviewed and I was to wait. The others waiting somehow got the idea there was a body in my suitcase (there were actually two bodies in the suitcase). And all gathered as one to force me to open the suitcase. I stood up on the chair in outrage, eloquently and forcefully repeating the speech from "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street": What are you some kind of a mob, are we going to start accusing people, etc. They became uncertain and backed down, leaving me alone. I had been brilliantly decisive and turned an angry mob into passive sheep. My prospective employer saw the whole thing and must have been impressed. I went back home, knowing I'd get that job. I woke up before figuring out what to do with the bodies.

For Inde's space, go to http://indeterminacy.blogspot.com/

Aquaplane

2007-10-31T01:39:00.000-07:00

In seeking refuge from society a young couple buys a long-abandoned ship, only to find it inexplicably intact and bearing a precocious girl with a few claims on the nature of life.

~what is propelling the girl? who/what is the girl? does she want something? was she willed into being - if so, how? what does she stir in the couple?