Here is a curious truth about good slash fiction: the more original your writing, the better your slash will be. The basic rules of all fiction writing still apply to slash -- there is no getting out of the process of editing. You must not shirk your duty as storytellers, as imaginative cogs of language production, as dreamers of little dreams.



Shakespeare wrote nothing but slash fiction, but he managed to breathe new life into this ancient genre by virtue of his prowess with language, structure, and emotion. He wrote celebrity slash about his favorite monarchs, fantasy slash about his favorite fairies, and he even wrote S&M slash about his favorite Roman soap: Plutarch's "Lives."

Hemingway wrote slash fiction about himself (and -- famously -- once about himself and F. Scott Fitzgerald). We all write slash sometimes, and justify it later (if anybody cares (they don't)). The characters we imagine can't help but have referents in the real world, or the world of literature. They are born in the pulsing coils of cheap drama that spark our creativity. The desire to bring immortal beings down to the level of human desires and banality is as old as Satan, and as wise.

This month's contest will attempt to draw out the best in you. Are you ready? We are going strange places here together -- the kind of places that linguists reach when they furiously masturbate themselves into a state of cold reason, with the fingers of their off-hand grazing the tables of verbs beside their bed (or coffin).

This month, we slash "Beowulf" and "Finnegan's Wake!" Do it everyone! Merge them together in a way that makes sense to you, and in a way that is sexually hot!

AUGUST SLASH CONTEST: "BEOWULF" / "FINNEGAN'S WAKE"

EXAMPLE:

Ms. Grendel said thoughtwise to her sonby, tumbril child -- please to put that grunting, cunting manmeat in the ground, and bring to me -- gashly, sashly -- the tip of his severed Hrunting: und now -- for thee, my son, my son, a blowjob to clear your mind for valour, the Amazon --

RULES:

2000 words or less

Attach your story to an email or paste it into the body of the text of your email. MUST BE IN WORD FORMAT.

All standard Fiction Circus submissions guidelines apply.

Send your August Contest Submissions to: [email protected]

WINNINGS:

There is no money in this. There is no money: only shame.

What we WILL do is illustrate the winner in the most loving and impressive way we can (maybe even sexy photos if appropriate). We will also record the story for your listening pleasure, and make it available to everyone in the world for free, right next to the rest of our available literary offerings.

Good luck to all you out there in the underground. Give it a shot! You cannot mess up! What will you make? What will you learn?

NOTE TO HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH TEACHERS:

If you think this would be a good assignment for your class, please write to the Fiction Circus and we will send you course materials and a copy of "Hustler" for a hundred dollars.

Comment!

Posted by miracle on Tue, 05 Aug 2008 15:29:03 -0400 -- permanent link