On April 19, 2024, I wrote the 1st Round Assignment of the 5th Annual 100-word Microfiction Challenge. Five thousand four hundred fifty-two writers participate in 92 groups, with approximately 59 writers per group.
I was given the following criteria to use in my story:
Genre: Sci-Fi
Action: Unbuttoning
Word Assignment: Digest
Time: 24 Hours
Maximum Length: 100 words
Here's what "they" (the judges) say about my short story called, " "A Woman and a Python".
Dear Anita Wladichuk,
The feedback from the judges on your 1st Round submission from the 100-word Microfiction Challenge 2024 is below. We hope you find the feedback helpful, and you are proud of the story you created. Thank you for participating, and we hope to see you in a future challenge!
''A Woman and a Python'' by Anita Wladichuk - WHAT THE JUDGES LIKED ABOUT YOUR STORY - {2221} This story is written clearly and makes a good attempt at involving the reader through direct address. {2319} Whenever a seductive woman and a large snake appear together, we can't help but think of Eve and the Serpent—temptation and consequences. In this case, the consequences are dire, indeed, as the unsuspecting woman gets swallowed whole by the python to be digested alive, right in front of her gawking admirers. {1795} You certainly know how to change the mood of a story very quickly! I like that you open with such allure, then you add in the potential danger of the snake...then you make it fatal! Well done.
WHAT THE JUDGES FEEL NEEDS WORK - {2221} This is a fair attempt at a narrative somewhat resembling a 'creature feature' with an attractive woman in mortal danger. However the gaze on the woman's surface appearance seems to be for the sake of it, and even the ambiguity over the camisole has no depth, then it's all futile anyway. It could be argued that there's a message here about consumption and looks not really mattering, but there are stronger, more logical ways to achieve this. If no one had been watching, that could be more of a hook, because who's she performing for? Or what if she were on a photo shoot and performing to direction? Something with more depth is needed to elevate the score. {2319} Although seeing a beautiful woman consumed by a gigantic python is truly horrific, the attack does not have as much suspense or emotional impact as it might. We know virtually nothing about the woman other than her attractive appearance, and since she remains oblivious to the snake until it's too late, we don't really get a chance to root for her escape and survival. I think the confrontation would have much more tension if you let us know a little more about the woman in order to make us care for her as a character and gave her a fighting chance to defend herself against the reptile through her courage and ingenuity. {1795} I'm wondering if it might be best to be specific about the type of python in this piece if only because we don't have snakes that would go out of their way to eat people on a regular basis, if at all. I think this requires a special kind of snake, mythical or genetically modified in whatever way you choose, but I think it needs to be a bit more detailed before a reader will accept it eating the woman whole.
Here is the link to what I wrote: https://ghostlyowl.substack.com/p/a-woman-and-a-python