photo by my photo books

Less is more.

And a lot less, like a story told in six words, is more sexy.

One of the best ways to stand out in a world of too much is to do exactly the opposite.  Less.

Not less in quality or content.  Less of what does not fit in a single laserlike moment that delivers your story with intriguing and instantly memorable impact.  Less adjectives that leave less for you, the reader, to imagine.  Less surface drag on your sentences.  More space for you to offer someone to stand in, look around and say, “Wow!”

I live and die by my commitment to the juste mot, a fancy schmancy way of saying the perfect word.  And no more than seven of them.  The next time you find yourself at a well endowed tiki bar along the ocean  shoulder to shoulder with a handsome stranger who looks up at you with a smile and says,  “What’s your story,”  don’t you just want to casually toss back your hair and say something like,

“For sale, baby shoes: never used.”

That is Ernest Hemingway’s famous six word story and the springboard of inspiration for a set of virtuoso pieces written by the composer Lisa Bielawa entitled Synopses.  She has given the pieces a six word subtitle as a nod to this larger than life master of the diminutive form.

For those of you who would like some tips on how to tell your story,  short and sweet,  read You, in Seven Words or Less.

This is a process, just like life.  If you are in the habit of reinventing yourself which you are whether you realize or not, rewrite your story.  A lot.

I will leave you with a post by Mary Jaksch about creating a writing habit as you recreate yourself which starts off with another of my favorite sexy six worders:

Habits are first cobwebs, then cables

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Hoong Yee

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Word of mouth is the best way to share, don’t you agree?