Micro Fiction Challenge: Swizzle
Posted by David Duhr in 
For this week’s Micro Fiction Challenge, we’re gonna get tropical on y’all’s asses. “Swizzle” has a couple of definitions to play around with, but the top entry on this particular site reads, “a tall drink, originating in Barbados, composed of full-flavored West Indian rum, lime juice, crushed ice, and sugar: typically served with a swizzle stick.”
I could go for one of those right about now, hey? Perhaps we should all take a moment during our Tuesday and suck down a swizzle? Or, since the word can also mean “to gulp down; guzzle,” might we all swizzle a swizzle? And, as it can also mean “to agitate (a beverage),” we should all remember to swizzle our swizzle before swizzling it.
But watch out, lest a Brit try to swizzle (“to swindle; cheat”) you out of your tasty swizzle. Limey bastards. (Get it? Limey, lime juice, swizzle.)
As usual, your task is to create a 25-word or less piece of fiction. Now that we’re giving away prizes to each week’s winner, we’re expecting big things from you guys. Extra points for making us laugh.
Keep your story to 25 words or less, include the word “swizzle,” write it out in the comments section below, click “Notify” to keep abreast of your competition, and feel free to use a pseudonym if you’re shy.
The winner this week receives $8 in cash (which seems to be the local going rate for a swizzle), tucked inside a free book of your choice!
Sorry, non-Austinite winners, but we’ll have to come up with something different, but equally cool, for you. Except it won’t be equally cool. Because nothing is equally cool as eight bucks and a book.
We’ll announce this week’s winner in this space next Tuesday, and we’ll give a shout-out to our favorites on Facebook and Twitter.
*****
Last week, 14 of you submitted some very (non?) specious fiction, and choosing a winner was almost as tough as … well, being the winner. Points to: Laura for being topical; Ava and Dacia for making us laugh; Alex for boldly flouting the rules (32 words); and S. Pruett for the wordplay.
But we can only choose one winner, and that winner is … Jake Reilly! For using the word twice, yes, and also for being a Debbie Downer, but in amusing fashion. Jake’s story:
The apple’s outward appearance proved specious; biting into it was like biting into oatmeal. Such is life: A specious fruit.
Jake, if you’re an Austinite stop in during open hours and we’ll give you your booty in-person. If you’re not, we’ll send you your choice of WBN recorder seminars (scroll to the bottom) for free.
What a rum lady! I offered her a drink; said she’d stick with the one she’s got, a swizzle. I ordered a taxi for one.
I told her to swizzle my shizzle, but my nizzle, she didn’t want to fizzle that bizzle!
My swizzle stick, it has no drink! My wallet was swizzled on the way here, and this is the only charity the bartender would give.
She pulled the swizzle stick out of my asshole and used it to mix her drink. I took a sip. Not bad. Not bad.
Don’t trust the bartender. I think I saw him drizzle in someone’s swizzle, and then… it began to fizzle. Don’t trust the bartender.
Swizzled by the Brits, Barbados creates the swizzle drink to promote swizzling the Brits of their swizzle taxes and reducing their swords to swizzle sticks.
Jimmy? :)
There was a man Frizzle
Who guzzled too much Swizzle;
He got frisky a lot
his thing grew rot
Hence his fun went to shizzle
He whispered, “I’ll never forget Swizzles in Bermuda, tasting rum on your lips.”
“That wasn’t me,” I sighed.
“Hmmm,” he shrugged, “still a great memory.”
“I think you’ll find the technical term is swizzle.” He yelled from his angle-parked Ferrari. “If it’s fancy-footwork you’re after, I’m the guy.”
She smiled and swizzled her hips like a beckoning finger. I brought over her swizzle, which she tossed in my face. She always swizzled me.
Her name was Swizzle. (“Hippie parents.”) Sweet, thick-skinned, a pineapple of a girl. Stole my identity. (Postcard: “I’m now happily contained. It took an island.”)
He watched as she swizzled. His stick sizzled. After six months it fizzled. Ain’t that the shizzle?
[…] the results are in for last week’s Challenge, “swizzle!” Lots of fun, tropical stories came in, but the overarching theme clearly was male/female […]
[…] Micro Fiction Challenge has proven a fun and creative writing game. Prizes have ranged from cold hard cash to mini golf to the current giveaway, two free hours of solitude at WriteByNight (still […]
[…] Micro Fiction Challenge has proven a fun and creative writing game. Prizes have ranged from cold hard cash to mini golf to the current giveaway, two free hours of solitude at WriteByNight (still […]