Episode 34: Hangman by Abby “Merc” Rustad
Emily always beats Craig at the game of Hangman. If only he could find an unusual word to stump her, something she would never guess, something like the word scrawled on the piece of paper he found…
Afterwards, Big and (an embarrassingly congested) Rish talk about J.J. Abrams’ STAR TREK, how they liked it, the idea of franchise reboots, what the ad campaign was trying to say, and how long ago 1996 really was. Also, the return of Angry Rish Outfield!
Special thanks to Liz Mierzejewski for lending her voice to this episode.
Right click to download the episode HERE.
http://media.libsyn.com/media/dunesteef/Dunesteef_34_Hangman_by_Abby_Merc_Rustad.mp3%20Related Links:
The Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine 
May 28, 2009 at 7:17 am
Good story, but I felt like the ending hit WAY too quickly… like, I thought there would be more to it. Pretty vivid, though. The author said she crammed it into her lunch break and finished with minutes to spare… was she wrapping it up quickly on purpose, so it would be done? Or was that really the stopping point? Just things I was thinking.
May 28, 2009 at 7:26 am
I was laughing so hard 3/4 the way through I had to pull into the right lane. Both those kids deserved it, the little brats.
Liz Mzragtaski
May 28, 2009 at 1:47 pm
You people are sick.
:)
May 29, 2009 at 10:57 am
Great story merc : )
@Josh R: It’s flash – it’s a style of fiction and the word count is part of the point. Besides, there’s probably not much to tell after their heads pop off : )
@Liz: ha ha ha. Love the sig.
June 7, 2009 at 4:19 am
This was good, and the unexpectedly quick ending was great. Well, for the story, not the kids…
June 7, 2009 at 8:00 am
Finally got to listen to this episode. Been avoiding Star Trek spoilers, and saw the movie this Wednesday. Loved it. Lots of fun. Going to see it again this summer. Not sure why Spock was sucking face with what’s her first name, but I had a great time.
Good flash story in this episode. Pop! You guys had talked about a few different formats for including shorter stories and one I like, that I don’t think you mentioned, is to have 2 or 3 very short stories, and then in-between you could do your commentary.
…and what’s this rift that seems to be evolving between you two and Announcer Man? He sounds like a hard drinking, chain smoking, butt kicking, SOB, that would kill ya for looking at him wrong. Maybe you shouldn’t anger him. I’d hate for the show to come to an abrupt end.
June 8, 2009 at 12:47 pm
I like flash! Also, as someone who occasionally writes and shops it (or tries to), I can tell you that the definition of flash is usually either <1000 words or <500 words. Obviously, flash is whatever the publication in question says it is. However, I think you'd be the only publication defining it as 1000-2000 words. That's a short story to most people.
Like the drabble, flash derives a lot of its charm from the slight-of-hand required to fit a true beginning, middle, and end into a very short space. Good flash feels a little like poetry. It's not about character development or plotting. It's about economy of story-telling.
Perhaps the real reason I write flash is that I also write 300,000-word epics. Every now and then, I have to prove to myself that I can tell an engaging, complete story in a 1000 words…or 500…or 100.
June 8, 2009 at 7:39 pm
I’d have to agree with you as far as Flash Fiction or Drabbles go, in so much as that, like poetry, there’s an art and craft to them. And it seems that this particular craft is beyond my ability, at least as far as getting Drabblecast to accept my hundred word stories goes.
I am incapable of writing a solid, complete Drabble. Mine always end up as one of two things: a) an incomplete story, or b) an unfunny joke. If you’re able to write a satisfying, cogent story in exactly one hundred words, then I salute you.
Ye who are about to die, that is.
Rish Outfield
June 8, 2009 at 10:12 pm
Heh. And now I am tempted to send you the 1000 word story I’ve been trying to sell…even though you just said you didn’t want them. :D
The first drabble I had on Drabblecast began life as a 2000 word short story. I knew there was something wrong with it, but it sat on the shelf for years because I couldn’t figure out what. Then I woke up one day, and said, “Sacrifices needs to be a 100 word drabble!” And it was so. The other one began as an idea for a short story that I boiled down to a drabble.
So, you know, maybe the way to approach it is to super-condense an existing short story.
I, also, have sent Drabblecast stuff they didn’t want. You win some…
September 24, 2009 at 3:43 pm
I just went back and relistened to this one. What a fun story. Short and sweet, but there’s a nice punch to it. I liked it a lot!