The Bradbury 52 Assumption

"Write a short story every week. It's not possible to write 52 bad short stories in a row."

-Ray Bradbury

Led to the above Bradbury quote by my mystic muse, Vickie, I embarked on a journey starting July 1, 2021, which I hope proves Ray Bradbury to be correct. I thank you in advance for any time you're able to spare to read - and comment - and help me identify that one good short story. Well, Bradbury doesn't actually say "good" so maybe I should say that one "not bad" short story.

Now, I understand if you've already mentally marked your calendar for the arrival of short story #52, thinking, "Mike might just get it right by then," but the statistically minded among you will recognize that the odds of that story being good is the same as the previous 51; it's 1 in 52 (a 2% chance if I round up). In other words, who knows when that one not bad short story will be posted? It's a kind of literary scavenger hunt! Be the first to find that not bad short story!

Full Disclosure: I got a C in my freshman year Stat course so you may want to check my math.

Note: You can filter on the Bradbury52Assumption label to see all the stories written for this literary experiment..

I hope, gentle reader, that you'll not only read but comment. I'm fuzzy on the whole good/bad thing but I suspect, in this case, it's a call best made by the reader. I hope to get better and constructive criticism will only help. ("You suck!" isn't as helpful as you might think, even if given with the best of intentions.) So, please comment.

The Back Story…

I had started writing again in the year leading up to my retirement, and have returned to posting on my blog in the time since then. I'd been thinking about writing as an improv exercise, challenging myself to write something every day, taking a word, a situation, a story from the news. I had gone so far as to search the Internet for content on improv, and when Vickie forwarded the Bradbury quote to me, the synchronicity was too much to resist. 

A short story a week, based on the subjects in Setting Ideas for Improv Acting and Comedy Sketches.