Literary Inspiration Challenge

Rules of the challenge: select a story, poem, author or theme that appeals to you and is in the public domain – meaning, there is no longer any copyright on the work involved.

Develop a story or poem derived from the work or the author chosen.

The range of possibilities for this are manifold. You can rework the ending of the story, write an entirely new text based on a minor character, change the setting and time frame of the story, change the genders of the characters, write a modern version of the story, and so on. One thing that is essential is the story MUST be based on the text that is in the public domain, NOT on a film or television version. It is up to you to make sure you are following or referring to the text in the public domain.

An excellent resource for books and texts that are in the public domain is the Project Gutenberg.

Example of a few writers whose works are in the public domain: Mary Shelley, Jane Austin, Charlotte Brontë, Emily Brontë, Anne Brontë, Charles Dickens, Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Wilkie Collins, M.R. James, Bram Stoker, Louisa May Alcott, L.M. Montgomery, E.A. Poe …

The great works of mythology are also excellent sources, with no need to list them here.

Read the following guidelines, follow them carefully, and submit the text for publication here at Stories Space.

Guidelines for the challenge:

- The text must be written for this challenge and not already be published here or elsewhere
- It can be either a stand alone story, or part of a series having up to three separate chapters
- There is no deadline to the challenge
- Preface your title with Literary Inspiration Challenge
- Include literaryinspiration as a tag
- Use a tag that indicates what inspired you – for example : charlesdickens, janeausten, shakespearean sonnets, mythology, folk lore, aliceinwonderland…
- Submit your story via the story submission link on the home page
- No excessive or blatant violence, cruelty, sex etc allowed, but if implied, hinted at or referred to, the age appropriate category must be used.
- Word count is minimum 150 words, maximum 3000 for each submission
- Categories : All categories are eligible with the exception of Micro Fiction, due to the minimum word count of 150 words
- Language should be clean and appropriate
- All the site rules apply

If you have any questions or have concerns, please ask them here, especially if there is something that is unclear.

Thank you, and I hope you find inspiration and have fun with this!

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The subject who is truly loyal to the Chief Magistrate will neither advise nor submit to arbitrary measures. Junius

Way to go, Gypsy! This could be fun. Many thanks for all your work.

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OF WAR, AND PEACE, AND MARY BETH: my contest winner, honest

For Whom the Good Tolls an 'RR' and it's short, no kidding[/url]

Thanks, gypsy. I actually have old Panther paperbacks of most of Hodgson's output (for some reason, I never found a copy of Boats of the Glen Carrig) including Carnacki. Was just asking to make sure I can use him. I have always wanted to do a Carnacki story and I know some modern writers have done so (I think there's even a tribute anthology of modern writers doing Carnacki stories).

Right now, though, I am kind of meditating on what could be done with Le Fanu's Carmilla. Best vampire story after Dracula (and a major influence on that novel), IMHO.

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The Goddess Dances - Winner - Cheers to 10 Years Flash

The Berry Girl - Third place - Summer Word Bank

Damn, so probably five more years for Werewolf of Paris. I am so wanting to do something for this challenge and so challenged to find something PD that engages me. Been toying with Phantom of the Opera lately, but I know that's because I've fallen madly in love with Nightwish's cover of the title song from Lloyd-Webber's musical and that may colour how I handle it.

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The Goddess Dances - Winner - Cheers to 10 Years Flash

The Berry Girl - Third place - Summer Word Bank