Noir at the Beach House

Summer's here.
I'm for that.

Got my leather sandals

Got my straw hat.

Got my cold beer.

I'm just glad that it's here.

-- JTaylor

By Steve Weddle

If you're north of the equator, welcome to summer. If you're south of the equator, then have a nice day.

So with summer comes vacations of beaches, family get-togethers, weeks in foreign lands, etc.

Lee Smith -- and/or other folks -- said that there are two kinds of stories.
1. A stranger comes to town.
2. Somebody takes a trip.

With that in mind, how about we do us up a little writing challenge here. Anywhere from 500 words to 5,000. Post links here. Deadline two weeks from today.

Your spin on:
Summer vacation given the crime fiction treatment.
Noir at the beach house.
Beatings at the beach.

And let's have a prize.
One lucky entrant -- probably chosen at random -- will receive a copy of FUN AND GAMES from Duane Swierczynski.

Along with fellow writers Charlie Huston and Victor Gischler, Duane Swierczynski leads an insurgency of new crime writers specializing in fast-paced crime rife with sharp dialogue, caustic humor and over-the-top violence. Together, they ensure that the grittiest and most compulsively-readable crime fiction in the world is still produced right here in the USA. SPINETINGLER REVIEW

So post here if you feel like joining in on the fun. I'd suggest keeping the stories to around flash length of 1,000 words or fewer, but I ain't in the mood to set limits on your awesomenesses.

Once you write up your story and post it on your site, drop back by and leave the link in the comments. I'll collect them all for two weeks from today -- June 20 -- and post them in that day's blog post. And then I'll draw/pick a winner of Duane's super-cool new book.

AND ALSO THIS AS WELL IN ADDITION:

If you don't want to flash your fiction, then let us know about your favorite vacation story in the crime fiction tradition. I can't think of any Christa Faust, George Pelecanos, Dennis Lehane stories that have to do with summer vacation.

Honestly, the most stressful times ever in anyone's life ever in the world is when that person is trying to relax. Get away from the stress. Ain't nothing better for conflict than that. So if you'd rather share someone else's story than write your own, then hellfire, post up whatever title you want. I just can't think of any summer vacation crime fiction. Maybe DELIVERANCE. Maybe ICE HARVEST. Any ideas?

Either way I'll pull a FUN AND GAMES winner from the comments.

Thanks