The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest (BLFC) is a tongue-in-cheek contest, held annually and sponsored by the English Department of San José State University in San Jose, California. Entrants are invited "to compose the opening sentence to the worst of all possible novels" – that is, one which is deliberately bad.
According to the official rules, the prize for winning the contest is "a pittance".[1] The 2008 winner received $250,[2] while the 2014 winners' page said the grand prize winner received "about $150".[3] The current prize, as of 2023, is "a cheap certificate and bragging rights".[4]
The contest was started in 1982 by Professor Scott E. Rice of the English Department at San Jose State University and is named for English novelist and playwright Edward George Bulwer-Lytton, author of the much-quoted first line "It was a dark and stormy night". This opening, from the 1830 novel Paul Clifford, reads in full:
It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents, except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness.
The first year of the competition attracted just three entries, but it went public the next year, received media attention, and attracted 10,000 entries.[5] There are now several subcategories, such as detective fiction, romance novels, Western novels, and purple prose. Sentences that are notable but not quite bad enough to merit the Grand Prize or a category prize are awarded Dishonorable Mentions.
Winning entrants
editThe winning entries are available at the contest website.[6]
| Year | Author |
|---|---|
| 1983 | Gail Cain San Francisco, California |
| 1984 | Steven Garman Pensacola, Florida |
| 1985 | Martha Simpson Glastonbury, Connecticut |
| 1986 | Patricia E. Presutti Lewiston, New York |
| 1987 | Sheila B. Richter Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| 1988 | Rachel E. Sheeley Williamsburg, Indiana |
| 1989 | Ray C. Gainey Indianapolis, Indiana |
| 1990 | Linda Vernon Newark, California |
| 1991 | Judy Frazier Lathrop, Missouri |
| 1992 | Laurel Fortuner Montendre, France |
| 1993 | Wm. W. "Buddy" Ocheltree Port Townsend, Washington |
| 1994 | Larry Brill Austin, Texas |
| 1995 | John L. Ashman Houston, Texas |
| 1996 | Janice Estey Aspen, Colorado |
| 1997 | Artie Kalemeris Fairfax, Virginia |
| 1998 | Bob Perry Milton, Massachusetts |
| 1999 | Dr. David Chuter Kingston, U.K. |
| 2000 | Gary Dahl Los Gatos, California |
| 2001 | Sera Kirk Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| 2002 | Rephah Berg Oakland, California |
| 2003 | Mariann Simms Wetumpka, Alabama |
| 2004 | Dave Zobel Manhattan Beach, California |
| 2005 | Dan McKay Fargo, North Dakota |
| 2006 | Jim Guigli Carmichael, California |
| 2007 | Jim Gleeson Madison, Wisconsin |
| 2008 | Garrison Spik Washington, D.C. |
| 2009 | David McKenzie Federal Way, Washington |
| 2010 | Molly Ringle Seattle, Washington |
| 2011 | Sue Fondrie Appleton, Wisconsin |
| 2012 | Cathy Bryant Manchester, England |
| 2013 | Chris Wieloch Brookfield, Wisconsin |
| 2014 | Elizabeth Dorfman Bainbridge Island, Washington |
| 2015 | Dr. Joel Phillips West Trenton, New Jersey |
| 2016 | William Barry Brockett Tallahassee, Florida |
| 2017 | Kat Russo Loveland, Colorado |
| 2018 | Tanya Menezes San Jose, California |
| 2019 | Maxwell Archer Mount Pleasant, Ontario[a] |
| 2020 | Lisa Kluber San Francisco, California |
| 2021 | Stu Duval Auckland, New Zealand |
| 2022 | John Farmer Aurora, Colorado |
| 2023 | Maya Pasic New York, New York |
| 2024 | Lawrence Person Austin, Texas |
Collections
editSix books collecting the best BLFC entries have been published:
- It Was a Dark and Stormy Night (1984), ISBN 0-14-007556-9
- Son of "It Was a Dark and Stormy Night" (1986), ISBN 0-14-008839-3
- Bride of Dark and Stormy (1988), ISBN 0-14-010304-X
- It Was a Dark & Stormy Night: The Final Conflict (1992), ISBN 0-14-015791-3
- Dark and Stormy Rides Again (1996), ISBN 0-14-025490-0
- It Was a Dark and Stormy Night (2007), ISBN 978-1-905548-60-6
An audio cassette of the winning entries in the BLFC was also released:
- It Was a Dark and Stormy Night (1997), audio cassette, ISBN 1-57270-045-9.
See also
edit- Lyttle Lytton Contest, a derivative favoring extremely short first sentences
- The Dweller of the Threshold, a contemporaneous parody of Bulwer-Lytton by Bret Harte
- Purple prose
- Bad Sex in Fiction Award run by Literary Review magazine
- Bookseller/Diagram Prize for Oddest Title of the Year
- International Imitation Hemingway Competition
Notes
edit- ^ The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest website does not specify which of the several places known as Mount Pleasant, Ontario, is meant.
References
edit- ^ "The rules for the Bulwer Lytton Fiction Contest are childishly simple". Archived from the original on August 31, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
- ^ Hesse, Monica (August 15, 2008). "Purple Prose? His Is Truly Bruising". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 10, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2010.
- ^ "2014 Contest Winners" (PDF). The Bulwer Lytton Fiction Contest. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 1, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
- ^ "Contest Rules | The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest". Bad Writing Contest. Retrieved 2023-10-26.
- ^ "Our Story". The Bulwer Lytton Fiction Contest. Archived from the original on August 31, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
- ^ "Contest Winners By Year". The Bulwer Lytton Fiction Contest. 2018. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
External links
edit- Bulwer Lytton Fiction Contest web site
- "From Worst to First: Literary Award Marks the Pits of Prose" Chronicle of Higher Education News blog (2007)