Quote of the Day: Edward Bulwer-Lytton
July 13, 2012 2 Comments
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.
- Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Paul Clifford (1830)
About Matthew
I hope you’re aware of the Bulwer-Lytton contest for the finest first sentence:
http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/2011win.html
“Cheryl’s mind turned like the vanes of a wind-powered turbine, chopping her sparrow-like thoughts into bloody pieces that fell onto a growing pile of forgotten memories.”
I know about the contest, but hadn’t heard of that particular winner. That’s genius of a kind, isn’t it? I mean, it would take me a whole day of writing and rewriting to come up with something matching that sentence.
It all reminds me of the late lamented Bad Hemingway contest.