The annual Lyttle Lytton contest challenges writers to come up with the worst possible opening line to a novel — a challenge which generally results in tons of run-on sentences being submitted. This year, the sponsors decided to limit entries to 25 words or less — preferably less. The 2004 winners have been posted. The winner, however:
This is the story of your mom’s life.
Was, in my opinion, not nearly as funny as the example given in the contest rules:
Jennifer stood there, quietly ovulating.
A line which quite literally caused me to spew milk and cereal from the nose this morning.
Music: Ralph Carney :: Out Of The Bag #2
While I do have to agree the ovulating one is the best of them all, I thought the “Juicy, their love was like forbidden fruit: tasty.” entrant was pretty good too (in a pathetic sort of way, of course).
This contest is a copycat of the Bulwer-Lytton contest, named for Edward Bulwer-Lytton, who actually began his novel Paul Clifford with the line, “It was a dark and stormy night …”
http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/