COUNT CAREFULLY

Six-word story rules

The central rule is gloriously unforgiving: the story must contain exactly six words. Punctuation can shape the reading, but it cannot smuggle in a seventh.

The short answer: count the written words separated by spaces. Contractions and standard hyphenated compounds normally count as one. Punctuation counts as none.

ContractionsOne word: don’t, I’m, we’ll. The apostrophe does not split them.

Hyphenated compoundsNormally one when standard usage supports it: long-lost, five-year-old. Do not invent hyphens to shrink the count.

NumbersOne word whether written as 8 or eight. A spaced number such as twenty one is two.

PunctuationNo words. Commas, quotation marks, dashes and full stops shape meaning but do not alter the count.

TitlesKeep titles outside the six-word story and do not use one to supply essential missing information.

NamesCount each spaced element: Jane Eyre is two; Madonna is one.

Initials and abbreviationsA continuous abbreviation is one: NASA, U.K., Dr.

Emojis and symbolsAvoid using a symbol as a secret extra word. The story should still be six written words.

Worked counting examples

“Don’t wake him. He’s finally dreaming.”

6 words: Don’t · wake · him · He’s · finally · dreaming

“My long-lost brother forgot me again.”

6 words: My · long-lost · brother · forgot · me · again

“Room 8 waited. Nobody checked out.”

6 words: Room · 8 · waited · Nobody · checked · out

“She came home, but far too late.”

7 words: punctuation does not rescue the count.

What makes it a story?

Six words alone are not enough. A label, slogan or observation may contain six words without creating a story. A six-word story should imply an event, tension, change or discovery. It can leave questions unanswered, but it should make the reader imagine more than the sentence states.

Can a story be fewer than six words?

Not for this form. A five-word microstory may still be good writing, but it is not a six-word story. Constraint is part of the creative challenge.

Can punctuation join two words?

No. A slash, dash or missing space should not be used simply to defeat the count. Hyphenation should reflect normal usage, not last-minute arithmetic.

Must the grammar be conventional?

No. Dialogue, fragments, dialect and poetic syntax are welcome when they are deliberate and intelligible. Accidental confusion is not experimental literature merely because it is short.

Final six-point check

Exactly six written words
No invented hyphenation
No title doing hidden work
An implied event or change
Original wording
Punctuation used for meaning

Counted it? Now strengthen it.

A correct six-word story is only the beginning. Test the image, turn, order and final word.

Improve your six words →

A correct word count does not guarantee publication. See the editorial standards for originality, moderation and what belongs in the collection.

Exactly six. Elegantly arranged.