Fractales: here's the idea.

Image produced using DavW's fractal tree generator -- cool toy!

Remember that dumb blonde joke? It led me to realize the power of the internet*. As blog memes go, the blonde joke possessed humor, originality, and minimal sting to its host -- all you had to do was post a bloody link, for heaven's sake, and rave about the joke. Easy**. Consequently, like any catchy meme, it spread like wildfire. But what did that meme produce? A single joke. I thought: you know, with a little extra effort, we might have had our own version of the Aristocrats gag, but it wouldn't have been one joke -- it would have been hundreds of them. Thousands. What we ought to do is tell a story. Tell a million of 'em. It will be just like a story chain, only we need to start at the end, not the beginning. If you think about that fractal tree image, you'll see the logic in this, since folks will want to follow the story forwards, not backwards. If we (the writers) work backwards, your audience will get to read the story forwards. Of course, some of them will want to add to the story, and they will do so by continuing the backwards writing process. I'm going to call this a fractale. Catchy, eh?*** This meme may die a cold, lonely death, but what do we have to lose? Go on, do it! Leave your mark on the tree. Above, I will post the end of the story and the rules of the game. The rest is up to you. D. *No, really. Why must you always assume I'm joking? **Not like some memes that ask you to name one hundred things you want to do before you die, your one hundred most favoritest songs, and so forth. "Item 99: I would like to finish this meme before I die." ***A cursory google tells me that 'fractale' is French for 'fractal.' I don't see anyone else using the term in this fashion.