The following is an anonymous short-short story, originally published in Everybody’s Scrapbook of Curious Facts, edited by Don Lemon, in the late 19th century. The story comprises 479 words all beginning with a “W,” and only 17 hyphenated words.
Winnie and Walter
“Warm weather, Walter! Welcome warm weather! We were wishing winter would wane, weren’t we?”
“We were well wearied with waiting,” whispered Waiter wearily. Wan, white, woe-begone was Walter; wayward, willful, worn with weakness, wasted, waxing weaker whenever winter’s wild, withering winds were wailing. Wholly without waywardness was Winifred, Walter’s wise, womanly watcher, who, with winsome, wooing way, was well-beloved.
“We won’t wait, Walter; while weather’s warm we’ll wander where woodlands wave, won’t we?”
Walter’s wanton wretchedness wholly waned. “Why, Winnie, we’ll walk where we went when we were with Willie; we’ll weave wildflower wreaths, watch woodmen working; woodlice, worms wriggling; windmills whirling; watermills wheeling; we will win wild whortleberries, witness wheat winnowed.”
