A compelling, illustrated compilation of six word memoirs, contributed by both famous and obscure writers to Smith magazine, records the human experience in works that are by turn whimsical, poignant, and bizarre, by such authors as Joyce Carol Oates, Deepak Chopra, Sebastian Junger, Joan Rivers, Dave Eggers, Mario Batali, and many others. Original. 40,000 first printing Deceptively simple and surprisingly addictive, Not Quite What I Was Planning is a thousand glimpses of humanity--six words at a time. One Life. Six Words. What's Yours? When Hemingway famously wrote, "For Sale: baby shoes, never worn," he proved that an entire story can be told using a half dozen words. When the online storytelling magazine SMITH asked readers to submit six-word memoirs, they proved a whole, real life can be told this way too. The results are fascinating, hilarious, shocking, and moving. From small sagas of bittersweet romance ("Found true love, married someone else") to proud achievements and stinging regrets ("After Harvard, had baby with crackhead"), these terse true tales relate the diversity of human experience in tasty bite-sized pieces. From authors Jonathan Lethem and Richard Ford to comedians Stephen Colbert and Amy Sedaris, to ordinary folks around the world, everyone has a six-word story to tell.