posted
Greetings, fellow hatrack colleagues. Welcome to the fourth annual WotF trigger challenge! Although this is the 4th annual challenge, it is our third contest for the illustrious prize of a Writers of the Future book (contest #2 was made possible by the very generous Kathleen-Dalton Woodbury, thank you very much).
This year’s challenges prize is made possible by the equally as generous Nick Tchan. More on that in a moment…
The WotF trigger challenge is a writing contest open to all hatrack writers. Be this your first day, or if you’ve been a member longer than youngest hatracker has been alive, you are eligible. A bit of a warning, to be part of the challenge garners some responsibility. All participant’s are expected to serves as judges. You will help determine the winner.
The prize for winning the competition will be your own copy of the latest Writers of the Future anthology (Volume 28), debuting fellow hatracker Nick Tchan's The Command For Love.
First some ground rules…
This is a trigger challenge. You will need to come up with a story (genre is open) based on the trigger…
The Command For Love
Your story can be about anything as long as it has something to do with the trigger. The only limitations are you cannot plagiarize Nick'd work and you cannot exceed a 3000 word limit.
All submission will be sent to me…
snapperfjd@yahoo.com
…where I will assign it a number. The cut off date for submissions will be May 20th. If my Word program says your submission is over 3k, I will give you an opportunity to correct it. Please send your stories in a RTF file. Thank you for that.
Judging…
We will be voting on the best openings and best overall pieces. Once I get enough entries, I will start to post the opening 13. Everyone is expected to pick their first and second favorite opening, a point will be awarded for every second place, and two points for a first place. The judging for the first 13 lines will be a week, at that point I will send the entries out to everyone. You will read and pick your three favorite. The points will be 5 for first, 4 for second, and 3 for third. You may use any criteria you like in voting but I suggest you take how each one fits with the trigger into consideration If I get more than a few entries, I will separate them into groups and the top vote getters will face off for the grand prize. And because this is a friendly competition, and I would like to illicit interest by posting openings as soon as possible, 2 points will be awarded to the first entry I receive and 1 point will go to the second one for the 13 line challenge.
The winner of the 13 line challenge will receive a free detailed, critique for any work they would like me to look at of 5000 words (I'm flexible on that number). The winner of the general competetion will win a signed copy of the anthology - signed as in most of the authors in the anthlogy plus a few of the judges.
How to get disqualified…
The competition will be anonymous. If you post your entry in F & F to get some feedback, then I may have to disqualify you. If you fail to vote, you get disqualified. Other than that, it’s all open. If you whine, complain, or tell me I’m a cheat for any reason (private or public) I will only laugh at you. I am only interested in fair play and quality writing. When I say this is open to all, I mean it. If you want to join in but don’t feel you need the book, no problem. It can go to the second place finisher if you win…so now no one *coughnickcough* I mean no one *ah-ah- Kathleen-choo!* can use that as an excuse.
Any questions? Feel free to post them in this thread.
Additional rules (deadlines, votes, deviding up the entries) may apply later.
posted
Hm, I may have problems with the .rtf format. But than again I don't think I would need a header for the story so it might work.
Posts: 5289 | Registered: Jun 2010
| IP: Logged |
posted
Then go ahead and try an ordinary word file, LD. You do have that weird punctuation problem, if I recall. I'll try and straighten it out if it comes in odd at my end.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Actually my problems have changed with my new word processor.
In one transporter test the story came through--all in one piece, in the right shape and alive--but the headers didn't materialize. In this case they were just decorative so their lost did no harm to the story. But as I said I won't need headers for this story so the transporter should function completely.
posted
How much time will we have to read other people's work after the initial 13? If you aren't sure yet that's fine...I'm just pretending I have control over my schedule Posts: 83 | Registered: Feb 2012
| IP: Logged |
posted
You'll get plenty of time Shaygirl. At least two weeks. Waiting to see how many people get in and feel out what everybody else thinks. At the moment, this could be a very easy win for the (lone) submitter.
Get going on those ideas.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
I'm working on a story but don't expect much from me. The story idea was reluctantly chosen from a list of unsuitable choices. "The Command of Love" had inspired stronger conflicts that don't require more than 3,000 words to resolve.
Posts: 1139 | Registered: May 2008
| IP: Logged |
posted
I've got a few ideas. Will be in your hands on the 13th! (If my english teacher hasn't killed me first)
Posts: 83 | Registered: Feb 2012
| IP: Logged |
posted
What a dilemma. First I'm sat there having a "can't be bothered to write" moment, now I have two first drafts and can't think which one to send.
Thanks for the prompt/kick up the backside Snapper.
Posts: 778 | Registered: Aug 2010
| IP: Logged |
posted
Keep the entries coming in. It may be a bit before I may get them posted because my laptop just went on the fritz. The screen on it went blank. Not sure what I'm going to do about it. Hoping it will fix itself.
In any case, your stories are safely saved on my email account. So send them away.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Argh, PD! Now I gotta mix them up! Amenity is crucial for this contest!
I have enough entries to post openings but my malfunctioning laptop has put a crimp in my plans. Hopefully I can get them up this weekend.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Just read the first four entries, as usual we have a variety which is good.
Certain concepts I wouldn't had thought of like the ship called love.
For some strange reason it reminds me of a Shannara tale-on one Brook's trilogies and one I would love to use a modal, and for a not so strange reason it brings to mind a book I read many years ago about a planet with two levels.
Posts: 5289 | Registered: Jun 2010
| IP: Logged |
posted
Paysent everyone. The problem is a computing one. The delay is entirely because my laptop, and its reliable spellchecker, went out. Now don't get your assessment all up in a forecloser. Sheesh.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Four is all I had this point. The machine I have will let me paste and post but I hesitate to save them on a file until I get my laptop - which I am happy to report is at home waiting for me.
I did have one writer who sent me their opening but not their entire submission. I'm waiting for the rest of it to show up (who knows, they may rewrite that opening).
Suffice to say, I have heard via email from more than a few hatrackers that they plan on submitting something before the deadline.
posted
I am one of those and I'm afraid that my time and my computer blew up at the same time. I can't currently access any of my old stuff so I'm trying to hammer out something new in the little time I have. I may not make it, but I'm giving it the old college try. I'm starting to see the sense in my roommate's habit of writing on paper but my hands don't get along well with that practice. We'll see. Good luck to everyone.
Posts: 33 | Registered: Jan 2012
| IP: Logged |
quote:Snapper wrote: "I did have one writer who sent me their opening but not their entire submission. I'm waiting for the rest of it to show up (who knows, they may rewrite that opening)."
If this refers to me, by chance, then "no." What you have is what you get for the purposes of this challenge. It is a self-contained little tale.
There is a "continued story" that will explore the trigger further and to greater depth, but it far exceeds your word count.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
Posts: 1475 | Registered: Aug 2010
| IP: Logged |
posted
Curiouser and curiouser. Two self-confessed starting four stories, and a possible 3rd. This will help the "guess the writer" challenge no end. Anemity indeed. Posts: 789 | Registered: Aug 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
No Doc. The author and story I was referring to is not yours.
At the risk of betraying your amenity...anomaly...annuity...antimony...
At the risk of revealing which story is yours, if you check the entries thread you will see your opening is posted already.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Ah, yes, well, anyway...when we have the opportunity to read all the entries I fear my small contribution will be too obvious.
Posts: 1475 | Registered: Aug 2010
| IP: Logged |
14 entries. In case you need to be filled in, here is what is expected out of you...
Phase 1: Choose your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd favorite openings.
Use whatever criterea you like but typically, we judge the openings on which one hooks you the best. The ones that you'll want to keep reading.
Make your votes and send them to me. Crits for the openings are not required for this round but I will post any comments that I receive.
Phase 2: Read, critique, and vote for your 1st, 2nd, and third favorite story.
I will be sending everyone 7 stories to read in a day or two (or three). You will be reading ebtries from the opposite group. The top two in each group. You will receiving a set of instructions when I send you the stories to judge.
That is all for now. Time for bed. Good luck and enjoy!
Thanks to all who have joined in the fun!
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Hey everybody. Got an emergency call to come into work. Colleague got into an accident so they need me to get him a truck. Planned on completing all my work for this contest today but alas, duty called.
I will get it done tomorrow. I have received a lot of emails that need answering. Allow me to give a generic answer here. Yes, I received your edits/changes/questions/additional critiques - including the answer to Louis question above. I will answer every email personally and get you all your stories to read.
This is a pleasure for me to run these contests but all of your thanks are greatly appreciated. I ask for just a wee-bit of patience while I get things in order. In the meantime, time for bed.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
quote:There was a term in a couple of the crits that I wasn't sure about.
"sensate".
Here is your answer...
Sensate vs Intuitive is a Myers-Briggs personality scale that essentially differentiates between detail minded people and big picture people. Some people are more comfortable with knowing facts as others gloss over the detail for an understanding of the key interactions.
I used the term to indicate that writers also fall along this scale. A story that is primarily description, about everything, is sensate - one end of the scale. The plot, theme and meaning can be hidden in the story, somewhere, but a lot of the detail is not necessary for that purpose. At the other end of the scale are stories that seem more like outlines of the plot, with little description. These stories are intuitive, or primarily about the underlying pattern (be it plot, or theme). Another way of putting it, sensate shows you everything, intuitive leaves most to your imagination and only tells enough to put you there. (The show-tell divide is a cliche battleground between these two personality extremes.)
A sensate personality could find an outline-like story lacking substance. An intuitive could get frustrated with description because it is getting in the way of the story, making it hard work to find the plot, or simply he is balancing too many details for too long, wanting to know which are important.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Just read the stories...some comments with an attempt not to give anything away.
A couple of different formats-that was nice, and a couple of the stories are completely different than what I expected from the opening.
Dr. Bob thought that his story would be easy to recognize. I wonder if those who have read my stuff before would be able to recognize my writing and the mistakes I keep making. Not to mention the type of story I seem to be stuck in these days. I would think so lower end writing doesn't change much.
And I noticed that some of the new critiques are so completely opposite of each other. That happens but not quite that big a difference. That's just an observation.
I know which one is my favorite-maybe all three places-- but come to think of it I need to go back and check for one little detail.
Posts: 5289 | Registered: Jun 2010
| IP: Logged |
posted
It's an interesting experiment, to see if someone who is familiar with your work can identify you out of a batch. I had my son (age 12), who has read most of my stuff--but not this one, since I wrote it so fast to get it in under the deadline--read through all fourteen entries and try to identify mine. He picked out four possibilities, and he was right. Mine was among those four. Authorial voice is an interesting beast!
Posts: 248 | Registered: May 2012
| IP: Logged |
Printer-friendly view of this topic
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Frown]](frown.gif)
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
