MISC #9 Voting Thread: Genres on Parade

[Spekkun]

I just want to say that all the submissions were pretty well done! I'm glad I read all of them and they were pretty dang enjoyable. It took me awhile to decide on which one to vote for, especially as I narrowed down my choices to the last two (my god did I deliberate for a long time on those two). So, here's my thoughts on what I've read :3 so thanks again to everyone for submitting, good reads!

Second Chance

I thought that the story itself was pretty intriguing, as I read it got my gears turning, but it felt like it was more of a setup for a mystery arc, sort of…incomplete? I think it needed more to it. The concept was interesting and if it had more meat to it could have been even better.

Omega Men

The title of this one made me raise an eyebrow because Omega Men is also the name of a Superhero group that didn't quite pan out the way DC hopes they would XD so I was snickering when I saw it. I loved the characterizations! It was more character driven then some of the other entries and character-driven stories are some of my favorites to read (so pardon my bias). It was one of the most fun reads for me, and pretty satisfying :'3 I found myself grinning when Miro did and snickering when Aednit mocked his cousin. One of my favorites for sure.

Pathfinders

I thought that this one was a pretty cool story, I did enjoy it a lot. The concept was cool and it reminded me a lot of a game I used to play, as well as an anime I used to watch, just crossed over. I do think it could have helped to have translations of the different languages but I get that it might have come out messy-looking and made it less immersive even. There were also a few grammatical errors, but it was a good read. The setup was really done o.o the beginning was probably my favorite part, reminded me of when I would watch those crazy Gang action movies, like John Wick and whatnot…just more sci-fi!

This is the Future and the Future is bleak

I had a bit of confusion with this one, mostly in trying to figure out which genre it fits into! I honestly thought it was going to be something of a romance story, and I think that was a problem. I didn't realize it was cyberpunk until the end, and I feel like it didn't quite capitalize on its genre enough? It was a good read, just confusing and with a bit of an identity crisis.

RAM Heist or How We Spent Our Last Days

For some reason I kept thinking of Far Cry: Blood Dragon while I read this one (Which is a good thing-ish, because that game is awesome!) though of course, this was far more serious than that. I loved how sci-fi this went, no middle ground at all >:D just full-blown Space and cyborgs and laser rifles, and it was a pretty fun heist story, and the idea of RAM being used like that tickled me pink at first but the end of the story really hit me in the feels ;w; . The fact that they weren't trying to survive or prolong their life or anything, just go out with a bang was somber but a nice touch as well. If you're gonna go out, go out on your own terms, eh?

Little Miss Riding Hood

I do love a good heist story, especially considering I can't write one for crap xD I thought this one was pretty fun, especially considering it had some fantasy bits going on (something I didn't expect to see much if at all for any of the entries), so kudos to you for surprising the heck out of me with that (along with Function interval)! If I had any complaints with this entry, it would be that I feel it lost sight of itself at some point, that it became less of a heist story and more focus on Kyle and Vic's relationship. The ending was sweet and heartwarming but a bit out of place. I did enjoy it though!

Function Interval

Oh boy, this was almost my vote! Very very very close, it was a really good read! I feel the best part of a heist story isn't the heist itself but the setup, character introductions and the assignment of their roles, and I thought this was pretty well done, especially in a way that you could get a grasp on their identities. It also had this amazing balance of comedy and seriousness, in such a way that my snickering never truly diminished as I read, but it wasn't funny to the point of damaging the severity of the situations that our caper squad found themselves getting into. It was well lead (I didn't get lost, it was easy to keep up with), and I swear when my boi Peter laughed, in the end, I did too xD

Dark Sky

The story I ended up voting for, and boy was it extremely close. I had narrowed it down to three, Function Interval, Dark Sky and RAM Heist, and then after re-reading for the third time, it fell to Dark Sky and Function Interval. After one more reading of both and maybe an hour of deliberation I ended up electing Dark Sky.

I was actually kind of surprised with my choice because Dark Sky was SO somber and I usually tend to gravitate towards the good times (sue me, I like sunshine, laughs and bickering), but I think that was actually a strength as I read it over. It really embodied the dying earth theme, and how bleak that scenario would really be. I mean…I get depressed when the sun is blocked by clouds, how would I be if the sky was covered in darkness forever?! Jackie's attitude worked pretty well too, I think the story would have suffered if she was too bright, it really doubled down on the dying earth theme.

My favorite part was the ending. Jackie just letting go was kind of a shock to me, and it kind of had me semi-upset with her. She was giving up on her life but there was no quality to it anymore, it's hard to keep on going when you're struggling 24/7. Her choice is my favorite part and I think if it was different I might have ended up voting for Function Interval over Dark Sky. It's one of those endings that will have you thinking about it for some time.

 

[KJDarKnight]

Congrats to whomever wrote Pathfinder! It was very well written, well deserved win :)

 

[Jorick]

So, we contest managers are being slow and sucky again, so the announcement is going to have to wait until we get our selection sorted out. My apologies for the delay.

Feel free to talk amongst yourselves about the entries and to reveal which one you wrote though, now that voting is officially closed.

 

[Jays]

If Pathfinder's written by @HerziQuerzi Imma be pissed
jk love you herz im just jealous

 

[KJDarKnight]

Not sure I want to say. I got no votes... again

 

[HerziQuerzi]

If Pathfinder's written by @HerziQuerzi Imma be pissed
jk love you herz im just jealous

Nope. Function Interval.

 

[KJDarKnight]

Nope. Function Interval.

Good job! I haven't finished reading it yet.... but like it so far!

 

[Jays]

Mine's Second Chance cuz I'm lazy and don't have an long enough attention to write anything of substantial length without creative juice running out midway and crash the ending

 

[Joan]

Mine's Second Chance cuz I'm lazy and don't have an long enough attention to write anything of substantial length without creative juice running out midway and crash the ending

Good job with it! I wound up unable to decide between Function Interval, Second Chance, and Pathfinder, and picked Function Interval pretty arbitrarily XD

 

[noodle]

I was stuck between Pathfinder and Omega Men...both were amazing in my mind, but I chose the one that already had a vote.

Everyone did so good, though!

 

[Pahn]

My submission was RAM Heist, or How We Spent Our Last Days and I'm a little sad it got zero votes XD I know the punch at the end was weakly delivered and there was some dissonance between the narrator voice and the narrator's dialogue. I was aiming for a caper story but realized I REALLY SUCK AT COMEDY so instead I changed plan mid-way through the entry. I think the tone is consistent though, but it clearly had flaws which turned off those who voted. I think if I had had taken more time to polish and edit it before submitting, it would've had been a better story!

If anyone has any reviews or criticism about my entry, please send it my way :D I always look to improve my writing. And maybe to learn how to make a happy ending where not everyone necessarily dies.

 

[KJDarKnight]

My submission was RAM Heist, or How We Spent Our Last Days and I'm a little sad it got zero votes XD I know the punch at the end was weakly delivered and there was some dissonance between the narrator voice and the narrator's dialogue. I was aiming for a caper story but realized I REALLY SUCK AT COMEDY so instead I changed plan mid-way through the entry. I think the tone is consistent though, but it clearly had flaws which turned off those who voted. I think if I had had taken more time to polish and edit it before submitting, it would've had been a better story!

If anyone has any reviews or criticism about my entry, please send it my way :D I always look to improve my writing. And maybe to learn how to make a happy ending where not everyone necessarily dies.

I didnt get to reading yours yet, I'm such a slow reader I never get through them all. I try!

I didnt get any votes either but only a few people did get any anyway

 

[KJDarKnight]

Mine was Little Miss Robin Hood. I started it just a few days before the deadline after I couldn't get past a block on my first idea. (Which I think would have gone over better but still haven't finished it!)

I know I strayed from the heist but I just went with my first plot idea, I didnt have time to think of anything else. I still like it well enough, needs a lot of refining and editing but I'm still proud of it. Just sad nobody votesd for it *shrugs* seems to happen to me almost every time anyway.

 

[Greenie]

Hey guys, here are the rest of my thoughts, apologies for the delay! I skipped out on Dark Sky, since that was my story ^_^

RAM Heist- [spoili]This story took me a little longer to get into and this is not at all due to the author. Once again it was the genre that made it a slow starting for me. However, that took a quick turn when the dialogue started. I really enjoyed the interactions between the different characters as well as the heist they were planning. I think a part of me was hoping that the heist might be the main focus, but I did remember it was more than a caper- there was cyberpunk and more so dying earth. The ending got me in the feels, it was lovely that Zhor and Meekon could be reunited! That was what had me wanting to vote for RAM Heist yet kept me from it as well. It was a happy ending yet a sad one, and that was fine- I just wish that it wasn't so close to when the the Earth was giving up completely. It felt really sudden I guess. :"D I think keeping people alive wouldn't necessarily be the happy ending, at least for me, rather giving Meekon and Zhor some more time to bond before the inevitable end. [/spoili]

This is the Future and the Future is Bleak- [spoili]This story confused me somewhat until the ending when I could tell it was cyberpunk. The last sentence kind of made me think "huh?" as well. That being said, from a technical point of view I did think it was well written, just not my cup of tea.[/spoili]

Omega Men- [spoili]Once again, this was a story I almost voted for. I loved the interaction between the two cousins, it was funny in such a dire situations. I'm impressed by how the author managed to make such a downing theme seem so lighthearted while they're literally unsure if they're going to live or not. I think it was only the ending that confused me a little. Miro could see something- was it the ship, or was he just seeing things? I couldn't tell if Aednit was sad because he was watching Earth's destruction or if it was maybe because Miro was wrong. Either way though, I really enjoyed this story, so two thumbs up to the author.[/spoili]

Second Chance- [spoili]I think my views on this were like the ones @SkittlesAndSpike wrote. I thought it was well written but it felt a little incomplete to me. It was intriguing but felt like there needed to be more. Still, it was an interesting read and I liked the idea of a log entry- the fact that it didn't go through properly had me kinda worried, like "Oh No... now what?"[/spoili]

 

[Jays]

Damn, I completely failed to get across the idea I was aiming for.

The ending's Randall getting stuck in an endless time loop. I was balancing between giving too much exposition and losing the (relative) authenticity of the dialogue I was aiming for, and giving enough hints so that readers can still piece enough information to get the context. I guess I failed at both. The short length's meant to keep readers' attention and make hints more apparent cuz there'd be less content to digest. In the end, the code mirrored the beginning, signalling a loop, but the way I paragraphed it probably made it difficult to pick out, and at the same time it is understandable that code-type dialogues are usually skimmed, making it even less impactful.

Now that I reread it, I see a lot of problems that hit way off the mark I was aiming for.

I could probably have fixed it but I was lazy. Oh well. It's the first time I wrote something like this, I'll stored all of this away as a lesson.

 

[Greenie]

I'll stored all of this away as a lesson.

:D That's the way to go about it! Most of the critique on what I've written for Misc in the last one year has helped me out quite a bit, which is one of the biggest reasons I keep joining.

 

[Jays]

But damn I feel so bad. The part I thought was the most interesting aspect of my piece and I completely messed it up. I feel so, so bad and pissed off at myself. And it was an easy fix too. ARAHHHHHHHHHHHHH CRINGGEEEEEEE FEELSBADMAN ok i just needed to vent im good. Thanks Greenie. So who wrote Pathfinder?

 

[Greenie]

But damn I feel so bad. The part I thought was the most interesting aspect of my piece and I completely messed it up. I feel so, so bad and pissed off at myself. And it was an easy fix too. ARAHHHHHHHHHHHHH CRINGGEEEEEEE FEELSBADMAN ok i just needed to vent im good. Thanks Greenie. So who wrote Pathfinder?

*patpats* You're welcome. And don't feel too bad! D: On a whole I did really like the story, I'm just very bad at deciphering things. I was confused by a couple other stories here as well. *sweats*

Uhm, I'm not too sure personally. I guess we'll wait and see! ^_^

 

[Joan]

@Jays If it's any consolation, I understood the time loop thing and thought it was extremely clever.

 

[Jays]

@Jays If it's any consolation, I understood the time loop thing and thought it was extremely clever.

joan marry me

jk someone appreciating my effort is not enough basis for a stable and healthy marriage, only a lasting and benefiting mature friendship that provides social and self-fortifying reward and satisfaction. I love you as a friend. Thank you very much. Don't change.