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Greetings, people of Iwaku. Our other lovely writing events have had their time in the spotlight, so it's time for MISC once more!
The Miscellaneous Iwaku Storytelling Contest (MISC) is our recurring storytelling contest to encourage people to stretch their writing wings with something new, practice their skills outside of roleplays, and give and receive feedback to help everyone improve and do an even better job next time. There are two winners selected for this contest: the Manager's Pick selected by our panel of judges, and the Community Pick chosen by a public vote. Everyone is encouraged to submit, and whether they can or can't manage that one, we also encourage reading the entries and voting and giving people feedback to let them know what you liked and what they might be able to improve upon. The prizes up for grabs are a spot in our Hall of Fame thread, a fancy ribbon under your avatar declaring your victory until the next MISC rolls around, and of course the sense of accomplishment that comes with writing something you are proud of.
The theme is changed every month and this month is:
Write a story that revolves around some event that is a very rare occurrence. The exact level of rarity, be it once in a lifetime or something more frequent, is totally up to you, but it's got to be rare enough to be worth writing a story about it! Neither the moon nor the color blue need to be included, but we all know some of you will insist on being literal with the prompt phrase, so go nuts.
Before submitting your entry, please read over all of the rules and guidelines below.
The Miscellaneous Iwaku Storytelling Contest (MISC) is our recurring storytelling contest to encourage people to stretch their writing wings with something new, practice their skills outside of roleplays, and give and receive feedback to help everyone improve and do an even better job next time. There are two winners selected for this contest: the Manager's Pick selected by our panel of judges, and the Community Pick chosen by a public vote. Everyone is encouraged to submit, and whether they can or can't manage that one, we also encourage reading the entries and voting and giving people feedback to let them know what you liked and what they might be able to improve upon. The prizes up for grabs are a spot in our Hall of Fame thread, a fancy ribbon under your avatar declaring your victory until the next MISC rolls around, and of course the sense of accomplishment that comes with writing something you are proud of.
The theme is changed every month and this month is:
ONCE IN A BLUE MOON
Write a story that revolves around some event that is a very rare occurrence. The exact level of rarity, be it once in a lifetime or something more frequent, is totally up to you, but it's got to be rare enough to be worth writing a story about it! Neither the moon nor the color blue need to be included, but we all know some of you will insist on being literal with the prompt phrase, so go nuts.
Before submitting your entry, please read over all of the rules and guidelines below.
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You have three weeks to write your short story based on one or more of the above list of themes and elements. The submission deadline is the end of the day on May 21; as soon as the date rolls over into May 22, entries are closed and late entries will not be accepted. Date rollover is based on the site's local time (North American Central/GMT-6). Send your entry via a single Inbox Conversation to all three MISC managers: @Jorick, @Astaroth, and @Kitti.
There will be two winners: a Manager's Pick and a Community Pick. The Manager's Pick, determined (obviously) by the contest managers, will receive a spot in our special Hall of Fame thread, a temporary ribbon under their avatar proclaiming their winning status, and a month of Donator status (complete with perks) for free! The Community Pick winner will be selected by public vote and will win a spot in the Hall of Fame and a different temporary ribbon under their avatar for the same duration. -
- Send completed entries in a single private message to all three contest managers (Jorick, Kitti, Astaroth) with some sort of title that lets us know it's a contest entry.
- Only one entry is allowed per person. You can submit a replacement entry if the submission period is still open, but we'll only count and post the most recent entry that we have from you. If your entry is denied for any reason then you can fix the problem and submit it again as long as the submission period is still open.
- Collaborative entries are not allowed. Getting feedback or advice from people who are not Iwaku members, however, is fine.
- Entries have to fulfill any criteria required by the prompt. Some will tell you to use a specific theme or phrase, others might be more open and have you write something inspired by an image, but make sure to use any of the specific requirements or your entry will be denied.
- Entries need to be original works created for this contest specifically, not something you wrote in the past. They also must be your own work because plagiarism is against site rules and defeats the entire purpose of the contest.
- Entries should not contain characters, settings, or identifiable elements from your previous stories or roleplays. If we recognize it, chances are your friends and partners will too.
- Entries may be homages, twists, or inspired by other works but simple retellings with little to no originality added will be rejected.
- Entries can't be posted elsewhere on Iwaku or off-site until after the voting period ends to avoid unintentional vote manipulation, but after it's done feel free to post them anywhere you like.
- This contest has a strict word limit of 10,000 words, but we suggest not going over 5,000 to be nice to voters and reviewers. Any entries that go over 10k words will be rejected. Entries that end up between 5k and 10k words will be allowed, but keep in mind that there may be a ton of entries and the people who want to read them all and vote and give feedback have lives outside of Iwaku that won't wait for them to read a few novels worth of entries in a week.
- Entries can be written in whatever format you like: short stories, poems, scripts, whatever feels right so long as it can fulfill the prompt criteria.
- BBCode post formatting is allowed for use in your entry, but we reserve the right to change things (particularly colors) if they would make it hard for people to read. We have a few different background colors thanks to the different site themes, and some colors are very hard to read on some backgrounds. If you aren't sure which colors are safe then please take a look at this handy guide. Also, we do not allow pictures/music/videos/etc to be embedded in entries, any entries sent in containing these things will be edited or rejected.
- Your entry may contain sexual content, but it has to follow the normal Iwaku rule of no characters under 13 years old shown engaging in sexual conduct. Anything else is fair game, but it will be clearly marked in the voting thread as a story containing NSFW content and some people may choose to skip your entry because of that.
- Non-fiction entries aren't allowed. Sorry, but MISC is a creative writing contest, not an autobiography contest. Feel free to write such things and post them in the Showcasing section of the forum if you'd like to try your hand at non-fiction writing.
- Giving your entry a title isn't required, but it's useful and encouraged. If you title your entry then we'll use it for the title of the spoiler your entry will be contained in in the voting thread.
- All site members except MISC contest managers are allowed to enter. Anyone from a new member to an admin can join the fun, it's all good.
- All entries must follow all Iwaku site rules, obviously. Don't air your drama with other members in a story, don't write an entry to mock or harass other members, so on and so forth. Be cool and just have fun writing.
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- All entries will be posted anonymously. Voters will need to make a selection based on the quality of the piece, not the name attached to it.
- There will be two winners for each month of MISC: the Community Pick that receives the most votes, and a Manager Pick that will be decided in secret by the MISC managers. Each will receive separate but similar prizes for their accomplishment. On the rare occasion that there is a physical or monetary prize for the month, it will be awarded along with the Manager's Pick to avoid any temptation to pull shenanigans with the votes.
- In the case of a tie in the public vote, each winner will receive the Community Pick prize package.
- People who have entered the contest can vote, but they can't vote for their own entry or it'll be disqualified. Show some love to your fellow writers or don't vote, whatever feels right to you. Votes will be public knowledge so we can keep track of this.
- You aren't allowed to tell anyone which entry is yours until AFTER the voting period is over. Doing anything to solicit votes is not allowed and will get you disqualified, and perhaps even banned from MISC altogether. Telling your friends "hey, I entered MISC this month, go read the entries and vote" is fine; telling people "go vote for #4, that's my entry" is not okay.
- Voters are highly encouraged to read through every entry before voting. We know we can't enforce this, but try to give everyone a chance before picking your favorite.
- The entry with the most votes at the end of the voting period will be declared the Community Pick for that month. However, if the community makes the same selection as the managers, then the second highest vote recipient will be named Community Pick; we don't intend to make the vote seem like it's playing second fiddle to our pick, it's just how it has to work so prize distribution makes sense when there are gift certificates or similar to be won, sorry! The winning entry will win fabulous prizes (fabulousness not guaranteed) and will win a permanent spot in the MISC Hall of Fame thread for all eternity (or until Iwaku explodes).
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- Voters are highly encouraged to post in the voting thread to explain their choice. Full reviews or critiques of the entries are very welcome, but please keep any criticism constructive and civil. Telling someone that their spelling errors and odd word choice made it hard to read is fine, but telling them that they write like shit is not okay.
- Number/letter grades are also highly discouraged as they tend to be arbitrary and to vary widely in interpretation. This applies to any form of comparative grading. It is better to list strengths and weaknesses from the rubric for each entry based on its individual merit rather than assigning a grade.
- If you would like, you may use the same rubric that the managers will be using, provided below. It's entirely optional; don't feel obliged.
MISC MANAGER'S RUBRIC
TECHNIQUE
- Are there spelling/grammar errors or typos? Many, or just a few? How did it affect your ability to read and follow along with the story?
- Is sentence structure and word choice varied? Does the writer show a good grasp of vocabulary and punctuation usage?
- Are there any odd word choices or places where you stumble? Is everything clear and easy to understand?
STYLE
- Do you get a sense of the narrative voice when reading along? Is it consistent throughout the narrative?
- Do the punctuation and sentence structure show a sophistication of style? Does it seem like deliberate choices were made to create a certain flow?
- Is there use of vivid, engrossing description? Can you easily picture scenes in your head?
- Does the story captivate your interest? Do you find yourself skimming?
CHARACTERIZATION
- Do characters have distinct, believable voices of their own? Is the dialogue natural or does it feel forced?
- Do characters show complexity and depth of emotion? Do you get a sense of who they are and what motivates them?
- Do the characters seem appropriate for the setting?
- Do the decisions made or conclusions reached by characters within the scope of the story make sense? Do we learn more about them through their actions?
- Are the characters likable or interesting? Do you have any strong emotion toward them?
CREATIVITY
- Are the plot and/or setting fresh and original? Do they show imagination?
- Are there any new twists on old ideas or common elements? Has the writer surprised you?
- Are there any subplots or underlying themes that you can identify?
- Has the writer used symbolism, metaphor, allegory, or subtext?
COHESIVENESS
- Does the story adhere to the prompt? How closely? Is there any way you feel it deviates from the spirit?
- Do the ideas involved seem fully developed?
- Is there a plot? Do you get a sense of advancement in the story? Do characters learn or accomplish anything?
- Does the story make sense as a whole and flow seamlessly from beginning to end? Is there anything that feels like it doesn't fit or is unnecessary?
- Is the ending satisfying? Does it feel like a complete story?
