Popular Post Jo Marshall Posted May 6, 2023 Popular Post Posted May 6, 2023 (edited) Welcome to the Writing Challenge 2023! Last year, we had a fantastic run of entries for the challenge, and once again, it's time to boldly go where no writer has gone before! Let's face it, writing can be tough. Staring at a blank page can be like staring into the abyss. But writing to a prompt for a small challenge can be just the kick in the cosmic pants needed to get the creative juices flowing. It can be a fun way to explore new genres and themes, nerd out about your favourite franchise, and find out new ways to write you'd never thought you could. Dig into those realms of plot ideas you've got brewing, drag out the lists of "what if" and try it out! This year, the leading entrant of last year's contest, Fleet Captain @Kali Nicholotti has ingeniously provided the prompt for our community this time around... "If you've come to the end... you've only found another beginning." I can imagine some of your heads are already churning through the prompt and coming up with all manner of ideas. Themes immediately spring to mind of change and transformation, the characters ploughing through the depths of their development and emerging stronger for it. Or maybe renewal and continuation, for characters that reach a turning point and discover a new path, forging their destiny ahead. Perhaps your characters will endure, exploring themes of perseverance and resilience, against insurmountable obstacles, and overcoming them through determination and teamwork. The creativity of this community is in the details. From the eloquent prose and deep emotion to the twists and turns of plot magic, this group truly invites you to boldly go where no one has gone before. Rules & Guidelines: Word count should be a minimum of 300 and a maximum of 3000. One judge will be chosen from each ship to help select the winner. Members are welcome to submit solo stories, or team up with a buddy to submit a collaborative epic, but only one story per person, please! Your submission should be in the format of a short story. Prose, not sim formatting. (See here for examples.) All members are welcome to submit entries for the community to read, but only those from active simmers will be reviewed by the judging panel for the final winner selection. If you want to submit a story but don't want to enter it into the challenge, prefix the forum post with "showcase" and let us read your good stuff! Submissions are, by default, non-canon – if you find a way to shoehorn this into your own backstory, you're free to use it if you wish, but certainly not a requirement. You can create whatever characters make sense for the story. You don't have to use or reference any of your current characters. Rank is not an issue here – write as an Ensign or a Captain, civilian, whatever makes sense for your story! And you're free to use characters you've already written for in sim, but please don't include anyone else's. Submit your story directly into the first post of a new thread. Use the following format for the thread title: [Primary Character Name(s) of author(s)]: "My Story's Interesting Title" Tristan Wolf: "Five Ways to End Your Starfleet Career" All stories must be submitted by Sunday, May 28th at 11:59pm Pacific Time. Good luck! Edited May 6, 2023 by Jo Marshall 5
Popular Post Jo Marshall Posted June 12, 2023 Author Popular Post Posted June 12, 2023 Our judges have spent the last week deliberating through all the entries and finally revealed that the winner of the Writing Challenge 2023 is... Flint Kader, from the USS Artemis-A! @Altemuller's story "The Fifth Ring" is a truly gripping science fiction story, taking readers on a perilous journey through a mysterious planet system. Flint effortlessly captured the sense of unease and tension with skilful storytelling and vivid descriptions, as well as the tangible sense of budding foreboding as the protagonist, Lieutenant Liam Hark, grapples with the phenomena encountered within each ring of Geryon III. Well done, Flint! Our runner-up this year is @Karrod Niac the writer behind the First Officer onboard the USS Arrow! They've nabbed the runner-up badge for their story "The Place Where All Sailors End", an emotionally charged story that follows Geoffrey Teller on a solemn journey, after being imprisoned and losing a year of his life, it shows the struggles with grief and anger. Absolutely heart-breaking. Brilliant work, Brian! For this year, we've also got a special mention for @DrPsyPhi Avander Promontory's entry, "Agent Ouroboros", a clever twist at the end, or was it at the beginning? Either way, it was beautifully done! All the entries for the challenge are fantastic, well-thought-out, and wonderfully written! It's been a pleasure to read them all, and each one deserves a little recognition. Thank you for contributing your pieces, allowing us inside the worlds of your spotlighted characters, and providing us with a taste of what goes on behind the scenes. So, a big thank you to all of you for sharing your awesome pieces and letting us immerse ourselves in these captivating worlds! Thank you again to @Kali Nicholotti provider of the marvellous prompt! The winner, runner-up and judges, are in receipt of one of the following badges! Thank you once more for making this year's challenge so successful and enjoyable! We look forward to seeing even more incredible entries next spring! Please join me in congratulating the winners! 11 1
Popular Post Altemuller Posted June 12, 2023 Popular Post Posted June 12, 2023 Thank you everyone, I am glad you liked my entry. And congratulations to @Karrod Niac and @DrPsyPhi . And of course a huge thank you to @Kali Nicholotti for the excellent prompt that inspired many. And to all participants, know that you gained a new reader in me and I cannot wait to see what you write next. 8
Karrod Niac Posted June 12, 2023 Posted June 12, 2023 36 minutes ago, Altemuller said: Thank you everyone, I am glad you liked my entry. And congratulations to @Karrod Niac and @DrPsyPhi . And of course a huge thank you to @Kali Nicholotti for the excellent prompt that inspired many. And to all participants, know that you gained a new reader in me and I cannot wait to see what you write next. A well earned victory mate, congratulations! Look forward to your prompt for next years competition! 4
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