SWC Planning Thread

[bobandbill]

Run by myself, Cosmic Fury and Cutlerine!


Let's begin by copypasting the layout we've used the last few times successfully.


-----------

Small Writing Competition
Judged by bobandbill, Cosmic Fury and Cutlerine​

Welcome everyone to the Small Writing Competition! Ready to write a story based on this year's prompt that will impress the three judges and the rest of PC? Great!

But first, a few rules to keep in mind.


Rules

1.) Follow PC's rules and Fanfiction and Writing's rules.
2.) The stories written for this competition must be completely new. In other words, they must not have been written before and not posted anywhere else until judging is over.
3.) You must PM your entries to all of the judges. (This is so if someone loses their PMs the others still have them and so forth). The judges in question are bobandbill, Cosmic Fury and Cutlerine. You also must post in this thread when you send your PMs so we can confirm you did send us an entry.
4.) One entry per member only, sorry.
5.) You have until 11:59 pm EST, July 7th TO BE EXTENDED to get your entry in.
6.) The story can be based on Pokemon or be original fiction. Note the judges may not all be familiar with any other fandoms.
7.) The entry can only be a completed one-shot as this is a small writing competition - no chaptered entries, please!
8.) Please don't publicly post your stories until the competition is over! Once the scores are posted and the competition is over, you may post your story in Fanfiction and Writing so that others may see it. Make sure to add [SWC] to your title if you do!

If you have any other questions, ask away!


Scoring

Each entry can have a maximum score of 30, with the points broken down into three categories equaling 10 points in total like in previous years. The categories are:

Spelling and Grammar
Characterization, Plot, and Description
Relevance to Prompt


The prompt is union/unity, so good luck with making use of that in your story!


Emblems
First Prize
TBA

Second Prize
TBA

Participant
TBA



----------------

THINGS TO DECIDE
- a prompt
- dates (how long for writing/judging/etc)
- emblems.

 

[Cosmic Fury]

I'd like to bring up three things here. First off, if I may suggest a category that relates strictly to overall quality (bringing the maximum points total to 40) when it comes to things we are judging, it would add a lot more depth to what we are reviewing.

Second off, and more importantly, is the theme we need to base our contest by. I'd like to point out that it needs to be as close to unforgettable as possible, and also present a healthy, interesting, and engaging challenge to our participants.

Lastly, there's the time we'll have to judge the works our contestants have to submit. When do we have our cutoff so that we've got plenty of time to compile and then publish our results? Do we publish all of them to each other, or just evaluate them all and send each other our top scores, if more than [insert number here] people end up participating?

These points are the things I see that are of the most concern. We can deal with the emblems for judges, winners, and participants once we at least get the ball rolling, in my personal opinion.

 

[bobandbill]

Yay, you have access now. \o/

I'd like to bring up three things here. First off, if I may suggest a category that relates strictly to overall quality (bringing the maximum points total to 40) when it comes to things we are judging, it would add a lot more depth to what we are reviewing.

Hmm, it may be something to add in, but then in the past I don't think there's been too much issue in judging for 30 points based on those qualities (which do comprise the various parts of overall quality by themselves by the first two categories).

Second off, and more importantly, is the theme we need to base our contest by. I'd like to point out that it needs to be as close to unforgettable as possible, and also present a healthy, interesting, and engaging challenge to our participants.

Yes, the theme is the main thing. Nothing too specific.

Lastly, there's the time we'll have to judge the works our contestants have to submit. When do we have our cutoff so that we've got plenty of time to compile and then publish our results? Do we publish all of them to each other, or just evaluate them all and send each other our top scores, if more than [insert number here] people end up participating?

Previously we allowed three out of four days for writing, and the rest of the time (including the week that tends to follow) for judging. Usually we've just PM'd each other the scores, and if we want also comments on each story to add below the scores too when they are posted.

 

[Cosmic Fury]

Perhaps we could use a pastebin link to send each other the scores. I believe that it would facilitate things in the end.

 

[bobandbill]

Don't you have to sign up for that for them to be private though? PMs aren't too hard to manage, or at least they haven't been in the past.

 

[Cosmic Fury]

True enough.

Is there anything you've come up with to add something new and unique here compared with previous years?

 

[bobandbill]

No, in part because I don't feel it really needs something new or different. It's worked pretty solidly the last few years, and I'd rather steer clear of gimmicks that might lower participation.

Also, Cutlerine is the third judge and should have access now. \o/

 

[Cosmic Fury]

Sweet! I've got a lot of faith in him.

So, about the theme of the event. I believe that the winners' emblems should be based entirely on the theme, which is what this year?

 

[Cutlerine]

Also, Cutlerine is the third judge and should have access now. \o/

Indeed I do. And here I am.

Sweet! I've got a lot of faith in him.

I'm glad one of us does.

So, about the theme of the event. I believe that the winners' emblems should be based entirely on the theme, which is what this year?

I gave this a little thought previously, in anticipation of this, and came up with a few ideas. Firstly, the idea of the return. The advantage of that would be its extreme flexibility, allowing as it does everything from re-engineered dinosaurs to rising ancient evils to domestic breakdowns; returns are wonderful ways to start a conflict going. In addition, it provides a really clear way for us to compare each entrant to each other in terms of relevance, since it's not so vague that it takes a master surgeon to extract it from where it's lodged in the story's bones.

However, there is (as, regrettably, with everything in life) a but. I'm not sure that the return would present a decent challenge, precisely because it's so open and easy to work things out of. I think it sort of points the way to a specific story a bit too easily. That isn't necessarily a terrible thing - after all, an entrant could display considerable imagination by taking a less obvious route from the prompt - but it might provoke a set of very similar stories, which wouldn't be desirable.

So I came up with a second idea, which I'd like to put to you to discuss with the return: namely, union, or unity. It doesn't point to anything quite as obviously as the return - you'd have to work to make a story from it - but it doesn't offer quite as clear-cut a point of comparison. I don't think that detracts too much from it, though, since if the story's good enough, the reader should be able to pick up on it.

Actually, now I think about it, unity could be paired with duality or division to create quite an interesting prompt, but I'd better stop talking now, or I quite probably won't stop.

EDIT: Oh, another idea for a prompt: the Uncanny. In its technical or more commonplace sense; either would be fine. I have no justification for this one, and it's actually probably more restrictive than the other two, but I love it too much to not suggest it.

F.A.B.

 

[bobandbill]

Sweet! I've got a lot of faith in him.

So, about the theme of the event. I believe that the winners' emblems should be based entirely on the theme, which is what this year?

That's a good idea, but if it's not easily doable for the theme we can always just fall back on writing-themed emblems.

I gave this a little thought previously, in anticipation of this, and came up with a few ideas. Firstly, the idea of the return. The advantage of that would be its extreme flexibility, allowing as it does everything from re-engineered dinosaurs to rising ancient evils to domestic breakdowns; returns are wonderful ways to start a conflict going. In addition, it provides a really clear way for us to compare each entrant to each other in terms of relevance, since it's not so vague that it takes a master surgeon to extract it from where it's lodged in the story's bones.

However, there is (as, regrettably, with everything in life) a but. I'm not sure that the return would present a decent challenge, precisely because it's so open and easy to work things out of. I think it sort of points the way to a specific story a bit too easily. That isn't necessarily a terrible thing - after all, an entrant could display considerable imagination by taking a less obvious route from the prompt - but it might provoke a set of very similar stories, which wouldn't be desirable.

So I came up with a second idea, which I'd like to put to you to discuss with the return: namely, union, or unity. It doesn't point to anything quite as obviously as the return - you'd have to work to make a story from it - but it doesn't offer quite as clear-cut a point of comparison. I don't think that detracts too much from it, though, since if the story's good enough, the reader should be able to pick up on it.

Actually, now I think about it, unity could be paired with duality or division to create quite an interesting prompt, but I'd better stop talking now, or I quite probably won't stop.

EDIT: Oh, another idea for a prompt: the Uncanny. In its technical or more commonplace sense; either would be fine. I have no justification for this one, and it's actually probably more restrictive than the other two, but I love it too much to not suggest it.

F.A.B.

I think from these I like union/unity the most. As you said it's not hinting towards a trend of plots like The Return, and Uncanny is probably more restrictive than others (but then one can argue Pokemon is uncanny to begin with in a lot of areas, heh).

 

[Cosmic Fury]

I also believe that a theme like "Evil Wins" or "Character Loses" or even simply "Loss" would also present a very good challenge. It's not only clear-cut, but also appeals a lot to the imagination. It's challenging, but it still leaves a lot of room for writing a subject that is sadly not as explored as other themes.

 

[Cutlerine]

I think from these I like union/unity the most. As you said it's not hinting towards a trend of plots like The Return, and Uncanny is probably more restrictive than others (but then one can argue Pokemon is uncanny to begin with in a lot of areas, heh).

I suppose it could be thought of that way. Anyway, I'd agree that union/unity is the best of those three.

I also believe that a theme like "Evil Wins" or "Character Loses" or even simply "Loss" would also present a very good challenge. It's not only clear-cut, but also appeals a lot to the imagination. It's challenging, but it still leaves a lot of room for writing a subject that is sadly not as explored as other themes.

Evil wins and character loses I think suffer from the same weakness as the return: they're almost too clear-cut; they push a writer into a certain sort of narrative. They define plot more than they define theme - whereas loss definitely is a theme.

So, out of those three, I'd go for loss; that makes the two best themes we've got so far loss and union/unity, in my opinion at least.

F.A.B.

 

[Cosmic Fury]

I have a feeling that "loss" will be a theme that will encourage writers to draw up something which we can all directly relate to. It leaves a lot to the imagination, and I believe that this will help our contestants draw up a wide variety of very good works.

 

[bobandbill]

I agree that loss is better than evil wins/character loses, but I feel that unity/union is slightly better. A touch less broad and may also hint at less of a formulaic type of story given a number of entries will be likely Pokemon based (as usual).

 

[Cutlerine]

I feel that unity/union is slightly better. A touch less broad and may also hint at less of a formulaic type of story given a number of entries will be likely Pokemon based (as usual).

Good point. I like that thought; I'll cast my vote for unity/union too, then. Unless we have any other ideas for themes? I'm happy to stick with what we've got.

F.A.B.

 

[Cosmic Fury]

Nah, I think we've got ourselves a good one here. I'll go with the one we've got here, which is "union/unity."

 

[bobandbill]

Union/unity it is then!

I suppose now is the emblems for the comp to do then/ Do we want a 1st/2nd/Participation deal, or throw in a 3rd as well? We can't go more than four emblems anyway. And then we need someone to make them/ideas for what they'd look like beyond being along the union theme, or just writing-esque in appearence.

 

[Cutlerine]

Despite being an art student, I'm extraordinarily bad at art when it begins to involve computers, and so cannot in good faith offer my services to make the emblems unless there is no other choice. As for how many there ought to be, I think we should just have three: first, second, and participation. I've never thought that getting something for third place is particularly complimentary, though I'm sure many people (perhaps rightly) disagree.

F.A.B.

 

[Cosmic Fury]

We might as well make emblems for "honorable mentions." I believe that it'll be a good way to reward people who have made a genuinely good piece but didn't quite make the cut. So, a potentially good idea would be emblems for 1st, 2nd, Honorable Mentions (which we can hand out more than one of to people), and Participant (for everyone else).

As for their design, I unfortunately have about the artistic capability as a snail on an acid trip (especially when it comes to creating original digital art), so chances are that we'll have to commission someone for their design.

 

[bobandbill]

I have made the odd emblem before which hadn't been to terrible? So I could always give it a go if we don't find someone else willing.

I'm fine with honourable mention emblems, but only if there's actually something worth giving it out for and enough entrants as well. If it's say 7 people, then no; 17-18 (what WAS the max amount of entries again?) then yes. If there's not many people then really if you stand out you probably will be up the top anyway.

I also edited the first post to reflect the stuff we decided upon, so the opening post of the actual thread is good to go, bar editing in emblems.