Waiting for a Star to Fall - Short Story Contest [CLOSED]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

Hello my fellow writing enthusiasts, and welcome to my very first writing contest!

I know, I know; the prize is huge for a newbie, right? Well, I've been in and out of this forum since 2006, and I've entered my fair share of contests. I won a few prizes from them too.

But you see, lately I haven't really been on Gaia to be on it. I'm a student in graduate school, so I'm extremely busy. And, well, Gaia just lost its draw for me. I come back every now and then to scan Barton Town and enter a few contests here, but that's it. So when I sold a few of my items and saw my gold amount, I had no idea what I was going to do with it. I liked my avatar the way it was, and I couldn't think of any new items I wanted. I considered donating it all to my favorite DTTPAY thread, but then it hit me. Why not host a contest? I've always wanted to run one, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity!

And thus the Waiting for a Star to Fall Writing Contest was born!

I'll warn you, this won't be an easy contest. It will test your creativity, your determination, and your skill. If you want to win that first place prize, you're going to have to show me how much you want and deserve it with your writing.

But I hope you'll have fun too! I hope you get your creative juices flowing, and enjoy the challenge. Even if you don't win, maybe you'll have written something you'll really love. Or maybe you'll even grow as a writer. Who knows?

That's all the introduction you need, I think. Let the writing begin!

Deadline: December 1, 2012
New Deadline: December 15, 2012

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

I thought long and hard over what the prompt should be. At first, I thought I should give you guys a list of choices. But then I realized...where's the fun in that? It's a lot more challenging when you know you're competing with several other people who are writing about the same thing. It means you really have to boost your creativity. So then I thought of using one of my favorite songs as the prompt; I didn't like that idea either. Lyrics can be very, very leading when you use them as inspiration for a story. But, finally, I found it! I thought of the prompt.

So, without further ado, your prompt is:

Falling Star

Yep. You read right. I want to see you guys write something, anything, about falling stars. Use this prompt however you like. Make the shooting star a god; have someone see a shooting star; write a myth about them. How you use this prompt is entirely up to you!

I will warn you though: the more creative you are with your idea, the more you'll impress me.

For example: a story about a couple who sees a falling star? It gets about a 2/10 on the creativity scale, if I'm judging how it relates to the prompt.

A story about how shooting stars are actually the humans who have killed themselves and are getting a second chance at life? That gets probably a 7/10.

Well, now you have your prompt.

What's next?!

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

What's a contest without prizes? So, what do you guys win for all of your hard work and dedication?

1st Place: 1,000,000g

2nd Place: 500,000g

3rd Place: 200,000g

Honorable Mention: 50,000g

Honorable Mention: 50,000g

So, is that a good enough motivator for you guys? Remember, you'll have to work your butts off to get that prize!

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

As much as you guys are going to hate this, yes, there are rules.

1: One entry per person. If you aren't confident that you can't write one amazing story, and you want a back up, this isn't the contest for you.

2: Your story must be at least 8000 words long. As long as you don't write me a novel, it can be as long as you want. But you have to write at least 8000 words.

NOTE: Stories under the 8000 word limit, but at over 6,500 words will be allowed. There will be a point deduction if the story does not reach 8000 words, but as long as the writer has striven to do their best on every other criterion the deduction should not matter.

3. Keep those entries PG-13, okay?

4. Use the prompt! I need to see the prompt used, and not in the title. That doesn't count. IT has to be in your story somewhere.

5. Don't post your story in the thread. 8000 words will really stretch the page. So post it somewhere else: your journal, livejournal, fictionpress, tumblr...pick a site, post it there, and then put the link in the entry form. If you absolutely can't use any of these methods, then talk to me and we'll work out a PM/email deal.

6. Use the form. I didn't put it up here just to waste space.

7. You can edit your work as many times as you like: until the deadline. After the deadline, you don't touch the story until judging is complete.

8. Be respectful to the other participants.

9. Feel free to hang around the thread! Talk, joke, something. Keep it alive!

10. I can add more rules if I think I have to.

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

So, you're all probably wondering what standards I'm going to use when judging. In order of most important to least important:

1: Use of the Prompt - Is it in the story?

2: Creativity/Originality - How did you use the prompt? Is your story generic? Is it different? Did you put a new twist on an old favorite?

3: Detail - Did you use description appropriately? Did you explain too much or too little? Is something missing in your story?

4: Pacing - Did you rush the story? Was it too slow?

5: Grammar/Punctuation - Did you have too many spelling/punctuation errors?


These are the basics. In the end, it will come down to which one I liked more, but these are most of the factors that will go into that decision. Keep them in mind while writing!

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

You must use this form when posting your entry in the thread.

[size=11][b]Username[/b]:
[b]Title[/b]:
[b]Word Count[/b]:
[b]Link[/b]:
[b]Critique[/b]: Yes/No[/size]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

The brave souls who decided to give this contest a try.

1. Yutora - Will Withers
2. Ysavvryl - Devourer of Stars
3. The Solarised Night - The Rouge Oppression
4. Tanabata Wish - Cursed Wishes
5. Uber Spain - All the King's Children

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

The lucky chosen ones!

1st Place Winner: Uber Spain

2nd Place Winner: Tanabata Wish

3rd Place Winner: The Solarised Night

Honorable Mention: Yutora

Honorable Mention: Ysavvryl

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]

[The Fujoshi Kitten]