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Hello! 
I'm Jason North, I've been writing for probably fifteen years and only have a tall stack of unfinished stories to show for it. My recent ADHD diagnosis is helping me feel to not feel too dumb about that and my therapist encouraged me to find a support group to help me stick with writing. I met with John Goodwin last month at the LTUE symposium as well, and he recommended I come here, said it would be a great place to be part of a community and possibly even find an enthusiastic writing group, so I'm here to check it all out!

I have also heard about the contest, not just the forum, and would love to start submitting entries in the near future! I've never really looked at or used a forum outside of them occasionally popping up when I google computer problems, so if I'm not using great forum etiquette or otherwise not using the forum well, please let me know!

Hi everyone!

My name is Anna and I live in New Zealand. I've also been writing for 15 years (snap! Jason ). I've completed four novel manuscripts (all unpublished) and have switched to short stories for a bit to see if the change in form might help level up my craft - also thought it would be fun to write something short. I came across the WotF contest through my obsession with Patrick Rothfuss (I see I'm not the only one!)

I entered the contest for the first time in Q1 (Dec 2025) and am waiting with bated breath for the results 😓  

Posted by: @scribble

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Hi everyone!

My name is Anna and I live in New Zealand. I've also been writing for 15 years (snap! Jason ). I've completed four novel manuscripts (all unpublished) and have switched to short stories for a bit to see if the change in form might help level up my craft - also thought it would be fun to write something short. I came across the WotF contest through my obsession with Patrick Rothfuss (I see I'm not the only one!)

 

I entered the contest for the first time in Q1 (Dec 2025) and am waiting with bated breath for the results 😓  

Welcome. Congrats on the novel manuscripts. Congrats on the Q1 entry.

Writing short stories can really open up possibilities and give insight into plotting, efficient character development, and conflict resolution. Take advantage of WotF's free online workshop.

@jasonnort  

Welcome.

I know the feeling about unfinished stories. I found WotF around five years ago and submitted a story I'd I'd been working on for years to finish. Rejection. Augh.

I took the free online workshop, polished the story using what I'd learned and turned that R into my first honorable mention. That HM helped me decide to get series about writing and start finishing stories. I became more active in the forum discussions, participated in story swaps, and learned how to take, and give, constructive feedback. It really helped me grow as a writer.

I say all that to suggest getting involved in the forum and take the free workshop.

Write, submit, and have fun.

Welcome @jasonnorth and @scribble!

I definitely hear you on those ADHD struggles, my friend! There's plenty of people here with similar issues, and you might find some advice that helps. Hopefully we can help take some things off your unfinished pile, and create a new pile for finished work!

Posted by: @jasonnorth

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Hello! 
I'm Jason North, I've been writing for probably fifteen years and only have a tall stack of unfinished stories to show for it. My recent ADHD diagnosis is helping me feel to not feel too dumb about that and my therapist encouraged me to find a support group to help me stick with writing. I met with John Goodwin last month at the LTUE symposium as well, and he recommended I come here, said it would be a great place to be part of a community and possibly even find an enthusiastic writing group, so I'm here to check it all out!

I have also heard about the contest, not just the forum, and would love to start submitting entries in the near future! I've never really looked at or used a forum outside of them occasionally popping up when I google computer problems, so if I'm not using great forum etiquette or otherwise not using the forum well, please let me know!

Hi Jason!

Sorry I missed you at LTUE, I teach masterclasses there every year and am also a presenter. But I'm glad you ran into John Goodwin--I assume that was in a career consultation and you are most fortunate. Few know more about the publishing industry than John!

We're glad you are here. A forum can do far more than help you answer questions. You can find a group of like-minded people, working together to help one another succeed. Take advantage of all the folders, and don't be afraid to ask questions. We're here to help!

Do take the WotF Online Workshop. You can't get better advice on winning this contest than the words from the judges themselves!

Welcome aboard!

@scribble 

Hi Anna!

Welcome to the WotF Forum! We're glad you found us, and yes, Patrick Rothfuss won this contest by turning a novel chapter into a short story format and the rest is history. WotF is known for launching careers, and you will never be hurt by learning how to write tighter, which is what the short story form teaches you, among many other things. 

Do take advantage of all the folders here. Short stories are of course a horse of a different color compared to novels, but they do have similar principles. Scott Card defines a short story as a speedboat heading straight to its destination across the lake, where a novel is a pontoon boat out for a leisurely cruise to that destination, but it's going to tour about the lake first.

Best of success on your endeavors!

Welcome aboard!

Hi!

I’ve been lurking for a long time, but just discovered I can’t edit my profile (and that pic needs to be updated!!) unless I post more often. Ok, to be fair, I also figured it was time to actively participate.

I’ve lived a thousand lives in just this one lifetime, and I definitely use all of that life experience in my stories. I was a neuroscientist, then spent decades as a technical writer and editor as a contractor supporting the U.S. Dept. of Energy. When I was worried the job and writing dry reports was beating the creativity out of me, I quit to write fiction. So far, I’ve sold flash and drabbles…so it’s encouraging that people like what I have to say in microbursts (as a tech writer, that makes sense!). My husband contends that my short stories are brilliant though—too bad he’s not in charge of buying them!

Anyhow, I entered for the first time last year, in Q3, 2025 (rejected with comments), then got HM the next quarter.  I’ll keep plugging along until I can’t enter anymore!

Thanks for having me!

~Mari

off to see if I can change that profile pic now!   

@javajnkie 

Welcome a-board!

I like your trajectory. Upward!

Welcome @javajnkie. Congrats on writing and entering WotF. Double-congrats on the HM. It sounds like you have a lot of life experiences to tap into. 

@tj_knight thanks to you and @toddsjones for the friendly welcome! I’ve been told it’s ok to say now that I’m a non-winning finalist for the last quarter. I like my trajectory too and have three more shots this year!

Welcome @javajnkie! This is a super supportive forum with lots of helpful resources. Have you checked out the free online workshop yet? And congratulations (and commiserations) on F for last quarter. That's a great trajectory with just three submissions! We'll be seeing you on that stage in Hollywood in the future!

Posted by: @javajnkie

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@tj_knight thanks to you and @toddsjones for the friendly welcome! I’ve been told it’s ok to say now that I’m a non-winning finalist for the last quarter. I like my trajectory too and have three more shots this year!

Congrats on the finalist. Very hard to achieve. I look forward to reading a future story of yours in WotF print.

Dang @javajnkie that was fast! Good for you!

I went HM HM N-WF (Non-winning finalist). Let's hope you get that winner in less time than it took me! 

And let us know if you sell that story so folks can read more finalists in general. I put my eyes on every N-WF I could find to learn from. 

@javajnkie 

Welcome to the Fourm, Mari! We're glad you came out of hiding!  

There's lots of help here to help you reach your goals, including the free WotF Online Workshop. Don't miss that. A short story is a different beast from a drabble, just as a novel is a different beast from a short story. But you've certainly learned some great lessons writing in such a tight form.  And you already received an HM, showing you have skills.

Keep learning, keep writing, keep submitting! 

All the best!

@wulfmoon thanks for the welcome!

I completely agree about microfiction, short stories, and novels being entirely different beast! I started writing micros and drabbles as an exercise when I found my short stories were rambling on. They helped me get much better at seeing and cutting fat, killing darlings, and making words and sentences work at multiple levels. The more practical part: I’ve only sold three short stories (only one at pro rates), so when I’m feeling frustrated with rejections, I know I can usually sell a micro to boost my morale. 

I started the workshop a few times, but my inability to sit through videos is almost pathological. I keep getting distracted by a book half-way through a video. I wish there were transcripts. Regardless, finishing it is on my to-do list!

Off to poke around the rest of the forum!