Discussion: Q2 Volume 40

Posted by: @writhmic

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@ease can't help but notice you haven't mentioned what you got this quarter. Could that be interpreted as suspicious silence?  ??

? My work here is done...

HM for me on a reworked SHM, which is a disappointing direction to go...

But don't worry, I like this story too much not to have other plans for it  

First time submitting. What comes next?

Posted by: @rileynielson

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First time submitting. What comes next?

If you respond to Joni when she asks for your address (probably in the email you received today), you'll receive a very nice certificate attesting to your award. Your name and state/country will appear in the big announcement that will come out soon. And I hope you'll submit again, and shoot for the Moon!

Posted by: @rileynielson

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First time submitting. What comes next?

And congratulations! That's great!

@martin-l-shoemaker thank you!

Well this competition is definitely rigged because somehow I didn't even place. 

So if a story has all of the elements of a great story and is well written and structured but only has one single flaw and that being a slower opening that means it doesn't even place? (character arch's, relatable characters, unique and interesting premise, a strong overall core theme, themes all tie together nicely, you stick the landing, the characters aren't one dimensional, there is a struggle/problem to overcome.)

I've read a handful of the stories that did place in other years and believe me they are so bad I'm amazed anyone is willing to publish them at all. They either make so little sense that it's embarrassing or they have maybe one or two elements of a mildly "okay" story but nothing more. 

If you are actually a real serious writer, do not enter this contest, it is not worth a lick of your time. 

@bohannwyatt The Contest is anonymous. It's not rigged. Good luck placing your stories elsewhere.

I got an HM. Yippee!   There is hope! Time to update my signature.  

Posted by: @krqueen_writes

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RWC -- painful, but I definitely broke multiple "rules" and tried to get a little too fancy for my first go-round. Will definitely play a bit more by the rules on this next one lol 

Congrats everyone! On to the next one! 

As RWC was explained to me, it's a rejection that should be easily correctable if you can identify which of the common problems apply. It's not detailed feedback (Jody doesn't have time for that), but it should be encouraging.

Posted by: @bohannwyatt

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Well this competition is definitely rigged because somehow I didn't even place. 

So if a story has all of the elements of a great story and is well written and structured but only has one single flaw and that being a slower opening that means it doesn't even place? (character arch's, relatable characters, unique and interesting premise, a strong overall core theme, themes all tie together nicely, you stick the landing, the characters aren't one dimensional, there is a struggle/problem to overcome.)

I've read a handful of the stories that did place in other years and believe me they are so bad I'm amazed anyone is willing to publish them at all. They either make so little sense that it's embarrassing or they have maybe one or two elements of a mildly "okay" story but nothing more. 

If you are actually a real serious writer, do not enter this contest, it is not worth a lick of your time. 

Chris, I was disappointed to receive an RWC too and had a higher view of my story than was likely deserved. As an enthusiast of classics (Shakespeare, Bronte, Tolstoy, Austen, etc.) I know that for me it's maddening and painful to know the intricacies I'm trying to weave into a story and wonder if they were even noticed. (Then again, a writer has to earn the right to have that stuff noticed; we have to prove that our work is good enough to merit that kind of close analysis.) 

World-class writers come out of this contest, and world-class writers manage it, so it's a massive stretch to say the contest is broken because your first attempt was shot down. During law school, I occasionally had peers who believed the professors had given them bad grades because the professors (who happened to be a bunch of summa cum laude graduates out of Harvard, Yale, Georgetown, etc.) simply didn't understand their brilliance. Those peers' confidence was always inversely proportional to how much they actually understood about the subject. The less they knew, the more they thought they knew, and the more shocked they were when their lack of knowledge resulted in poor grades.

If you read prior WotF contest wins and find it mysterious how they won, it's far more likely that you don't understand the stories than that this well-respected contest is broken. 

I hope you're able to stomach the rejection eventually and come back ready for the next round. The writing life is fraught with rejection for all but the lucky few, so if you want to keep writing, you'll probably want to get used to this feeling for a while. Breakthroughs don't come easily. Hang in there! 

HM for me. A Tad disappointed, I expected better of this one.

Congratulations everyone! (I didn’t enter Q2 and, as they say, you can’t win if you don’t play!)

Huge congratulations to all who entered, and those who placed   I am looking forward to seeing if any forumites are among the finalists

Congrats to everyone who won an award at any level, and even for completing a story and entering.

I used to regularly get HMs and SHMs, I've slipped to 2 RWC's in a row. I didn't envisage going backwards. Maybe it's time to take up the guitar.

Sorry for the accidentally suspicious silence. No phone call this time. I was recovering from assisting the birth of twelve puppies over a 13 hour birth while fireworks went off.

A huge congratulations to all the honorable mentions, silvers, and semi-finalists. Looks like a lot of awards in the forums this time! For the RWCs and Rs I know that stings but just entering is an accomplishment and the awards could be just a quarter away.

I got an honorable mention for my story and a semi-finalist for my art.

Still a ways off from my double win   I’m excited for Q3 results in a couple months.

Great to see all the results! And grats on the 2nd SF, Chris.

I'm rooting hard for two people this quarter...

There's something special about the big Four Oh that's got me excited. Just seems like it'll be a Party in LA next year...

Get those Q4s cookin' folks!

Send me your 450s. Inbox is perma-open for them...

@angelslayah Thank You!!!

@cweaver Looking forward to it ?

Congrats to everyone who submitted, can't wait to read the winners!

@tj_knight Thanks Dustin!

RWC for me. I'm a little bummed. Hoping for a little better next qtr.

Congratulations to all who placed.

Posted by: @writhmic

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@ease can't help but notice you haven't mentioned what you got this quarter. Could that be interpreted as suspicious silence?  ??

Crossing my fingers so hard hoping that’s the case! I’m rooting for you @ease!

HM for me.

Congrats to everyone who placed. That top 10% is always worth celebrating. And nothing but respect for those with R or RWC who move past the disappointment and KEEP GOING!

HM for me this quarter. Twitching time is officially over now, gang. Back to the grind!

New story in Q2.  

Posted by: @tj_knight

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Send me your 450s. Inbox is perma-open for them...

From one of last year's winners, this is incredibly generous! Take him up on this offer if you really care about advancing in this contest.

I'm not at Dustin's level, but I am confident I know how to not get an R, and how to up an HM to an SHM, so my inbox is also open for 450s. Pro Bono, no reciprocation expected (though I find I learn just as much critiquing as receiving critiques, so I advise giving them*, too, if you have the time).

*I didn't want this to turn into an essay, but critiquing Dustin's winning piece gave me the key to level up from HM to SHM, and I believe I even helped him (improve it, not win: he had already submitted it) infinitesimally.

Posted by: @bohannwyatt

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If you are actually a real serious writer, do not enter this contest, it is not worth a lick of your time. 

Getting a rejection is always painful, moreso when you really care about the result. I hope it doesn't sting for too long.

I've spent the last 18 years honing one specific skill: improving from R to HM to SHM. I am not the best writer ever, but if you send me your story (honestly even just the first couple pages is probably sufficient) I'm sure I can help you find where it let you down this time.

Also, for your own sake, don't deceive yourself. This contest has made many successful authors (over 3% become NYT best sellers, and normally very shortly afterwards. Some become multi-millionaires). It shouldn't be your only avenue for writing success, but if you're eligible, you'd be doing yourself a huge disservice to turn a blind eye to it.

Posted by: @sean-quinn

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This was my first time entering, and I received an Honorable Mention, which I'm pleased about. (I'm not quite sure how to interpret an HM, but I'm taking it as "not bad, your writing is not as awful you fear in your darkest moments, keep trying!")

Congratulations to all! Hoping some of our forumites are among the finalists.