Discussion: Q3 Volume 40

Posted by: @fritz

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@martin-l-shoemaker Thank you for the comprehensive reply. I have a different story in for this quarter but I still think the one that got RWC twice has great potential. Will look into it some more and see what works. 

Thank you very much! 

Of course, there are no rules, only tools. Some of the things I mentioned have been done successfully (but only some--it's difficult to do typos and missing words successfully). Andy Weir starts Project Hail Mary with an amnesiac waking up, and he makes it work. But by including these elements, you raise your own bar. Kary and Jody might keep reading despite these elements if the prose is excellent, the characters engaging, the idea fresh and astounding, etc. So if your story really needs to start with one of these, make sure you give them a reason to keep reading despite that.

Posted by: @martin-l-shoemaker

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Posted by: @fritz

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@martin-l-shoemaker Thank you for the comprehensive reply. I have a different story in for this quarter but I still think the one that got RWC twice has great potential. Will look into it some more and see what works. 

Thank you very much! 

Of course, there are no rules, only tools. Some of the things I mentioned have been done successfully (but only some--it's difficult to do typos and missing words successfully). Andy Weir starts Project Hail Mary with an amnesiac waking up, and he makes it work. But by including these elements, you raise your own bar. Kary and Jody might keep reading despite these elements if the prose is excellent, the characters engaging, the idea fresh and astounding, etc. So if your story really needs to start with one of these, make sure you give them a reason to keep reading despite that.

 

Great! Thank you very much. Appreciate your wisdom. 

@emlouviere one hot chocolate chip cookie coming up.

I'm in for Q3.

@ease I’m glad you submitted anyway! You never know for sure. All the luck!

@storysinger That’s exciting! How is the new story coming along?

Good luck to everyone in for Q3 and extra muse fuel for everyone still writing!

I’m in. My regular critiquer went over the first part and said it was the best thing I’ve written, but never got to the 2^nd part – is that mixed messages?  What I took to be a novice writer (what am I!) left short crits on both parts, and another I don’t know crit the 1^st part and commented that he read the 2^nd for pleasure. So this story hasn’t had much attention.

It might be a little dark for WotF. Never mind. Onto Q4.

Posted by: @time

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I’m in. 

It might be a little dark for WotF. Never mind. Onto Q4.

Submit and move on. Worth a try if that's the story you have for the quarter. 

Good luck.

I'm in for Q3 as well. As mentioned, it was an old HM that I came across after a couple of years in the drawer and I thought it had more potential. I'm pretty sure it's better now, but so is the competition so we'll see how it goes. Fingers crossed for everyone.

I've finished the revisions of my Q3 entry based on beta reader feedback. Just doing some line editing now. Should get it in by the deadline, but it'll be close.

And in...took me FOREVER to do my final revision.  Mental wall, exhaustion from work stress, who knows.  But its done.

My story is ready to go but I can't possibly consider submitting with so much time left.  

@storysinger I am with you 100%.
Unless you are skidding in with dirt under your nails, does it even count?

I haven't submitted early for awhile, but I did this time! I'm in for Q3  

Hey all, will be submitting for the first time tomorrow. I'm waiting on the last of my beta readers to finish. 44 years young!

Posted by: @undreamedages

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Hey all, will be submitting for the first time tomorrow. I'm waiting on the last of my beta readers to finish. 44 years young!

I hope you get the excitement of an award. A HM feels good and who knows...

@storysinger I am with you 100% too.

A week before was a lot of time before deadline for me.  

Posted by: @undreamedages

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Hey all, will be submitting for the first time tomorrow. I'm waiting on the last of my beta readers to finish. 44 years young!

Congrats on taking the next step and submitting.  

I just started getting serious about my writing and submitting a few years ago (just turned 52). I'm hooked.  

The forum, and people I've met through it, have been great support and wonderful with advice. I can really see my writing getting better. My only regret is I didn't start here 25 years ago.   

Keep on writing.

I'm In...again

Thanks @craydimensional. 
The lattes and cookies are exactly what I needed to finish. 
Now, to settle in for the wait...  
Oh, Yeah!  
Q2 results are lurking around the corner, aren't they.

Hey there, all. Some of you will remember me, others not so much. Covid had me not writing for a while, but thankfully that block was countered with contests. And now that things are moving again, I thought I'd take a new piece and submit it. So I'm in for this quarter. Hooray! I see a lot of familiar names and faces. Good to be back.

--Tracy (aka WriterGirl)

I just submitted for this quarter. Yeah!

Today's the day, folks!

Seems like everyone's in - but if you aren't, and you're on the fence - do it!

Two of the winners in V.39 submitted because of the deadline, and not because they personally felt like they had the perfect story ready when the deadline came.

And they won.

So, sub, sub, sub-mit!

I'm in for Q2, in for Q3, writing Q4, and brainstorming for Q1. An idle mind is the Twitcher's playground, so I just try and keep busy to avoid all that.

I'm in. I hope we have another winner from the forum.

Stragglers? Who's a straggler? What, just because I'm still editing/improving my story on the last day? This is sort of like merging on the highway prior to a lane closure. No need to merge until you get to the orange cones, right?

In with a thing —which I consider one of the best I've produced— but not, probably, an ideal fit for the Contest. Sometimes you have to go with what you have on hand and free from consideration elsewhere! 

Kiss it and wave bye bye for four or five or six months...

Posted by: @morgan-broadhead

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An idle mind is the Twitcher's playground

I'm def using that line!

Posted by: @angelslayah

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In with a thing —which I consider one of the best I've produced— but not, probably, an ideal fit for the Contest. Sometimes you have to go with what you have on hand and free from consideration elsewhere! 

Kiss it and wave bye bye for four or five or six months...

Ha, I had mine all ready to send yesterday and then read some things on the forums, some of it direct quotes, stating certain things the judges don't like. I won't go into detail, because I'm not sure what disqualifies you.

I had just gone in last week and made changes, adding something they apparently don't care for. But I think it fits the story better so I sent it in anyway. I write what I like, and for me, so if they don't like it I'll submit it somewhere else come October. That's not to say I don't take criticism.

The thing I'm referring to is something very subjective that many people don't have an issue with. It seems a bit old fashioned to me that they don't care for it, and I'm in my 40s! I ran the concept past some beta readers, including professional writers, some SFWA, and they had no issue either.

It does make me curious how it will shake out though. I'll wonder if it's the reason my story ends up with whatever result it does.

I'm in, and it's still daylight out.  This story's a little different for me, as I try to find my voice.  The subject wasn't of interest to some of my readers, which doesn't mean anything as long as it grabs Kary's attention, then Jody's.

Good luck to everyone still revising and those already in.  May the certificates this quarter be plentiful.

Phew! Finally got my Q3 submission in!  

No idea about what to submit in Q4 yet.

Back to checking email and phone for Q2 results ?