Hi all! Sorry Iām a bit late on the announcement! Really had to push myself yesterday to make sure I got everyoneās stories read! You all have lovely stories, and I really enjoyed reading them! Thank you for sharing. <3 I was tempted to give everyone an honorable mention, but I think that would be too much, hehehe.
Without further adieu, here are the winners!
1st place goes to @rainbowcat with Dreams and Nightmares!
This story is at once very heartbreaking but also very sweet. The concept is unexpected, and all the characters are very likable so far. I think Scarlet and Jason in particular play off each other very well! I love their conflicting personalities and how they both have a lot of flaws for them to grow from--lots of room for character development! I appreciate that Jason presents as this very rough-and-tough guy with, perhaps a bit of a drinking problem, but you get the sense that he would never, ever hurt Scarlet even though heās a little bit mean to her from time-to-time. Oren and Lola are also very sweet and I like how kindly they treat Scarlet after all sheās been through. I also like the concept of Scarlet being in the middle of rival gangs and the grisly image of how they found her and saved her. I like how everyoneās personality shines even though Iāve only read to episode ten. I think my only suggestion would be to add a few more environmental descriptions and blocking to the scenes so that I can really picture the characters in their environments interacting.
2nd place goes to @encryptedwriting with the forgotten queen!
It was a really close race between this story and Dreams and Nightmaresātheyāre both very sweet and romantic and have a similar tone. I really like the characters in this one, too, and I really like her relationship with Kyler and her mama. Our main character is a poor gal, so when a nice knight takes an interest in her, itās very sweet, and itās very sad but also very sweet that she wants to protect her mama at all costs since sheās the only one she has. This story feels a bit like Cinderella with a twist of having ghosts and vampires, and I think it works very well thereās almost a nice horror like tinge to this story that keeps you on your toes, too, that I very much appreciate. The descriptions are also very vivid in this story and it captures the feel of a cold climate really well. I do feel like the pacing in this story is a little quick, and I would have liked it if it had slowed down a bit more and let us see the day-to-day life of Alice and her mama a little bit more before stuff goes down at the gala. I think a story like this would really benefit from a slow build-up: I think it would be a good idea to let us briefly meet Kyler a few times beforeā¦ the incident where Alice gets hurt happens, and let us get to know him a little bit better, and we do see a bit of Aliceās struggles at the beginning of the story (with her wearing her tattered sleeping gown everywhere because she canāt afford a good dress) but I think showing a little bit more of her hardships and life beforehand would strengthen the story quite a bit. I was also thinking it would be cool to see a few more scenes of her becoming a vampire before the story really gets going, too, and showing us what some of Alice's personal dreams and desires are would help, too.
3rd place goes to @sarahmassey998
I really like this story, hehe. Itās a sort of horror/sci-fi/action-y reimagining of the Wizard of Oz. I think all the descriptions here are, again, very potent and that you probably had the best technical writing of everyone here! I love the initial description of the acid rain and I think what you did with the story of Oz was very creative! I love how Toto was reimagined as a robot and the reimagining of the other characters is very great, too. I also appreciate that you donāt make your characters beauty queens, too. Thereās a little bit of a comedic edge to this story, just because you do take something that is very family friendly and made it violent and more aimed at adults. The acid rain made me giggle in a good way, hehe. But, it still takes itself seriously enough that you can more than get invested in it. I think you did a very good job making Dorothy sympathetic and getting inside her headāshe behaves very realistically throughout the story when confronted with such odd things. And I like that you took the time to delve into her relationships with Feral and the other guys! The part where she is contacting Nic via telepathy is just perfection, too! The islands and the defenses in his brain are great! I do think, like the story above, that this story would have benefited from slowing down just a bit (not a whole lot) and showing what day-to-day life for Dorothy is like on the Farm before the storm hits. I think it would be good to let her have a few bonding moments with the other characters (ala the original Wizard of Oz) before she gets going, too. Maybe she could go on a simple mission before the storm hits with her bros?
Honorable mentions go to @LunaLorre!
This story had a fantastic concept! I love the idea of Ron being one of the only people born without superpowers in a world of people born with superpowers. XD I also love how his bro disappeared sort of creepily, and how you build up tension in this story. I like how we see what happened to the other superhero who was abducted under similar circumstances to his brother and was quite beat-up. :0 Makes you worried about his bro. Your descriptions are very effective! I do wish there were a few more detailed ones, however, so it could spark my senses more! In fact, thatās the advice I have for most of the stories on here; triggering a readerās senses gets them much, much more involved in the story and transports them a bit better (sight, smell, taste, etc.). Otherwise, I like the opening of the story, but a few more character details would also be appreciated before we get launched into the story (more things about character personalities such as quirks, wants/needs, hobbies, the works).
Thank you all for participating! I've had a bit of an emotionally exhausting day, so it feels good to give to others at the end of it. I will probably throw this contest again next year, but my sister is going to be my helper so I don't exhaust myself so much. XD Additionally, we will probably start the contest two months early because we would like to do a themed contest, and we will require that participants create an entry for the contest (i.e., it couldn't have existed before the contest is thrown). So keep an eye out for that!
I believe @EncryptedWriting is the only one of our winners who did not have ink unlocked, so I will be drawing you a picture of one of your characters! Who would you like me to draw? Not only that, but if you would like me to give your ink to someone else, I will also do that for you. No matter what, you get the picture, though.