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J-HardyCarroll ![]() NYC Midnight Newbie ![]() ![]() Joined: 29 Jan 2019 Status: Offline Points: 68 |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posted: 10 Apr 2019 at 8:59pm |
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For round one, I spent most of the week deciding on the idea I wanted to go with. The writing was pretty quick, and I had the benefit of reading the story to my wife and daughter, both of whom are excellent critics. I then spent a couple days tweaking and polishing. The resulting story was 2500 words and won first place in its heat, so that method worked.
This time there were only three days. I tried an abbreviated version of the same process, but I wasn't able to to get feedback from my impromptu reading group. Overall, I think the story is not nearly as strong as it could be. That said, it's satire, so the main point is to try and be absurd and funny, not to necessarily have emotional tension. Since on the heat winners advance this time, the competition is about to get really fierce. In my heat there's another heat winner as well as a few who took third and fourth places. Since sharing the stories is voluntary, I probably won't get a chance to read all the other stories. Last time I was super interactive for the first week or so, but then I pretty much forgot all about it. Distracted by other stuff. Later, rinse, repeat.
One interesting thing, though: when the judges offered feedback on my last story, they all liked the same things but their opinions about what they would improve conflicted with one another. There's always so much to learn! |
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BooksbyBJThompson ![]() Newbie ![]() Joined: 10 Apr 2019 Location: Calgary, Canada Status: Offline Points: 2 |
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Hey, someone's 5-year old tale could be another's Fitzgerald wonder... hold that thought and grab an appletini.
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BooksbyBJThompson ![]() Newbie ![]() Joined: 10 Apr 2019 Location: Calgary, Canada Status: Offline Points: 2 |
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I rather collapsed into a mini coma after submitting. For me, R2 was a severe challenge as genre was well out of my wheelhouse. I had to double-down on the focus and get out my machete to kill the babble.
I'll take that appletini off your hands... no, not the glass. Hand me the pitcher. Thanks.
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GaleGirl ![]() NYC Midnight Addict ![]() ![]() Joined: 26 Jan 2019 Location: Lancaster, PA Status: Offline Points: 548 |
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Very thoughtful, helpful response. Thanks for taking the time to share that framework.
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Scribbles ![]() NYC Midnight Newbie ![]() ![]() Joined: 16 Jan 2019 Location: 07866 Status: Offline Points: 34 |
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Same. I was so worried about not "getting" the genre I almost didn't finish. But baby's out in the world and now comes the waiting
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Angara ![]() NYC Midnight Newbie ![]() ![]() Joined: 29 Jan 2019 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 40 |
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incorporating comedy in with suspense is a stroke of genius. Usually I associate suspense with danger, gravity, impending doom etc. etc. but it occurred to me hours after submitting that I could have tried comedy. Suspense has its place in comedy and vice versa; a lot of comedy sitcoms use suspense to heighten anticipation of a joke's resolution. ...Then again, I'm terrible at comedy, so I don't know why I thought trying my hand at it would improve my submission. The fact that you've incorporated comedy in your piece makes me want to read all the more, imho.
Edited by Angara - 09 Apr 2019 at 8:35am |
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BarbaraFL ![]() NYC Midnight Addict ![]() Joined: 08 Jun 2006 Status: Offline Points: 1459 |
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I just re-read my first paragraph, and it reads as if a five-year-old wrote it.
![]() I have a firm belief in what a former teacher called the "zero draft" - get it all on the page and then fix it - but yeah my zero draft shouldn't have been what I submitted to this contest. Welp, screenwriting starts this weekend!
Edited by BarbaraFL - 09 Apr 2019 at 8:31am |
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redhart ![]() NYC Midnight Addict ![]() ![]() Joined: 05 Feb 2018 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 512 |
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[QUOTE
At the end I buckled and wrote something vaguely sci-fi because I was still riding high on inspiration from round one (which was sci-fi). Didn't have time to go back on it because by the time I started writing it was noon on the day of the due date. Tbh, the real suspense of the evening was whether or not I'd get it submitted on time ![]() If I don't make it to the final round, that's fine. Coming up with something and submitting it is already a win for me.
[/QUOTE]
Genre mash-ups, imho, seem to do well with the judges. So there’s that. I think they have a point of difference that make them stand out among the other stories. I threw in a bit of comedy but don’t know how that will be accepted in a suspense ![]() It was great just to get to the second round. |
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Heartstart ![]() NYC Midnight Regular ![]() ![]() Joined: 28 Jan 2017 Location: Canberra Status: Offline Points: 270 |
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Yeah, I definitely felt like my Round 2 story was nowhere near my best. I just couldn't really get into my prompts (and it didn't help that I got the dreaded 'spy' genre)!
On the plus side, it feels great to have achieved something, to have finished something. Can't wait to start reading the Round 2 stories that are posted!
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Angara ![]() NYC Midnight Newbie ![]() ![]() Joined: 29 Jan 2019 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 40 |
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I'm in heat one (suspense / a diet / a professional wrestler) and it was "suspense" that I struggled with the most. What I couldn't get around the fact was the idea of suspense as its own genre; sure, suspense is a component of mystery, thriller, crime capers, spy...but on its own? I was having a lot of difficulty with it. I think I need to go out and read more. At the end I buckled and wrote something vaguely sci-fi because I was still riding high on inspiration from round one (which was sci-fi). Didn't have time to go back on it because by the time I started writing it was noon on the day of the due date. Tbh, the real suspense of the evening was whether or not I'd get it submitted on time ![]() If I don't make it to the final round, that's fine. Coming up with something and submitting it is already a win for me.
Edited by Angara - 09 Apr 2019 at 7:03am |
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