Dear 100 Words or Fewer Story Writers,
Welcome to Contest TEN! We want to read your stories, and we hope you will read the exceptional Contest Nine stories, provided in WINNERS. This time we have included all contender stories!
Welcome to Contest TEN! We want to read your stories, and we hope you will read the exceptional Contest Nine stories, provided in WINNERS. This time we have included all contender stories!
NEWS
One: Here are your new challenges. We have decided, for fun, on not one, not two, not three, but four unique categories to celebrate Contest Ten! Please write stories relating to:
(A) "The Encounter" -- encounters include Mickey and Goofy happiness as well as meeting a mosquito in the summertime.
(B) "Locked Up" -- can be an individual's inner state, or it can be a story about a White House cleaning person who goes to sleep in the Oval Office. In any case, the situation must offer a problem, complication(s), and a resolution (or definitive ending of some kind).
(C) "The Weary Enforcer"-- poor fellow, or woman--is weary for reasons shown or alluded to in the situation you create. This will not be a character description. It will carry interesting action.
(D) "He Always Did the Dishes" -- "He" in this story could be your uncle, the General, or then again the criminal, Al Capone. It will certainly be about a situation, and the washing dishes idea will provide an ironic detail.
All stories can be told in first, second, or third person.
Two: Contest Ten will be our last contest. When each contest started, I foresaw financial and time constraints dangering our commitment. But the Contest bus would not stop! It rolled faster and faster, passing Contest finishes while the Team concentrated on it all--charming stories, checkmark evaluations, critiques, Final Judge commentaries, awards to winners, gratitude from passengers, the bus bouncing and rolling, rolling, rolling right up to the sign: "CONTEST TEN!" I put both feet on the brakes.
Now I want to develop an anthology. My dream is that the anthology will contain contest stories, Erica Bauermeister's comments on winners, my critiques, and some writing principles that have bcome crystal to me after four years of studying your stories.
The enduring enthusiasm for this contest has thrilled us!.
Thank you! I love you all!
Very sincerely,
Idore Anschell
Contest Director
Three: Our purpose is to receive entries throughout the four months of the contest, rather than just at the end. So to induce earlier entering, participants will receive the following freebies if their stories land in our contest at just the right time:
One: Here are your new challenges. We have decided, for fun, on not one, not two, not three, but four unique categories to celebrate Contest Ten! Please write stories relating to:
(A) "The Encounter" -- encounters include Mickey and Goofy happiness as well as meeting a mosquito in the summertime.
(B) "Locked Up" -- can be an individual's inner state, or it can be a story about a White House cleaning person who goes to sleep in the Oval Office. In any case, the situation must offer a problem, complication(s), and a resolution (or definitive ending of some kind).
(C) "The Weary Enforcer"-- poor fellow, or woman--is weary for reasons shown or alluded to in the situation you create. This will not be a character description. It will carry interesting action.
(D) "He Always Did the Dishes" -- "He" in this story could be your uncle, the General, or then again the criminal, Al Capone. It will certainly be about a situation, and the washing dishes idea will provide an ironic detail. All stories can be told in first, second, or third person.
Two: Contest Ten will be our last contest. When each contest started, I foresaw financial and time constraints dangering our commitment. But the Contest bus would not stop! It rolled faster and faster, passing Contest finishes while the Team concentrated on it all--charming stories, checkmark evaluations, critiques, Final Judge commentaries, awards to winners, gratitude from passengers, the bus bouncing and rolling, rolling, rolling right up to the sign: "CONTEST TEN!" I put both feet on the brakes.
Now I want to develop an anthology. My dream is that the anthology will contain contest stories, Erica Bauermeister's comments on winners, my critiques, and some writing principles that have bcome crystal to me after four years of studying your stories.
The enduring enthusiasm for this contest has thrilled us!.
Thank you! I love you all!
Very sincerely,
Idore Anschell
Contest Director
Three: Our purpose is to receive entries throughout the four months of the contest, rather than just at the end. So to induce earlier entering, participants will receive the following freebies if their stories land in our contest at just the right time:
| Entries | Free Checkmark Evaluations | Critiques |
| First five entries | free checkmark evaluations | |
| Number 10 entry | One | |
| Number 30 entry | One | |
| Number 50 entry | One | |
| Number 75 entry | One | |
| Number 100 entry | One | |
| Number 150 entry | One | |
| Number 200 entry | One | |
| Number 250 entry | One | One |
| Final entry | One |
AWARDS
We shall continue with four opportunities to win, but this time with one prize for each category:
The Encounter: $250
Locked Out: $250
He Always Did the Dishes: $250
The Weary Enforcer: $250
TRY FOR MORE THAN ONE!
FEES
Entry: $15.00; checkmark evaluation: $10.00; critique: $40.00. Entry fee, plus checkmark evaluation: $25.00. Entry fee, plus checkmark evaluation, plus critique: $60.00.
Possible extra fee.
WRITERS MUST IDENTIFY THEMSELVES!!!
We spend a ridiculous amount of time trying to connect payer to writer, address (in PayPal) to writer, and sometimes pen name to paying name. We need the identification in the original email as follows:
Name of writer,
Name (not business name) of payer if it is different from that of writer,
address with zip code and phone number;
one email address.
We apologize, but because of the time involved, we now impose an extra $10 fee if the above information is not readily available to us.
BONUSES, BONUSES
Three entries will earn you a free checkmark evaluation, a very popular add-on. (See an example by clicking on “Checkmark evaluations” in the menu at top right.)
Four entries will earn you a free critique! Many contest participants write that the value of our critiques is as significant as the prizes. See examples of critiques by clicking “Critiques” on the menu at top right.
ANOTHER SPECIAL FOR CONTEST TEN: STRATEGY!
We asked Emily Vanston to tell us her strategy in writing the winning story for Contest Nine's "Uncommon Character," category. Here is what she said:
We shall continue with four opportunities to win, but this time with one prize for each category:
The Encounter: $250
Locked Out: $250
He Always Did the Dishes: $250
The Weary Enforcer: $250
TRY FOR MORE THAN ONE!
FEES
Entry: $15.00; checkmark evaluation: $10.00; critique: $40.00. Entry fee, plus checkmark evaluation: $25.00. Entry fee, plus checkmark evaluation, plus critique: $60.00.
Possible extra fee.
WRITERS MUST IDENTIFY THEMSELVES!!!
We spend a ridiculous amount of time trying to connect payer to writer, address (in PayPal) to writer, and sometimes pen name to paying name. We need the identification in the original email as follows:
Name of writer,
Name (not business name) of payer if it is different from that of writer,
address with zip code and phone number;
one email address.
We apologize, but because of the time involved, we now impose an extra $10 fee if the above information is not readily available to us.
BONUSES, BONUSES
Three entries will earn you a free checkmark evaluation, a very popular add-on. (See an example by clicking on “Checkmark evaluations” in the menu at top right.)
Four entries will earn you a free critique! Many contest participants write that the value of our critiques is as significant as the prizes. See examples of critiques by clicking “Critiques” on the menu at top right.
ANOTHER SPECIAL FOR CONTEST TEN: STRATEGY!
We asked Emily Vanston to tell us her strategy in writing the winning story for Contest Nine's "Uncommon Character," category. Here is what she said:
This particular story (“Not Again”) took about 24 hours, I guess, from conception to submission… between choosing a character, sculpting a storyline, strategizing word choice, sketching a first draft, whittling it down to 100 words, sleeping on it, tinkering with the details, and finally throwing up my hands and sending it in.
OTHER WAYS WE CAN HELP
Don't forget please: We offer critiques on longer writings. This will be ongoing as long as Idore Anschell is ongoing. (Ahem!)
For more specifications, TIPS, and short, short story examples, please read the “What we Want and What We Don’t Want” page, which is listed second on the menu at right.
Welcome to Contest Ten, Story Writers!
Sincerely,
Idore Anschell
Director,
100 Words or Fewer Writing Contest
"The Encounter," "Locked Out," "He Always Did the Dishes,"and "The Weary Enforcer" pics used courtesy of Bling.com
Don't forget please: We offer critiques on longer writings. This will be ongoing as long as Idore Anschell is ongoing. (Ahem!)
For more specifications, TIPS, and short, short story examples, please read the “What we Want and What We Don’t Want” page, which is listed second on the menu at right.
Welcome to Contest Ten, Story Writers!
Sincerely, Idore Anschell
Director,
100 Words or Fewer Writing Contest
"The Encounter," "Locked Out," "He Always Did the Dishes,"and "The Weary Enforcer" pics used courtesy of Bling.com