Most writing contests give you a writing prompt or at least a couple of words to work your idea around, which is why I decided to host a slightly different contest.
A constrained writing contest
Instead of being given an idea or a writing prompt, you are allowed to choose the topic completely by yourself. But, varying from week to week, you will face different challenges that limit your writing.
You will be required to omit certain words, use a specific word in every second sentence, use a given sentence unchanged, write a story with a certain amount of words... or a combination of all.
Winners of constrained writing contest #24
In case you're wondering, the answer is yes, this is, indeed, a copy-paste of what @metzli sent me:
Hi Writers,
For those of you who don’t know me, I'm @metzli, a former creative writing teacher who loves reading stories.
I “judge” a little bit differently than @Svashta as minor grammatical errors don’t bother me (that’s what editors are for! lol) as long as the story is “juicy.”
I had lots of fun reading this week, and these were three stories that stuck out to me:
- 1st place - "The Creepy Death Party" by @kaelci.
As much as the story was about the kids, I couldn’t help connecting with the mom. Was she really making a cake that was a reminder of her children’s “soul separation”?
The story was twisty, and easy reading. Short enough to give it a few good reads too.
- 2nd place - "The Impatient Little Boy" by @figuringoutsrn.
I laughed so much at this story. It perfectly reminds me of my kids and their anticipation issues. 5 minutes is SO LONG for a little child, and this story captured the agonizing wait that birthday parties can be perfectly. I enjoyed the kid mentality in this story.
- 3rd place - "The Outcast Vampire" by @suzanrs.
This story was able to portray childlike happiness without using the word “happy.” A little love and a lot f planning can take you far.
Thank you for writing this week. I’ll be back next week as a writer.
Honorable mentions in alphabetical order:
- @cherylsonty with the entry "A memorable birthday party"
- @impending.doom with the entry "My eleventh birthday"
@obaseki with the entry "It's your birthday"
@tiempoyesp with their entry "Big family"
@svashta's note: This week's entries were very fresh and I must say many of them stuck with me. I left some more of my thoughts in the comments below your stories. ;)
With that out of the way, onto constrained writing contest #25!
Rules:
This week it I'm the judge again!
Here is what I came up for this week (with the help of last week's judge @metzliThanks!):
- Write a story that involves time-travel, but never mention time or their location. (Like what year they travelled from/to. Tell us about the time and location by describing the surroundings.)
- The story must be at least 250 words long and in English
And as for the usual mumbo jumbo, here's the rest of the rules just about every contest has:
- Upvote this post
- Post a link to your entry in the comments below
- Include tag #constrainedwriting among your other tags
- Should you wish to help raise awareness of the contest, please consider resteeming this post (it is by no means compulsory)
Prizes
- 1st place: 45% of post's payout
- 2nd place: 27% of post's payout
- 3rd place 18 % of post's payout
- Judge takes 5 % for his/her efforts
- I will take 5 % for hosting, writing and editing the contest
*Note: In case I receive any donations for the contest, the payout percentages apply to the donation itself as well.
Judges
This week I am the judge of the Constrained Writing Contest I am responsible for picking the winners on my own discretion, but I promise to try my best and be as objective as possible.
What's that I hear? You wish to be a judge too? Well look no further!
To apply for a judge and make up your own rules, simply send @svashta a hearty hello on Discord (Svashta#5207).
*Disclaimer: I will only allow fellow writers as judges to keep the competition high quality.
Deadline
- Entries are accepted until this post's payout
- Your entry post must be newer than this post
Good luck!
