WRITERSoftheFUTURE.com

Pretty sure you were kidding about the Haiku, but just in case. :)

Starship lost in space
Its engine stopped and quiet
Kismet brings it home

250 exactly. The stars should be blurry streaks. Instead, they twinkled back. The warp bubble had collapsed. “Lee! What the hell happened?” Allison asked over the comms. “We’ve dropped out of warp.” “I’m at the Nomura tank.” Lee made his way to the tank. The Nomura wouldn’t respond to Allison. Dark ...

Fabulous. It's just as good. If you had a gun to my head, I couldn't tell you what was cut.

I tried but it would not allow me to create a new login. So I used my Q2 login. Joni assured me she had my story. Just email her at contests@authorserviceinc.com to make sure.

Mine's humour. I'm taking the same route going with humour. If feels like a sort of gamble, given how subjective it can be. Anyone else out there going for humour this quarter? Yes! I am too. At least I hope it is funny. I agree. I think it's risky. They say they want humorous stories but I don't s...

Thanks again Wulf. Can't believe I still left one of this awful tags in there. Maybe the title should have something to do with stars since that is what I use to open and close the story. "Twinkling Stars: Death and Life" Becky: Wow! Cutting your tale in half really made a difference! I li...

I thought you already gave it away. Double the length. To 2000?

And I look forward to reading your story in the Fall.

Good suggestion Becky. I like it. Thanks.

So the title I have so far is "Shall we Sleep in the Cold, Dark Deep"

Oh what the heck. I did it and here it is. I figure it's not really the same story at 500. I'll post the title separately. Dr. Mann Chiu Lee felt it before he understood. The warp bubble had ceased its warbling hum. He moved to the nearest port. The stars should be blurry streaks. Instead, they twin...

... I recall submissions require a different log in each time. Hope this helps. Yes-that is what confused me. It says you need a new login but it wouldn’t let me create one for Q3. It allowed me to submit using my Q2 login info. But Joni said she has my story so I guess it’s alright. Peony says som...

Put a chill on the twitching. I emailed Joni today to make sure I submitted my Q3 correctly (I got confused by the instructions to create a new login??). I also asked about Q2 results and she said another month from now “probably” By the way. You shouldn't need a new login to put in your Q3. Anyone ...

Okay, keeper of the blood-book, I am in for the Q3! I held off, per Wulf's commandments, until I was sure I had no better story to submit. This will be my first entry of a story written for the contest. (My Q1 and Q2 were fresh, just not written with the contest in mind). Thank you everyone, and Wul...

The grammar in your post was pretty good. Maybe get a copy of English Grammar A Complete Course which is a high school textbook. I've got one and even look at it occasionally. You can get a used copy for next to nothing on Amazon. Another good one is Strunk and White, Elements of Style. Okay, yeah, ...

Well, I guess it is time to do the final edit or two on my Q3 and join Milo in submitting. My other possibility isn't quite cooked.

I will do the exercise but I bet I shouldn’t post it? No way not to reveal the entire story if I cut it in half. Interesting exercise Wulf.

Thanks for the critique Peony. Appreciate it and good points.

Y'all are great. Just tough enough. Get too gentle with me and I'll miss the point. wotf004 Okay-glad it's not a "as you know Bob," but I agree. Too much at once. I held back the title just to make it less "out there" and also because I'm not quite sure about what I have so far. ...

Thanks Wulf. Ugh! I knew about dialog tags. Hard for a noob to keep all this stuff in his little head: dialog tags, "ly" words, repetition of words and structure, to-be verbs . . . "Ack!" the writer exclaimed forcibly. wotf001 I decided to go back a little further and give you th...

So here is part of my story--the part that may contain an "as you know Bob." Maybe other problems as well. They were many lightyears from their destination and at a dead stop. The nearest comms panel barked to life. “Lee! What the hell happened?” Allison called. “Allison,” Lee paused. “We’...

Why is nobody twitching? Oh, I'm twitching, but I can't afford to twitch too much because I need to finish my Q3 (which is proving to be a tough write). I am a bit though another R is a near certainty for me. I knew nothing about the contest when I did my Q2 and it crosses some lines--one line I wo...

Poop! Sorry Moon. I'm liking this story and seems clear to me now that you guys are correct-since the public can view the forum posts, it would be publication and I'd like to try submitting it to the flash market (not to WotF). But I do thank you for posting the exercise challenge. It was a great mo...

I've got my idea and a rough outline in my head. Anyone else? Time to quit dawdling.

wotf009 I will have this on your desk ASAP, sir. Won't posting it here preclude the ability to submit it for publishing, though? Interesting thought. Maybe. Personally I wouldn't count it. No many will see it and fewer will read. There is no publishing intent. And it will quickly sink into the page...

Yeah Baby. Groovy.

This link was posted on Scribophile earlier. Quite old but still interesting. Average point at which the slushpile reader has decided to reject - Page 3. Provides a reasonable amount of explanation. https://www.shimmerzine.com/2011/03/16/confessions-of-a-slush-reader-why-should-i-care/ Yes, thanks....

I think Moongirl would say that judge was a Dipshit.

We were lucky enough to get to visit EB White's Maine farm a few years ago. He had a shack down by the water's edge where he wrote. Personally, I don't know how he wasn't distracted by the gorgeous view but I guess that's what worked for him. The current owner still had his "shack slippers"...

Be careful of posting details about your stories - the contest is anonymous. I'm not sure I understand. What is the problem with posting details of our stories here so long as we submit them anonymously to the contest? The thought is that a judge will see your description and then later recognize y...

Thanks SCA Fontaine and Chuck. I wish they had put some clearer "as of" verbage and dates and rates into those rules. As it reads right now, a person could have a dozen former pro sales at $0.06 and now compete in WotF. That would not be fair. But it's how the rules read at present. I hop...