And I'm publishing another book. <grin>

I need your help organizing this things, so before I give contest details let me give you an outline on what you can do to help.

I need two volunteers to help me with judging. If you are interested in being a judge please email or PM me. Please note that judges will be allowed to submit entries to the contest, they just won't be eligible for winning.

I also need prizes. Anyone interested in donating prizes or knows anyone who would be interested, please contact me. It's nothing like a Readathon prize bank, but I'm completely open to suggestions and submissions. Prizes will be announced at some point once I have them.

So now on to the contest! There are three categories. Multiple submissions to all categories are allowed. All entries will be considered for publication. The categories are:

Hope
Honor
Justice

Each category will be judged on writing ability, story, and how well the theme was incorporated. Each theme will have one declared winner, with optional runners ups or honorable mentions according to the discretion of the judges. Winners and runner ups will be featured prominently in the book. Winners will receive prizes, which will be announced later.

This is a flash fiction contest. All entries must be under 1,500 words. Entries may be in any style or format - poetry, short story, drabble, reflections, memoirs, etc.

How to Enter

How do you enter? I'm glad you asked! I'd like your opinion on that. In the past we've always done blind judging, where the judges aren't allowed to know who wrote which entries. I'd kind of like to waive that condition for this contest for a myriad of reasons. If there are no objections then I will set up threads for submissions in the Fireside within a few days. So get writing, and just hold up for submission requirements.

Short Story Collection

The contest entries will be compiled and edited into a collection of short stories to be published under the HW name with the same license agreement as the poetry book.

The short story book and this contest are being organized as a prison outreach program. I intend to dedicate the book to Jay Lauser, and I intend to do my best to find a way to get it into jails and prisons.

If you don't mind listening for a bit I'll explain my reasons for this project. Ever since Jay's arrest I've felt rather strongly about finding a way to minister to other prisoners; people who don't have anyone to help and encourage them the way we were able to help Jay. I thought about a magazine or newsletter but it was too complicated. I thought about letter-writing campaigns, but it was too personal. Especially for a forum of under-aged writers. This project was my solution. We can all remain safely anonymous using pen names or going uncredited, and even using real names we're still unidentifiable except by name. No personal information, no addresses. Nothing. And it's also more lasting. If we can get the book into prison libraries it will be there for always, reaching more people every day. We've got a captive audience, literally, and maybe we can change their lives for God in some small way.

Stay tuned for opportunities to volunteer for help editing!

I hope I didn't miss anything! If you have any questions, please ask. If you have any comments or suggestions feel free to make them! And if you feel daunted by writing flash fiction I will address that in the near future. Spread the word, and get to writing! Submissions will open in a few days.

Merry Christmas and God Bless!

This sounds like a great idea!! *Will see if I can come up with something, perhaps*

Jordan Smith has agreed to help me judge.

Contest threads are now open:

Hope
Honor
Justice

Due date?
This is a really good idea. I'll see what I can do.

Somehow that got overlooked in my first post. Submissions close on February 14.

Oh good. That gives me three weeks of exams in which to work.
Thank you, Janin.

I'm excited to see this up and running. *starts pondering the themes*

I just want to say this is a fantastic idea. Prisoners are so often overlooked. I hadn't planned to write any shorts in the next month, but now I want to just for it being such a good cause.

I would be honored if you found time to enter, Ardyth. And your encouragement means a lot to me. I didn't realize how much they were overlooked either until I had a friend in prison.

I love this idea, Katie. (I love all of your ideas, but this one very nearly takes the cake) I hope to enter.

I look forward to it.

I like this idea. A short story is unlikely, but I might be able to get a poem or two in there. Someone poke me if I forget!

Oh, I'm definitely entering. Now, just to fit it in with the other three novels and money-earning... *starts planning*

Behold! All ye who say "I can't write something that short" have now been rendered excuseless! I present an entire blog post on the art of writing flash fiction! Go read it, and then go write it!

Ahhh!! I love this!
Is there any particular genre the stories should be in? (This is a fantasy forum, after all.) Thought I'd check before diving into an idea.
Also, if you've got a list going of editors/volunteers, throw my name on there for good measure. Life is somewhat unpredictable with a two-month-old, but do let me know if there's anything I can help with once it's time to put the book together (I think you know I also do cover design and artistic internal layout).

All genres are welcome. The contest is double posted on the other two forums.

You're the first person to volunteer to help edit! So I shall go start a list and put your name at the top of it.

Gotcha. Sounds great.

Now I'm in for it! JK! I enjoy editing.

*perks up at the sound of book to be published* I know it's a bit early, but I'm willing to work with final book design and preparation (which, dare I say it, will include editing)

I'll also see if I can come up with any writing that fits with the themes

Do you still need more editors? I would love to help with the editing.

Can anyone give me some thoughts for the Justice category? I'm having trouble of thinking of anything that doesn't have a bit of a vengeful feel to it.

(is this where I volunteer?)

I'd be happy to help edit, if I can.

I am also willing to help edit.

I'm working on judging, I swear it. And there will be prizes, I promise. Meanwhile Vilisse is in charge of working on the compilation so go help her out!

How many of you wanted to enter the contest but didn't have time and/or forgot? Would you be interested in a deadline extension, not for the contest, but for submissions for the book? I want to give the judges a chance to have a piece in the book, and I'd like to extend an invitation to anyone who missed the contest to get their work published as well.

If five or more people reply saying they want to submit an entry then when I get home I'll open a thread and leave it there until about mid-April. If you say you're going to submit a piece though, I expect something to get posted.

I was hoping to get something written, but ran out of time. I'd love a deadline extension for the book.

And the winners are in! Congratulations to everyone who participated. I'm hoping to publish the book in May, so keep hanging around. And anyone who has title ideas?

For the category of Honor the winner is "Men Like Him" by Aldara Mimetes
For the category of Hope the winner is "Confidence" by Aubrey Hansen.
Runner up for Hope is "Of Tooth and Nail" by Lady Kitra Mimetes
For the Category of Justice the winner is "Two Victims" by Airianna Valenshia.
Runner up for Justice is "Justice is Served" by Lady Katharina Mimetes.

We used a point scoring system for judging this time, and it resulted in many, many ties. Everyone scored fairly high, which I take as a general compliment to the overall performance capability of this forum.

The winners will receive prizes. I will be sending them when I return home, which will be next week sometime. Your prizes are, predictably, books. Don't ask me what books; unfortunately I haven't quite got that far. But there will be books sometime in the beginning of April. Promise. So just hold your horses and get busy putting together your anthology.

*squeals ecstatically!!!!! *

I'm so excited I won! I was really hoping to place.

Hurray! I can't wait to read them all when the book comes out! (I didn't want to spoil it by reading them in a thread) Congratulations, y'all!

I'll think about names too...

*starts thinking of names *

"Tales from the..." no... "Scribes of..." Hmm *thinks*

Eh wot? Me? *hides and goes back to helping with the publishing*

Congratulations to the winners!

Ditto. I can hardly believe I actually got runner-up. *ish happy*

Do runners-up get prizes, too, or not? The way you said it kind of sounds like maybe not. I'm just curious.

Congratulations, y'all!

*just found this again today*

*stares at her name for while*
I didn't expect that. I wasn't even sure if people would like that one.

WOOHOO!! Congrats awesomes!!

Since I forgot to say it earlier, congrats everyone!

I'm wondering about a couple things, though. What's the current timeline for putting out the book? (I definitely want to help promote it!) Will we be having both print and ebook or just print? And where will the contract be posted for the stories? I can't remember where to find it for the details.

It will be ebook and print. We're hoping to have it out before the end of June, I believe. The date got pushed back a bit further. The contract is actually lying around somewhere in the Poetry Book archives... I think.... I think it's a variation on a first rights, non-exclusive.... That's a good thing to dig out and stick up in a new thread.

So, there was no runner up for the Honor category?

That is correct. Runners up occurred where we had ties in our point system.

Oh, okay. *Was curious*