What's your motivation for entering or not entering?

[Susan Boulton]

Not very good at them and time, though of the latter I have a bit more of recently.

 

[Luiglin]

I used to enter them as a personal confidence booster with the added bonus that they were fun. However, I may have to take a break in the New Year as they are now doing the opposite. Confidence is the key and without it you end up second guessing yourself... definitely no good for writing.

 

[Culhwch]

Count me in with the hundred percenters, at least as far as the seventy-five worder goes. The three hundred I find much more difficult, and while I try and get a story in each time it comes around I've probably missed more than half of them. But the desire to keep my streak going in the shorter challenge is usually enough to get me to throw something together, even if it's within the last hour of the competition.

I've been lucky enough to win on a few occasions, and it is a thrill each and every time, and that certainly helps keep me going as well - especially through the months without any votes or hardly any mentions or shortlistings.

Also, it's basically the only regular writing I do these days, so it's a nice way to just keep my hand in, and not feel like I've given up completely!

 

[Droflet]

I hadn't paid attention at all to the writing challenges until the last few months, because I come here to discuss reading books. In years past I have thought of writing more, but life got away from me. Here there are professional writers, and many of you have much more practice due to participating in these challenges so much. So if I posted something, it would probably be really cliché or an overdone story.

Hey, only one way to find out. Who knows, you might surprise yourself.

 

[Mr Orange]

well, i enter because i can't not enter... it started out as a bit of fun and a way to hone my writing, and now i just can't go past the challenge without entering. some of the more fruity genres and themes had me thinking i wouldn't bother but every time, a few days later i was back trying to get something to fit. i really enjoy trying to get an idea into 75 words, and it actually means that the 300 worder is a bit easier for me as i feel like i have a lot of words to play with!

for those who have said they don't enter because they can't think of anything good enough, just do it! getting a mention, a good review and maybe even a vote is a great feeling. i have yet to win. the closest i have come is 5 votes, 2 shy of the eventual winner, but it's about more than that.

and sometimes the the biggest cliché or most overdone story is the one that wins!!

 

[The Judge]

I've been lucky enough to win on a few occasions

Six times... Cul is the first, and so far only, person to get to six wins in the 75 worders. (Come on, HB -- you're falling behind.)

 

[Venusian Broon]

Oddly @The Judge I was just tinkering with the big excel file of winners in the competitions, making it pretty and adding in the latest results and made this, on a whim. For the 75 worder of course. You are reigning supreme on the 300 word leader board

 

[The Judge]

Eh, only half a win for a tied tie-break?! *wanders off muttering about members who like their maths to add up, thereby robbing innocent people of legitimate wins*

 

[ratsy]

I'd take a 0.5 win at this point!

 

[Venusian Broon]

Share the points for a draw, that seemed sensible to me....(plus, yes, it made the numbers add up and easier to check, we treens/fey pop stars are at the forefront of mathematical literacy )

 

[The Judge]

Well, be assured, ratsy, as and when you win, in my records it will go down as a full win, even if you've tied on a tie-break. None of this discrimnatory stuff from me. Oh no.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

Wait, the halves don't add up right there. I've had two of them, so it doesn't show a half, but the rest aren't even then. Does someone else have two halves as well? Or three?

Edit: never mind, I can't count.

 

[Venusian Broon]

Well, be assured, ratsy, as and when you win, in my records it will go down as a full win, even if you've tied on a tie-break. None of this discrimnatory stuff from me. Oh no.

What's discriminatory about that? A full winner would have got more votes than the second person/s, stands to reason.

Anyway, it's just my personal musings, I ain't no high-falutin' mod or staff member laying down the law. Everyone is free to do anything they want with the data...I was going to post weird statistical musings about this all at the end of the year, but it looks like I'm going to get a barrage of flak about it .

 

[Ursa major]

But will that barrage balloon out of control? (And will the flak help...?)

 

[The Judge]

I was going to post weird statistical musings about this all at the end of the year, but it looks like I'm going to get a barrage of flak about it .

Ooh,ooh... *jumps up and down* Want see! Want see!

(I can believe the "weird" part... )

 

[Juliana]

Here there are professional writers

and sometimes the the biggest cliché or most overdone story is the one that wins!!

Considering that the only time I won was with dodgy risqué pirate poetry... So, so, professional!

Seriously, it's always completely unpredictable who will take the 'crown', @kythe. I myself find I vote differently depending on the day; sometimes the funny things tickle my fancy, sometimes I'm in the mood for dark and brooding. So don't take it too seriously, just have fun. That's what I do, anyway.

 

[HazelRah]

It was the challenges for me that persuaded me to join the forum in the first place... I had loitered around other forums and submitted a few things here and there, but I always seemed to come face to face with hoards of nasty, (non-constructively) critical people who just wanted to burn you for fun. In the end it made me quite scared to have anyone read something I'd written. And although I still wrote for myself, I didn't write nearly as enthusiastically or as often.

But, after finding out how lovely everyone is here, I figured it was a good way to boost my confidence and get me back into writing properly. I also find I work best when I work to a deadline, and any story or piece of writing I attempt in my own time tends to just get left to accumulate electronic dust while I start something new. So it's nice to get that feeling of accomplishment that I'm currently missing from my other projects.

And also it's fun.

 

[StilLearning]

Because I enjoy writing and being creative, and it gives mea chance to practice and see how I improve in a competitive but friendly way. The only person I'm really competeing with is me in the last challenge, to see if I can do better than he did.

 

[holland]

What's going on with the anonymous challenges?

 

[Dan Jones]

@holland think we took a month off so as not to clash with the 300worder. I guess we've missed the boat for November too. If someone steps up to host in Dec then I suppose we could get back on the wagon.