DISCUSSION -- MAY 2017 75-word Writing Challenge

Hugh said:
Can someone please remind me/ confirm for me:

Contractions

Am I right that words such as:

They'll

I'd

Didn't

count as one word each and not two?

Many thanks
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Yes, standard contractions (and ones that are reasonably interpreted as similar constructions) are counted as one word. Be careful if you're making contractions in a nonstandard dialect in such a way that might appear you're taking advantage.

Best practice, if you're doing something unusual, or are not sure of something, is to ask for a moderator ruling first. :)
 
To no end, @Lumens – With all of humanity gone, only our myths and legends are left to remember us. It seems they will not mourn our passing.

Not even a whimper, @chrispenycate – This richly-textured rhyme details the intermingling of a fantasy world with the familiar trappings of one of our reality’s greatest cities.

“I can’t! I won’t.” @Ashleyne – ...resorts to desperate measures to save their child. A parent resorts to desperate measures to save their child. A parent resorts...
 
Well, there's me in! I haven't read the other stories yet, so I hope mine isn't close in concept to anyone else.

Loved the challenging, inspiring genre/theme pairing, HoopyFrood! Good luck, all, with the writing, and see you here again around the 24th. :)

edit: also, Dave Barsby - yes, please enter, if you have the time! The challenges are long-haul phenomena...enter-only one month...enter and vote the next...vote only another, there's time and opportunity for all possibilities. IMO, the challenges are stronger when anyone contributes in any way they can. :)
 
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Meteorite, @Stuart Suffel – There’s a rocky road ahead for humanity in this story of grumpy granite and belligerent basalt. It looks like Chicken Little was right after all.

The Palliative Spirit, @Cat's Cradle – The spirits of the dead ease the passage of those about to join them in this touching story of dreams and death.
 
Howdy-hey-there everyone.

My idea came to me at work yesterday. When it showed up, I threw a net over it, then I used a taser on it. Dragged it home and...well, you know the rest.

I'm looking forward to read the other stories, along with the reviews.
 
@Starbeast .... Explores the unfortunate side effects of getting a second chance or more if the "Next is 6."

@RJM Corbet .... Brings us to the very unmythical place we've all been after having had too much of a good thing. It's impossible to hold on to "Hot Gas."
 
dannymcg said:
Starbeast. Brilliant! Deep down everybody loathes that little wooden creep
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First of all, nice to meet you, Dannymcg And second, :ROFLMAO: That's funny. However I do like the 1965 film, Pinocchio in Outer Space. Thanks for your review.

Parson said:
@Starbeast .... Explores the unfortunate side effects of getting a second chance or more if the "Next is 6."
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Firstly, thank you for the review.

And second, how's your hip, my friend? Better I hope.:)
 
Just a reminder to everyone -- please check word count carefully before posting.

We've again had to disqualify a story for being over the 75 word limit. We hate having to do this. We certainly don't like having to tell someone we've removed his work, on which much time and effort has undoubtedly been spent, and we do want as many entries as possible each month, so losing one is the last thing we want.

So, please be careful. Check and double-check. Use finger power and don't rely on Word. Count from the last word back to the beginning so you're not reading the story. Break the piece down -- for 75 worders I sometimes break it into separate lines of 5 words each, then group 5 lines together, to form 3 clumps; for the 300s I sometimes break them into 25 word groups, but more often I count the words in each paragraph, note them all down and tally them up separately.

And do that immediately before posting. Don't then make changes after posting unless you also count the whole piece over again -- it's all too easy for an extra word to slip in when you make amendments.
 
The Judge said:
Just a reminder to everyone -- please check word count carefully before posting.

We've again had to disqualify a story for being over the 75 word limit. We hate having to do this. We certainly don't like having to tell someone we've removed his work, on which much time and effort has undoubtedly been spent, and we do want as many entries as possible each month, so losing one is the last thing we want.

So, please be careful. Check and double-check. Use finger power and don't rely on Word. Count from the last word back to the beginning so you're not reading the story. Break the piece down -- for 75 worders I sometimes break it into separate lines of 5 words each, then group 5 lines together, to form 3 clumps; for the 300s I sometimes break them into 25 word groups, but more often I count the words in each paragraph, note them all down and tally them up separately.

And do that immediately before posting. Don't then make changes after posting unless you also count the whole piece over again -- it's all too easy for an extra word to slip in when you make amendments.
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So, I am a newby and not sure if mine was the offending story. If a story goes over, is it immediately taken down or marked in some way?
 
Stories we find over the limit are removed from the Challenges, though "immediately" is a bit of a moveable feast, since we try and ensure that at least 2 mods check the word count, which can mean having to wait for someone else to come along and do the necessary.

Rest assured, yours wasn't the story! We always send a PM to the member concerned before we make announcements in the Discussion threads -- we're not quite so callous as to let people find out in public first. (We're not dismissing FBI directors, after all!!)


EDIT: TDZ has just reminded me of something I was going to say.

As most people know, there is a 60 minute editing window we all have within which any post can be amended, and that includes Challenge entries. If within that hour we find an entry which is -- or might be -- over the limit, we would PM the member concerned and give them notice, so he/she can make changes bringing it under word count. I'm not the only mod to have done this, but then discovered that although the "logged in" light is on for that member, he/she has actually logged off before getting my PM, and has therefore lost the chance of making those changes. So if you're not good at counting, it's a good idea to stick around for an hour after posting just in case!
 
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Note that you shouldn't rely on someone (and it's not just mods) noticing your word count is over the limit and pointing it out within that edit window. :D But if you have a habit of posting and then running away, it could bite you in the backside. It does hurt when you send a message to someone who the site says is logged in, to let them know they need to act right away, and it turns out they were already gone and don't see it in time. The site shows logged-in status for fifteen minutes after a person is gone.
 
@Tywin .... Tells a fairy tale of the highest order when he tells "The Story at 610 McClellan Avenue."

@Robert Mackay .... Tells a clever tale about the pub at the place where "The Worlds' End."

@Joshua Jones .... brings us a person with the talent/curse to turn an instant into an eternity when "All is One."
 
UK query...
Is there some significance to that address - 610 McClellan Avenue?
Like, uh I dunno, is it where Shaggy from Scooby Doo lives for example?
What I mean is it some culture thing patently obvious to Americans of a particular age group?
Like 23 Railway Cuttings to a Brit?
 
dannymcg said:
UK query...
Is there some significance to that address - 610 McClellan Avenue?
Like, uh I dunno, is it where Shaggy from Scooby Doo lives for example?
What I mean is it some culture thing patently obvious to Americans of a particular age group?
Like 23 Railway Cuttings to a Brit?
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Not that I'm aware of, which doesn't mean it's not patently obvious to someone else.

The author, of course, is not at liberty to explain, if so. :)
 
The Judge said:
Just a reminder to everyone -- please check word count carefully before posting.

We've again had to disqualify a story for being over the 75 word limit. We hate having to do this. We certainly don't like having to tell someone we've removed his work, on which much time and effort has undoubtedly been spent, and we do want as many entries as possible each month, so losing one is the last thing we want.

So, please be careful. Check and double-check. Use finger power and don't rely on Word. Count from the last word back to the beginning so you're not reading the story. Break the piece down -- for 75 worders I sometimes break it into separate lines of 5 words each, then group 5 lines together, to form 3 clumps; for the 300s I sometimes break them into 25 word groups, but more often I count the words in each paragraph, note them all down and tally them up separately.

And do that immediately before posting. Don't then make changes after posting unless you also count the whole piece over again -- it's all too easy for an extra word to slip in when you make amendments.
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While here, can the mods help clarify the use of hyphenated words, or groups of words?

eg: off-the-cuff OR free-for-all ?

I always count them as separate words anyway, just to be sure ...
 
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