# Your Vote Urgently Required - It's the Anthology Thread of the 2011/2012 SDMB Short Fiction Contest **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 8, 2012, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795 "2012-01-08T03:58:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/62 "2012-01-17T19:07:28Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > and they go off for an exciting 3. I might lobby this to replace that quarry thing šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/63 "2012-01-17T19:32:34Z")
> [@jackdavinci](#): > > The Wager, post #2 > Cute creepy story. I find myself wanting to know a little bit more about how the grandmother died, and why the grandfather kept the watch and left it to his grandson. I wish I was better at dropping clues, but the grandfather basically made a wish to the watch for a mercy killing for the grandmother because she was suffering from brain cancer. The grandma knew he would do that, which is why she said the watch will stop at her time of death. I guess the grandfather just felt that Matthew was the most responsible person and should hold on to the watch. ---
**Author:** ![Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/4bbf92/32.png) [@Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heart_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2012, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/64 "2012-01-18T15:31:33Z")
Just bumping to remind everyone to read and vote - you still have 12 hours. Two of my favorites are tied for first - will they both win? And thanks to all who posted comments; itā€™s much appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/65 "2012-01-19T03:51:01Z")
The poll has now closed, but before I announce the winner, I would like to congratulate our participants. **Barkis is Willinā€™ Baker DMark Jules Andre Madysin Spoons Jackdavinci Savannah chrisk Heart of Dorkness Sunspace Puddleglum The Mighty Boosh cmyk Elfkin477** and **GIGObuster** - take a well deserved bow, all of you! And a very special congratulations to **cmyk** , whose story _Time and Time Again_ was chosen as the favourite! Well done! Iā€™d also like to take a brief moment to thank The Mods: twickster, Marley23 and Ellen Cherry, without whose help I would look very foolish indeed. Your assistance is greatly appreciated! And my thanks to all of you who have taken the time to read, to vote and to comment on these stories. Of course, there is still lots of time to comment on these fine pieces. I hope to run another of these Short Fiction contests sometime in late February. Meantime, Iā€™ll be starting a Poetry Sweatshop before January is upā€¦ My warmest wishes to all of you, **Le Ministre de lā€™au-delĆ ** ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/66 "2012-01-19T05:24:37Z")
Holy freeholies. Last time I checked me and **The Mighty Boosh** were tied. Anyhow, thanks again all, some really good stories here that made it hard to vote. Anyhow, itā€™s always fun and a good learning experience! Hope to see everyone next round! ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/67 "2012-01-19T06:08:02Z")
Congratulations! Good job! ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/68 "2012-01-19T06:21:26Z")
You too, **Savannah,** you were one of my votes! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Mighty\_Boosh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_mighty_boosh/32/1755_2.png) [@The\_Mighty\_Boosh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Mighty_Boosh)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/69 "2012-01-19T11:02:22Z")
Well done **cmyk** - a well deserved win. And thanks again to **Ministre de lā€™au-delĆ ** for doing all the work - Iā€™m looking forward to the next one. (Though maybe not the poetry. Thatā€™s beyond me.) ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/70 "2012-01-19T12:36:32Z")
I thought weā€™d be able to share. (yours another I voted for, along with **Project Fast Track** ). I tried the poetry onceā€¦ _not_ my fortĆ©. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/71 "2012-01-19T13:53:02Z")
Congrats, **cmyk** , on a very nice story. And of course, a very healthy thank you gos out to **Le Ministre de lā€™au-delĆ ** for doing all the leg work. These things are a lot of fun. Poetry falls outside my writing comfort zone, but I will definitely try to participate in the next short fiction anthology again. ---
**Author:** ![Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/4bbf92/32.png) [@Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heart_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2012, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/72 "2012-01-19T14:44:32Z")
Yay, **cmyk**! That was a really great story, and you had some stiff competition indeed. I canā€™t wait for the next one - and the poetry as well. **Le Ministre de lā€™au-delĆ ** , could you put me on your list? ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2012, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/73 "2012-01-20T06:30:48Z")
Congratulations, **cmyk**! Great story! Lots of good stories, and nice to see so many voters too! Many thanks to **Le Ministre** and the mods, and to those who commented. Looking forward to the next one! ---
**Author:** ![chrisk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/74 "2012-01-21T22:09:29Z")
Congratulations, cmyk, and well done everyone. (If I didnā€™t win, at least I can take some comfort that the winner voted for me! šŸ˜ƒ ) Iā€™m going to reply to anybody who gave me feedback first, and then post my own FB. > [@puddleglum](#): > > We really did have a theme going. > **Project Fast Track** Interesting concept, but the execution fell flat to me. It really needed a point of view and characterization. I understand what you mean about characterization. Maybe Iā€™ll try doing a rewrite in first person, and see if that improves the characterization. > [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > I enjoy these stories and glad insomnia has given me the time to read them all. My top three favorites are: > > 1. Discovering Roses > > 2. Time and Time Again > > 3. Project Fast Track (yours always and the question and answer were other considerations for this slot) > Some comments > \*\* > Project Fast Track\*\*: I liked this a lot. There were a few errors, but this is the story I most want a follow up on. > You all deserve a huge round of applause. Thank you very much! You may get your wish. > [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > Back with moreā€¦ > > ā€œProject Fast Trackā€ Post #10 > So this was another kind of fun little sci-fi romp. I liked it because it featured a good amount of dialogue and an interesting concept with the time bubble. It was pretty simple and straight forward and managed to keep the plot moving. The end seemed a bit rushed from the point Darlene decided to go in the bubble to the time Zeke was just like, hey ok go for it. Overall, though, nice job. Thanks. I did a small rewrite last week that tried to draw out the suspense by having Darlene reveal her plan on the phone with Zeke, instead of talking it out with Bob first. Iā€™m not sure if thatā€™s an improvement or not. > [@cmyk](#): > > **Project Fast Track -** You had me at ā€œTime Bubbleā€. Science fiction is my soft spot, and it was a fun read on top of an interesting, original concept. The ethical conundrums were set up well, but Iā€™m not sure it felt quite resolved in the end. Anyhow, one of the more interesting ones for myself. > > I look forward to more of these sweatshops! Good fun. Yeah, the ending is probably the weakest point - I was up against the 2,000 word limit. Sigh. But not I can do another draft and expand it a lot! > [@DMark](#): > > My cold is pretty much over, feeling better. So, here are my comments - take with grain of salt and some orange juice and bedrest: > > My Short Story Grades System/Scale > Introduction 30 pts ā€“ Does the story grab you from the beginning and make you want to read more? > Body 30 pts ā€“ Does the story keep your interest? Is it descriptive? Do the characters come alive or grow? Is there continuity and structure? > Conclusion 30 pts ā€“ Does the story have a satisfying ending? > Rating scale 10 pts ā€“ On purely subjective scale of 1 to 10, how much did I like the story? > Total 100 > > Project Fast Track, post #10 > Intro: 27 pretty good - got my attention with the concept of a time bubble and wanted to learn more. > Body: 26 as this kept moving at a good clip, but the ending came rather abruptly and I had to re-read it to make sure I hadnā€™t missed something. > Conclusion: 25 I got the end, but as mentioned, a bit quick and could have used maybe two or three more sentences to wrap it up. > Rating: 8 nice story, but a bit rushed. > Total: 86 Thanks for the breakdown, this will be helpful when I revise! > [@The\_Mighty\_Boosh](#): > > A few notes on the stories - itā€™s taken me a while to get round to completing and posting this. Lots of these pieces are fantastic, and all of them have many strengths. A lot of them were good enough to have been sustained for much longer - in cases where there are criticisms, in fact, thatā€™s the real problem; itā€™s hard to get everything in to 2000 words. Iā€™m rubbish at writing reviews, though, so apologies for the brevity. > > Project Fast Track > > Interesting idea, very good tech-related moral dilemma in classic sci-fi style. Good use of dialogue. > > Thatā€™s it. Thanks, **Le Min** , for setting this up - I hadnā€™t really noticed these competitions on SDMB before, but please add me to the list for any future ones! I always seem to end up in ā€˜classic sci-fi styleā€™ even when I try to be more up to date. Still, not a bad problem to have. šŸ™‚ > [@jackdavinci](#): > > So many dead relatives and so much space-time shennanigans! > > Project Fast Track, post #10 > Cool concept, and interesting choice for specific conflict. I think the resolution could have been stronger though. Her decision to go in to the bubble too was made out to be important but it didnā€™t quite get there. Maybe she needed a stronger more specific plan, like wooing the girl herself, or having her own personal reason for going. > > Looking forward to next time! Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![chrisk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/75 "2012-01-21T22:12:39Z")
I was hoping to flesh out some of my notes before I posted them, but I canā€™t seem to get back into the moment now, and figured that Iā€™d better share something before I forget and let this thread fade into obscurity. Sorry for those who only got one-liners, and feel free to ask follow-up questions! The Wager - interesting, kinda creepy. Tick, tick, tick - again, an interesting concept, but I wanted to see something more done with it. Tick tock - kinda fun, had a nice plotline and an engaging main character Pocket miracle - I really like this. Great concept, nice payoff, a good glimpse into what matters to this character and the choices he made. Well written! Seth - okay, that was just kind of disturbing. Weā€™ve got a main character whoā€™s emotionally disconnected from his parents, who feels annoyed at having to take time out of his busy life when they die - who apparently snaps at the grief-stricken old friends and kills them in a fit of temper, turning their own platitudes back on them. I canā€™t vote for this. Discovering Roses - another charming tale. Weā€™ve got a main character pulled in two different directions, and changing his life based on the advice of his dying mother. Not a very dramatic character arc, but a decent one for such a short story, I think. And the cross-dressing descriptions were fun. The question and the answer - thatā€™s a lot of great pop cultural references squeezed into the second paragraph! Despite that, through most of the story, with the stream of consciousness trains of thought zipping all over the place, I thought it wouldnā€™t get me to the right station, but the terminus was a good one. The company of birds - an interesting character piece, but just a little bit too mellow and laid-back for me, I think. Yours always - another character study, with a nice moral, but it didnā€™t really grab me. Henchman - Fun concept, ordinary joe takes a job guarding a supervillainā€™s lair, and I like the voice of the narrator, but Iā€™m not sure that the really short journal entries work for me as a story format. Iā€™d love to see this one expanded somewhat. The dream and the nightmare - This was interesting reading, but I feel like something didnā€™t quite come together. The main character finds a repressed memory of a burglar attack that happened the night after he dreamed the gorilla dream for the first time - but it doesnā€™t really lead anywhere. Thereā€™s no conflict in the present, no character arc, no sting at the end. Watchman - I laughed at the end. There doesnā€™t seem to be that much to the story, though, beyond the joke - itā€™s a bit of a shaggy dog story in that way. I also wasnā€™t happy with the paradoxical motivations of the main character, (in a way that has nothing to do changing the past through time travel.) Time and time again - An interesting concept, which dovetails nicely with my own premise, but somehow this one didnā€™t click for me either. There were a lot of little side references that I didnā€™t understand, and the faith revival interjections just got annoying. The description about just how he found the watch didnā€™t hold my attention, where Iā€™d like to have seen a bit more about what he used it for and how he asked his wife to bury the box for him. (Was she supposed to do that on the way home from Church?) Iā€™d be interested in reading a rewrite if you do one, though. House of regret - very spooky opening, very nice character work, great ending!! The airship of Kerguelen - There were some interesting aspects to this, but like other people, I had a bit of a problem with understanding the word choices and phrasings that kept me from really getting absorbed in the story as much as I wanted to. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2012, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/76 "2012-01-21T23:31:55Z")
Thanks **chrisk.** I not only started a rewrite, but am working off my original longer draft that was around 3000 words. But after weighing in all the constructive critique, I think Iā€™ll edit out a bit more of the first third, and get to the more interesting parts faster (and expand on the workings and his experiences using the watch). Iā€™d like to see any new drafts you do as well! Which goes for all participantsā€¦ Why not take the opportunity to implement the criticism received, for those interested? This is the only way I know how to warm myself up for my first attempt at entering NaNoWriMo this year. šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2012, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795/77 "2012-01-22T01:53:41Z")
That reminds me - I wanted to mention the [Toronto Star Short Story Contest](http://shortstory.thestarcontests.com/StaticPage.aspx?id=a44a1dd9ec0d1b89a8226c95e18dfdc0&tid=1&pid=3). Iā€™m sorry that itā€™s only open to residents of the province of Ontario, but that includes at least two of our writers from this round. (And me, as well.) Iā€™d also encourage anyone who is submitting to these contests to keep an eye out for newspaper or magazine Short Story Contests. You never know when your strongest idea is going to hit youā€¦ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-vote-urgently-required-its-the-anthology-thread-of-the-2011-2012-sdmb-short-fiction-contest/608795.md?page=3)