NEW USERS! INTRODUCE YOURSELVES!

Hi, my name is Brandon Case... and I am a writer.

I’ve made many questionable decisions while in the grips of this addiction, but through serenity recognize that I, too, can change.

So, I’m breaking my anonymity to offer a formal greeting. I look forward to working with you all.

In conclusion, please accept this advanced apology for my awkward sense of humor.

*bows and backs out of the room*

Heh-heh, I know you, Brandon. Glad you are speaking up! You know the place, which makes it easy for me.

Welcome, King under the mountain!

Wulf Moon
Forum moderator

Welcome Brandon. Are you the king under the mountain?

Welcome Brandon!

Welcome Brandon. Are you the king under the mountain?

Oh yes. It’s a lonely, little mountain—but it’s home.

Mind, I’m not to be confused with those damnable dwarves and their ‘rightful king’ nonsense.

And I am dead now, of course.

*yawns and resettles on his horde*

But the good wolves remember, at least. And that’s something to be grateful for.

Phwoo...! Okay, here I am. I'm Jenny. Yes, it was Wulf Moon's podcast about the forum and my resolution this season to both expand my stranger circle to friends and continue making strides to become a published writer some day. I'm not sure what I need most right now, but I think having creative-minded friends is a step in the right direction as I currently have none. I've been a book reader since I was a little kid and I've wanted to be a writer in eighth grade after a homework assignment of completing sentences inspiring some sci-fi/fantasy ideas, which is only natural given I'd discovered Anne McCaffrey's The Dragonriders of Pern, the Star Wars movies, and World of Warcraft around that time. However, I never really got far in my initial writing attempts, but I still felt the drive to write and fell in love with plenty of other stories I watched and read, so I found myself experimenting with writing fanfiction, and I've been doing that for ten years now. It's hard for me to admit to a bunch of strangers, especially since many people, writer and non-writer alike, have very strong views about fanfiction, but I'm proud of it. If nothing else, it helped me build the confidence to write without worrying about whether other people would ever read my work. I'll still be writing even if I never get published.

There are many things I've learned, and I know there are many things I still need to learn that can only come from writing my own original fictional works, but I think I'm mentally at a place where I can start tackling those lessons. Listening to the WotF podcast for the past two years has been an immense help and inspiration for me, which was why for V37 Q4, I took a chance and submitted my best attempt at a short story just to see how professionals viewed my writing, and my very first submission was an Honorable Mention. I was ecstatic and just thinking about it is encouraging, because it means I'm doing something right!

I apologize if this feels very stiff and formal. On the Internet, I tend to be a lurker that observes without contributing, and forums scare me a little.

Welcome aboard Jenny! Ten years writing is an incredible accomplishment; I have no doubt you'll go far in the contest.

On the Internet, I tend to be a lurker that observes without contributing, and forums scare me a little.

No need to worry. Most of us are pretty safe, so long as you don't get too close. And it's hard to bite through this mask.

my very first submission was an Honorable Mention

Congratulations on the HM Jenny. Now you can grow with the rest of us forumites as we aspire to reach ever higher.

I apologize if this feels very stiff and formal. On the Internet, I tend to be a lurker that observes without contributing, and forums scare me a little.

I’m with you 100%. Good job on the fanfic, and welcome!

Welcome aboard, Jenny Stuart! Glad my WotF podcast interview enticed you here! We've been averaging a couple winners each year, so you know this is the right place to grow and learn from if you'd like to be in that beautiful anthology.

Writing is writing--doesn't matter that it was fan fiction, although to win this contest you will need to create your own worlds, of course. I did a million words easy in writing live online interactive fiction for one of the earliest writing forums, which served me well. I am sure your training will serve you well--it's likely how you earned an HM on your first try. Well done and keep it up!

Oh, and fanfic can pay nicely, when it's authorized. I wrote a story for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 2. "Seventh Heaven" earned me 10 cents a word, and the joy of being published in a bestselling Star Trek anthology from Pocket Books. I'm in the official Star Trek canon of authors now!

Do browse the folders and take advantage of the critique swap. Getting other eyes on your manuscript can help you with your blind spots.

Glad to have you here and may all your wildest writing dreams come true! Vote for Pedro!

Wulf Moon
Forum Moderator

Thank you so much, everyone! You're making my high school self cry from all your kind words.

Hi everyone, my pen name is B.A. Boose, so far I have submitted three times and received two Honorable Mentions. I'm working on submitting to the second quarter. I started listening to the podcasts a few weeks ago and so many people keep talking about the forum. I made an account but I haven't formally introduced myself so, here I am!

Well done, to win HM two out of three entries! Welcome to the forum. 😀

Hi everyone, my pen name is B.A. Boose, so far I have submitted three times and received two Honorable Mentions. I'm working on submitting to the second quarter. I started listening to the podcasts a few weeks ago and so many people keep talking about the forum. I made an account but I haven't formally introduced myself so, here I am!

Welcome aboard, B.A. Boose! Two out of three is excellent. Keep writing, never give up, and take advantage of all the knowledge here. There’s a good support group here to cheer you on in the race! Don’t forget to post in the quarter you intend to enter.

All the best!

Wulf Moon
Forum moderator

Thank you!

Welcome B.A.Boose. Two out of three ain't bad. Great start for your entry to the writer's of the future.

Welcome B.A.Boose. Two out of three ain't bad. Great start for your entry to the writer's of the future.

Thank you, I'm still blown away by it and I'm inspired to keep going!

Hi all,

My name is Rachel from Sydney, Australia.

I've been floating around the internet for more than a few years, searching for a group of writers nearest my genre (YA fantasy) and I think you may be it

I'm looking for ways to push my writing up a notch. An experienced UK agent has seen my first chapter more than a few times (for over the past year, I've been involved in a weekly zoom call with him and other writers; it's hybrid writers group). He's said I'm 80% there, but I know agents only accept 100%. Either I'll improve or not, I'm just content to write, but I'll always strive to improve.

Practising for WotF is a way to go!

Cheers
Rachel

I've been floating around the internet for more than a few years, searching for a group of writers nearest my genre (YA fantasy) and I think you may be it

I'm sure you've found your way to the place you need to be. Explore the different threads and get to know all the forumites who are ready to help you succeed. Welcome.

Today's science fiction is tomorrow's reality-D.R.Sweeney
HM x5
Published Poetry
2012 Stars in Our Hearts
Silver Ships

 

Hi all,

My name is Rachel from Sydney, Australia.

I've been floating around the internet for more than a few years, searching for a group of writers nearest my genre (YA fantasy) and I think you may be it

I'm looking for ways to push my writing up a notch. An experienced UK agent has seen my first chapter more than a few times (for over the past year, I've been involved in a weekly zoom call with him and other writers; it's hybrid writers group). He's said I'm 80% there, but I know agents only accept 100%. Either I'll improve or not, I'm just content to write, but I'll always strive to improve.

Practising for WotF is a way to go!

Cheers
Rachel

Welcome, Rachel!

A funny thing about that alleged 20% you have yet to go. When you study hard and write hard, that shift can happen overnight. Submit to each quarter and watch your honors earned. When they start to rise, it’s a good indicator you are crossing that threshold. May the contest give you good writing goals and incentives to succeed!

Take advantage of the many provisions here, not the least of which are the fellow forumites ready to cheer you on!

Cheers!

Wulf Moon
Forum Moderator

Howdy all!

Just joined the forums and thought I'd say hi. I've been writing casually for maybe ten years now; I figured it was high time to punch up the process by rubbing shoulders with a more serious writing crowd, and I figured y'all were it! This will be my second time entering the Writer's of the Future contest. I got an honorable mention last time and hope to go up from there. : )

Anyway, happy to be aboard!

Welcome to the forum Donovan. Congrats on the HM. Hightail it over to the other threads and immerse yourself in the ongoing education available. Enjoy.

Welcome to the forum Donovan. Congrats on the HM. Hightail it over to the other threads and immerse yourself in the ongoing education available. Enjoy.

I'll definitely do just that! It may take me a little while to fully get my bearings here, but I look forward to getting into the groove of the forum.

If you started with an HM, you're doing well. Welcome aboard!

Hi all! New here, but WotF has lived in the back of my mind for a long while. Now, I'm finally allowing it to come out for some yard time. I'm thinking of submitting a sci-fi short story (at a decidedly borderline 7450 words), but I really want to submit the first 17k of my epic fantasy novel I'm in the process of revising. Anyone done that? Is that commonly done for WotF?

Facts about me: From Oregon, live in Cali. Former Army trumpet player, war veteran. Cat lover. Board and video gamer. (Big strategy fan). Favorite authors are Sanderson for magic, Bujold for prose, Iain M Banks for far future imagination, Alastair Reynolds for the same, Dan Simmons for Hyperion Cantos, and Richard K Morgan for Altered Carbon.

Very glad to be here! <3

- Heather

Yes, apparently some dude named Patrick Rothfuss entered a portion of his novel and won. I'd enter whatever you've got that's the most emotive and polished. Good luck!

Welcome BaconHawk!

Patrick Rothfuss won with an excerpt, but it wasn't from the beginning if his novel (actually it was halfway through his second book). There was a winner back in 32 that also won with a novel excerpt. My advice is, just make sure your story can stand by itself. Especially if you want to win, it's wise to have a closed ending as well.

Also, be wary of submitting 17k. Are you sure all 17k is really needed? Or do you just want to submit as much of the novel as you can? If it's the latter, know that the shorter your story is, the greater the chance that David Farland will read the whole thing, and the greater chance of placing high in the contest. (From personal experience, I usually would much rather critique a shorter story then 17k, because 1) Usually that writer tends to meander, and 2) Simply put, it's usually not a professional story yet, which makes 17k harder to read then 4k.)

I figure this is probably a good question to ask here in the newbie thread: What do the abbreviations mean that some posters have below their banners? Things like HM, SHM, R, F, SF. I gather that HM means the poster has gotten honorable mention in the WotF contest; what do the other abbreviations mean?

Yes, apparently some dude named Patrick Rothfuss entered a portion of his novel and won. I'd enter whatever you've got that's the most emotive and polished. Good luck!

Oh. Well then. That certainly answers my question!

...Also, be wary of submitting 17k. Are you sure all 17k is really needed?

This is really helpful. I wasn't certain what the best practices are, de facto, regarding this sort of thing. I will most certainly send the very best, and most standalone, portion... and make sure it's well under 17k!

Thanks SO much!! <3

Yes, apparently some dude named Patrick Rothfuss entered a portion of his novel and won. I'd enter whatever you've got that's the most emotive and polished. Good luck!

Oh. Well then. That certainly answers my question!

...Also, be wary of submitting 17k. Are you sure all 17k is really needed?

This is really helpful. I wasn't certain what the best practices are, de facto, regarding this sort of thing. I will most certainly send the very best, and most standalone, portion... and make sure it's well under 17k!

Thanks SO much!! <3

Welcome, MissBaconHawk!

Glad to have you with us. Just to help, 17K is the max you can send in. But many judges, including Dave, are wary when they see that word count. I've heard judges say they don't like stories that long, often because they show a writer still hasn't learned how to tell a short story. Some have won at the max, but it's a lot harder. I almost won with a 17K story years ago, and only found out because I talked to the coordinating judge at the time at a con and she told me how close I had come. If you can find a way to KYD some of it (see my Super Secrets Workshop topic on this) I think it will serve you well. Story does determine length, but we can often find ways to tell that story with less and it even becomes stronger.

Anyhow, welcome aboard! Enjoy the many sounding boards in here, and all the encouragement to keep writing!

All the beast!

Wulf Moon
Forum Moderator