Summer Story Competition, You know you want to! >;D Options

[Mizukithepanda]

I've been putting this off for so long that it seems like an eternity has passed since we said we were going to do this, but here it is...

(IMG:http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b55/Mizukithepanda/bannerstory.png)
Banner by Harvest Sprite

Summer Story Competition

This time, as all who have seen the poll might remember, there will be no particular theme. It's pretty much an original fiction free-for-all. Due to this, we will not be accepting fanfiction.

Guidelines & Rules

• All stories must be no longer than 7000 words. As a side note, please make sure to list the total number of words when submitting your story.
• Your story must have a title. It will not be accepted for judging until it has one, so don’t forget.
• Content that is of a sexual, gruesome, or overly violent manner is not allowed. We (Charmy and I) will be the judges of whether your story is too graphic; however, I’d say that as long as you avoid strong innuendo, descriptive gore, and M-rated violence you’ll be fine.
• Only entries that are Original Fiction will be accepted. Fanfiction is not permissible on the grounds that the characters are not your own and thus cannot be judged as your own creations.
• PM all entries to Charmy for approval. Once approved, they’ll be added at the bottom of this post. Please remember that all entries are anonymous, as per usual. Try not to give hints as to which one is yours. Guessing is part of the fun, after all.
• A deadline will be posted once there are enough entries to constitute a competition. So please, if you were worrying about not making the deadline, DON'T. You now have the time.
• Once the deadline is up, voting will commence. You may vote for whoever you like for as many of the categories as you wish; however, if voting for yourself, please limit it to two categories.
• Once all the votes are tallied, the results as well as who wrote which story will be posted in this topic.
• Please be courteous both in this topic and regarding your win/loss. Nobody likes a sore simfan or an obnoxious winner.
• And last but not least, have fun! That is what it’s all about. >;D

Voting Form

These are the categories you can vote in. They're a bit different from the usual fare, but then again so is the competition this time around. I'm unsure as to whether Jason will be giving out a medal for this right now, but the winner of the overall prize will get a scene from their story illustrated. Just PM either me or Charmy with the scene you'd like to have done!

CODE

[b]Best Storyline[/b]:
[b]Most In-Depth Setting[/b]:
[b]Best Original Character[/b]:
[b]Most Well-Written Story[/b]:
[b]Funniest Story[/b]:

[b]Best Story Overall[/b]:

Please remember that anyone on the forum can vote and try to guess who wrote what.

Notes

There is no theme. Your story may be about whatever and whoever you want it to be and take place whenever and wherever you want it to. It's pretty much a free-for-all, and to reflect on the judging categories needed for this, fanfiction has been disallowed. At this time (unless Charmy informs me otherwise) that also includes fanfiction based on forum members.

Entries

Entry 1

Lake Trip

“Mom, you aren’t being reasonable in any way!” Trevor yelled down the stairs at his mom. The sixteen year old turned around, stomped into his room, and slammed the door. He walked into his bathroom and leaned over onto the bathroom counter to look into the mirror. Trevor had thick dark brown hair and bright blue eyes. He had a thinner build, but he wasn’t scrawny. Compared to the other kids in his grade, he was much taller.

Trevor was extremely angry with his single mother. A group of kids from school had planned on going to a lake cabin for the weekend. Trevor really wanted to go, but his mom refused to let him after finding out there would be no parents attending. Trevor was angry, and he planned to do whatever he could to go.

“What do you mean she said no?” Stella, Trevor’s girlfriend barked into his ear through the phone.
“I’m sorry babe, but don’t worry, I’m going to do the best I can to show up.”
“Well you better. Everyone else’s boyfriend is going to be there, and I am not going to be the odd one out.”
“Right right I know. Don’t worry.”
Trevor’s mom called from downstairs that it was time for dinner.
“I got to go. Love you babe.”
“Yeah, bye.” Stella then hung up.

Trevor walked down into the kitchen and sat down at the table. He didn’t even make eye contact with his mom. Dinner was dead silent between the two of them, until Trevor’s mom spoke up.
“I was thinking that I could maybe let you go,” she said calmly.
“What do you mean?” Trevor didn’t act excited even though his stomach jumped.
“Well I was thinking that I could rent a cabin nearby, and that I could be the eyes for the weekend.”
“No way! Do you know how embarrassing that would be?”
“Fine, then I guess you won’t be going.”
“I will go, and you won’t be able to stop me!” With this statement, Trevor got up from his chair fiercely and stomped back up to his room.

Trevor jumped onto his bead face first, planting his face into his pillow. He yelled. A thought crossed his mind. Even though his mom said he couldn’t go, that didn’t mean his dad wouldn’t let him. He called up his dad and explained the whole situation to his dad.
“I don’t know bud. Just because your mom said no, doesn’t mean I should say yes.”
“But come on dad. It’s not like I would do anything stupid.”
“It is still your safety though. Just because you wouldn’t do anything stupid, doesn’t mean that people around you wouldn’t.”
“Why can’t you or mom trust me?”
“I’m not saying we don’t trust you. I’m saying I’m worried about your safety.”
“Well you’re ridiculous. I’ll have grandma drive me.” He then hung up on his dad without saying goodbye.

Two days went by. Trevor barely left his room unless it was to go to the bathroom or to get something to eat. On Friday morning, Trevor’s grandma pulled up into the driveway to pick him up. He briefly explained that he wanted to hang out with his friends. Trevor’s mom didn’t even stop him. She was so disappointed with her only son.

Trevor’s innocent grandma pulled out of the driveway, and pulled away. They started the trek for the lake house that was two hours north. His grandma would try to start a conversation, but Trevor would quickly bring it to an end with his frustration, and growing guilt. He received a text from Stella saying “So glad you’re coming. Now I won’t look out of place.”

As his grandma got onto the highway, Trevor’s thoughts began to go off. The thought that his parent’s cared for him, the fact that he was disrespecting them, and the fact that his “girlfriend” just wanted him there for show.

“Grandma, stop the car,” he said.
“Well alright.” She pulled over to the side of the road.
“Did you forget something?”
Trevor thought deeply. “I did. I forgot how much my parents love me.”
His grandma smiled at him. She turned around and drove back the way they had come from.

Trevor hopped out of the car. He ran up and into the house. He leaped into his mom’s arms to hug her. She kissed him on the top of his head.

Another day went by. Trevor was still a little bummed out that he missed out, and Stella texted him saying she no longer wished to be with him because of how much he disrespected her. He became hungry, so he went downstairs to grab a snack. His mom was watching the news. It sounded like something serious.

“What are you watching mom?”
“You’re not going to believe this honey, but something happened at the lake cabin your friends were staying at.”
“Really? What happened?” He jumped over the back of the couch and sat down.
“Many people got arrested for bringing drugs and alcohol, the cabin was lit on fire, other cabins were vandalized, and six kids were sent to the hospital for serious injuries.”
Trevor was shocked. He looked up at the screen just to see one of the kids getting cuffed and put into the back of a police car. They couldn’t even stand up straight. The person turned around, and Trevor noticed it was his ex-girlfriend, Stella.

“Some parents, huh?” Trevor said smirking at his mom.
His mom leaned over to kiss him on the top of the head.

Entry 2

101 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Join Band
(And One Really Good Reason Why You Should)



The heat. Oh, the extremity of the heat. Why was it that hot? Did the weather hate us? Was it just the fact that we were in that particular parking lot? No. It was summer, and rain was an evident “never gonna happen” just because it was band camp. Not just any band camp, but Summer Band Camp.
When I say “it was hot” I'm really making it sound better. The heat was beating down harder than a gorilla with a frying pan made out of two ton boulders. Not even my baseball cap could protect me from that amount of heat, and I couldn't take it off. One, because I was trying to conserve my energy for more important tasks, such as drinking water and playing the right notes, and two, because my name-tag was on my hat, and the drum major hadn't done name-tag check yet. If I was caught during name-tag check without it, it would be five dollars less in my pocket.
“ONE MORE TIME! 67, FROM THE TOP!” I yelled. I would have simply stated it, but I've learned recently that freshmen boys will only consider you an authority figure when you are loud and demanding. The short warm up was all we really could practice, being harder than the actual show music the director had distributed. I felt like pulling my ears off by the end of the piece. We stayed together for the first 16 measures, but once we got to the second half of the piece, we fell apart almost completely. My hands were sore from holding the same pair of mallets in them for the entire afternoon, but practice was almost over. I just kept saying to myself, “Only one more hour.”
Let me explain what the second half of the warm up known as 67 should sound like. It should sound like a well practiced and executed piece, full of sextuplets and ninelets. The actual notes blended together, should sound almost like the ticking of a clock, then followed by an onset of fast-paced suspense and mystery. What actually was heard was somewhere between marimbas falling down a staircase combined with a train crash and a bit of blind monkeys with mallets for good measure. Needless to say, it sounded horrible.
After failing at 67 a couple more times, the director finally decided that he didn't like the feeling of his ears bleeding, and came over to the small, tree-covered sidewalk where we were playing, and no, the trees did not make it any cooler. He said eight words that almost saved my ears from death. “Why don't you guys practice the show music?” and he left.
We ran through the show music multiple times, taking it section by section, and as a whole. The full band behind us was messing up more than us, but we still practiced and practiced, until our hands felt like they would fall off.
“Great rehearsal today, guys. See yall tomorrow.” The director dismissed us without a second thought, assuming that we would go home to practice. I'm pretty sure that I was the only front ensemble player that did, but then again, the pit captain has to set an example. What? Five minutes of hacking the show tune on the piano then two hours of random songs isn't practice? You're probably right, but it's still more practice than the rest of the front ensemble put together did.
The next day, same routine. School, then practice, then home, then homework, then five minutes of practice. This schedule repeats itself multiple times until the first weekend of the school year, which meant our first football game. Of course the game wasn't what we were interested in. Our team sucks anyway. It was all for the halftime show.
We only played the first movement, because the percussion section didn't have the second and third, but the audience still stared. The audience still watched with amazement. How could a high school from the middle of nowhere do such an amazing show without it even being complete? How could a high school from the middle of nowhere be the only school in a district with three high schools be the only one in their school district to make it to state marching competition, and make 11th place every time they do? How could they be this good, and the school isn't even ten years old?
Practice. Determination. Sweat, and the band director's favourite word:
“Again!”

Entry 3

Frosted Fate

It was a cold, winter morning. The windows were covered in frost and nobody dared to move out from underneath the blankets.

“I'm hungry! We need to eat something, Ruby.” a small child screamed.

“Yeah, I know, Isaac, hold up; can't you see it's freezing cold! I hate the cold.” Ruby jumped out of the covers and walked toward the kitchen, shaking all the way.

Ruby had long brown hair that reached all the way toward the bottom of her back. She always kept her hair straight and down. She wore nothing but plain clothes, usually just a black shirt with blue pants. Or a brown shirt with light blue pants.

Isaac, her little brother, was only 5 years old and an energetic little boy. He too had long brown hair. Though his hair style was in the shape of a bowl. Since Ruby was 20 years old, she was in charge of taking care of Isaac when their parents were off on their business trips. Both of their parents were successful professors and had written many educational books and so they were always out on scholarly trips.

Ding dong

“Oh my God! That's Lucas!” Ruby screamed and dropped the cereal she was about to serve Isaac on the table.

“Hey Lucas!” Ruby smiled as she opened the door.


“Hey Ruby.” Lucas smiled, noticing Ruby's bright blue eyes.
Lucas was Ruby's best friends. He had short black hair that was always messy; he did not bother to comb it. Ever. His eyes also seemed black, but they were in fact brown. Ruby had just met him at school two months ago, but they instantly became close friends.

“Isaac! What's up little guy?” Lucas grabbed Issac and threw him up into the air, catching him with a smile.

“We're making breakfast. Do you want some cereal or umm, cereal?” Ruby walked over to the kitchen, cleaning up the mess she had just made.

“Hmm, I guess I'll take some cereal.” Lucas smiled.

Ruby and Lucas sat down together at the table and began eating.

“I love your hair, do you know that, Ruby?” Lucas said with a mouth full of cereal.

“Thanks, but you always say that.” Ruby whispered.

“So? Your hair is long. I like that.” Lucas stared at Ruby. “I didn't just come here to eat. I...I have something to tell you, Ru-” Lucas was unable to finish, because Ruby had gotten up and began to run around the house.

“What's wrong? You gone crazy? Ha ha!” Lucas laughed.

“It's Isaac! He's gone! And look, I left the front door open! He's outside, I know it. C'mon help me look for him!” Ruby grabbed her coat and Lucas ran outside with her.

The wind was howling and the snow it brought with it was slamming into the Ruby and Lucas like knives. The entire ground was covered in thick, icy snow. They could hardly see anything in front of them.

“Look! Footprints! And I think they're little Isaac's!” Lucas yelled to Ruby and pointed at the ground. “Let's follow them.”

Lucas and Ruby followed the footprints through the raging blizzard. They walked and ran for what seemed like an eternity, until they reached Evergreen Lake.

“Oh no! He has to be down here in the lake; he has been wanting me to take him all week long! But I keep telling him it's too dangerous!” Ruby looked back at Lucas with desperation.

Together, they ran down the hill, through trees covered in feet of snow to the lake. Immediately they caught sight of a small, young boy skating in the middle of the lake.

“Isaac!! Get out of there! It's dangerous; the ice will crack!” Ruby yelled back and got ready to run after him when Lucas stopped her.

“I'll go. You wait here.” Lucas smiled and cautiously began to walk on the frozen lake.

It took a couple of minutes for Lucas to reach Isaac, but when he got to him he had a hard time convincing him to go back.

“Let's go, squirt. Your sister is worried.” Lucas said as he grabbed Isaac by the hand.

“No! I don't want to go! I want to skate; it's fun.” Isaac pulled his hand away from Lucas' and started to skate.

Ruby couldn't wait any longer and so she darted across the lake to where Lucas and Isaac where at.

“That's it! Issac, come with me now!” Ruby grabbed Issac and began to pull him across the lake. But it was then that the ice beneath their feet began to crack.

Suddenly, the entire ice covering the lake split into hundreds of pieces. Ruby and Issac fell to the floor on their piece of ice and Lucas hung on to another piece behind them.

“Don't panic! We have to find a way to get back to the ground. We should wait until another piece of ice comes near us and jump onto it!” Lucas yelled from behind.

“Oh no, this is horrible! We'll freeze to death!” Ruby started panicking and hugged Isaac.

“Nobody is gonna die! Just do what I say: jump onto another piece of ice when it comes near you.” Lucas told Ruby as he jumped onto a piece of ice near him.

Ruby and Isaac followed Lucas' advice and began jumping from ice piece to ice piece. They were close to reaching the ground; they were just a couple of feet away. It was then that Ruby and Isaac jumped to a nearby ice piece when Ruby slipped and splashed into the freezing water.

Ruby felt her whole body jolt. She could swear her heart stopped when she touched the water. Ruby splashed around the water. She could hardly scream for help as she began to drown. She tried to grab onto the ice floating around her, but every time she got ahold of the ice, her hands would slip.

“Ruby!! Come back! Ruby!” Isaac yelled.

Lucas had already jumped into the water the second he saw Ruby fall in. He swam to her as fast as he could. His whole body was numb in an instant and he was unable to tell if his arms and legs were moving or not.

He reached Ruby, pulled her out and onto the ice piece Isaac was in. He jumped out of the water to her side.

“Rub...Ru-b-b-by. Ar-r-re you o...okay?” Lucas shivered.

“Lucas...tha-ank you...”Ruby began to cough.

“Sis!” Issac yelled back with a smiling face.

The piece of ice they were on drifted toward the shore of the lake. Isaac jumped out and Lucas helped Ruby out.


They were halfway to their house when Lucas collapsed.

“Lucas! Stay with me!” Ruby kneeled to the ground and began to shake Lucas.

“Your hair...it's long. I like it long.” Lucas tried to smile but his whole body felt weak.

“I know...you always tell me that.” Ruby smiled back.

Lucas and Ruby stared at each other. They could feel part of them fading away. It was a feeling they couldn't describe. It felt like they were losing a big part of themselves; as if they were losing time itself.

“Will you go to see a movie with me? Maybe we can go out and get some coffee. And I'll pay.” Lucas said as his eye lids began to feel heavy.

Ruby laid down next to Lucas. “Yeah, I'd love a movie. Describe the...date, Lucas.”

“Well, I'd pick you up at like 7 and we'd go see an action flick. I'd buy your ticket, buy you popcorn and some pop and give you my coat, so you wouldn't be cold. We'd sit all the way in the back and laugh at how dumb some movie previews would seem.” Lucas' voice was now a whisper.

“I don't know if I'd want to see an action film. Maybe a comedy...” Ruby began to cry.

Lucas made out some whispers, but she couldn't understand them. She rolled over to Lucas and was barely able to lift her head towards Lucas' face. She gave him a small kiss on his cheek.

Isaac tugged on Ruby's leg.
“Let's go, sis! Why are you two laying there?! It's coooold! Sis...?”


If you have any questions, be sure to ask one of us!

Anyway, have fun and show us what you've got!

[Saffy]

So um, can I register to this competition?

[Zen Clarke]

Zen's in. (Hee hee, I rhymed! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/lalaexdee.gif) )

[Oscar]

July 24th seems so soon...

But I'd like to enter!

[Saffy]

Zen rhymes with in? I think you're wrong.

[Zen Clarke]

I think your face is wrong. :O What nao!

[ZBoy]

I'll do my best to come up with something. I hate free choice, there are way to many things I could come up with!

[Mizukithepanda]

Saffy: Yes, you can indeed enter. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/lalaexdee.gif)

Oscar: I know July 24th seems a little soon, but when Charmy and I talked it over, we agreed that waiting a month like last time was just too much, so we cut it to two weeks. If you're really struggling with the deadline, a small extension shouldn't be a problem, though. :D

Zboy: Eh... Coming up with a theme this time was just not happening, so we went for a free-for-all. Personally, I prefer it this way as it doesn't force you to write about one specific subject. I never did like that. It always reminded me too much of standardized testing. :P

And don't worry, I'm sure you'll come up with something. ^w^

[Lenyo]

Please do throw myself in the mix, for now. Some creativity flowing should keep me entertained for a while...

[Saffy]

Would it be possible to extend the deadline until Sunday, July 24th at midnight? I figure a weekend of editing might be put to good use.

[Fiore]

So pretty much no fanfiction is allowed? Like HM fanfiction?
Sounds interesting, I might register (:

[Mizukithepanda]

Yes, no fanfiction at all, Fiore. Not even HM fanfiction.

And Saffy, I didn't exactly specify the time of day they had to be in by, but I think 11:59 pm CST on the 24th would work well. Both Charmy and myself should be on at that time. I'll update that here in a second...

[Oscar]

When will the results be revealed?

[Mizukithepanda]

I'm not entirely sure on that yet, actually. I'll have to ask Charmy, since she's the one tallying up the votes. It shouldn't take more than a few days though.

[Mai]

Heii!!!
I was wondering if the story could be written with two authors ???

[Charmy]

After we receive the stories, there should be a few days to vote. Maybe four, or five? Because not everyone reads the stories straight away. D: I'll be on as quickly as possible to tally up the votes, it should be done the day after. Just PLEASE, for lord's sake, don't place the entry number, place the story's name. I almost completely fessed up one of the tally's because people kept sending me the entry number.

And, as for two authors.... As long as it's original idea's from the both of you I myself don't see too much of a problem. I'll just have to prop up afterwards that it was written by two people. But neither of you are allowed to write another story. That one has to count for you both. That is, if Mizuki agrees on this. ;D

[Mizukithepanda]

Sure. I don't mind two authors on a story, but like Charmy said, if you do, it must be the only story the both of you enter.

And, just to add an extra thing, there is only one entry per person. You can't enter multiple stories.

[Saffy]

I should really get started on this story. I figured I'd take the first week to plan it out.

[Zen Clarke]

The good news is, I have a brilliant idea and know what I'm gonna write.

The bad news is, it may take until the night before it's due before I start to write it. >->

[Leiko]

Hm, this seems interesting. I shall try and make an entry. (x<

ILL DOMINATE YOU ALL. Lol, no I'm just kidding...