Hi all! Merry Christmahannakwanzaaakah! Whichever holiday you're celebrating, I hope you're having an amazing time with family & friends and enjoying warm houses (yay, heaters!) and a beautiful view out the windows (Yay, photos!).

Well, the contest results came in for ATK! I really appreciated that the judges put so much thought and time into their comments, and considered a lot of aspects of the entrants' stories! This final round, between (character Subaru) and (character Idesta), turned out to be a great one for both - we both got to develop our characters so much during the course of the contest, and it's been an awesome run!

Congratulations to for her Subaru's win on this final round! Her entry was a dramatic and action-filled piece that developed the contest's tea-kettle character Tsushi wonderfully, incorporated a stunning scene where Idesta's plant powers got put to use uniquely, and ended the fight with a strong finish. Her entries were well-drawn and written both, and I admire her skill for writing action! Congrats to Feral for this win - yay Subaru!

Although I was disappointed that Idesta didn't win, I understand the reasons the judges gave for my entry being given less preference. I'm glad they wrote them out, too - they helped me understand the reasons behind the judges' decision, and confirmed some of the things I've known I need to work on in my writing.

One said that my entry lacked its usual clarity and structure, which others have cited before as a flaw in some of my writing. Structure's always been a point I need to work on, and I've tried to amend this during the contest. My original work featuring Idesta was a bit of a stream-of-consciousness piece heavy on the imagery, atmosphere, and inner life of the character, while light on the clarity of the story and the format of the narrative.

Even in this contest, I've still been experimenting with form - my entries have moved from the first-person intro and first rounds with clear physical victories, to limited third-person in the next few with forays into Idesta's consciousness and ambiguous interpretive endings, to the last round with the form shifting from third-person description to stream-of-consciousness almost-verse, ending in a firm alliance that deviated from set tournament structure. Unfortunately, a judge disliked this style of ending, preferring a more concrete Win for the ending. I can see that, as this was a tournament-style contest.

Another judge disliked my Tsushi, whom I agree was underdeveloped in my piece. As the central figure of the contest, her complexity deserved to be given a greater place than the largely symbolic-abstract one I designated to her in my entry. In portraying her as Idesta saw her, through a lens colored with her own perceptions and connections to philosophical issues (responsibility, the value of life, utility v. exploitation, ends v. means), I neglected to portray much of her depth. In this light, I should have balanced the Idesta-centric pov with a portrayal of Tsushi that went deeper than the symbolic, recognizing her as a character with her own thoughts and complexity, for the audience, at least, if not for Idesta.

Another judge's problem with my entry can be summed up in the title of a musical's song: "Too much exposition." In this regard, I tend towards Umberto Eco's propensity to describe a door for six pages - and then describe the experience of opening it for seven more. Although I admire Hemingway greatly, I have yet to grasp his talent for packing meaning into just a few sentences - describing the action while hitting the reader with the force of the meaning behind it. When reading, myself, I tend to find depth in the details, and I think this translates to my writing, which can be both a strength and a failing. However pretty the exposition, there is such a thing as too much. In my writing, I need to apply that.

On the other hand, I got some really positive comments on my writing, which I appreciate too! The judges' comments were truly constructive criticism, providing insights that will help me improve and compliments that help me realize my writings' strengths, as well (which are sometimes just as hard to realize as the weaknesses, before someone points them out)

Almost all of the judges loved my atmosphere and the forays into the mind of my characters. I have to say, those are the parts I have the most fun writing! I love character interaction, too, and hope I do well in that area (though I can always improve). One of the judges disliked my dialogue, but thought my characters' actions "brought them to life." I can't ask for a better compliment than that! I think that's the hope of every writer, to create living characters. I'm so glad you thought they were!

At the end of this contest, though I didn't win, I gained many insights from both myself and others about my characters and writing style, was able to develop Idesta beyond her own world, work with others' fantastic characters, and proved to myself that I can meet writing deadlines and construct a coherent story (which I was unsure about before, as I only wrote small short pieces, though a lot of those). I think how this contest turned out connects with what my Idesta resolved, too - even if you don't win, you've learned a lot along the way, and can work from your experience to achieve victories in the future. I think that proved true for both of us. Yay for both the plants and the pen!

Finally, I can't end the contest without mentioning all the awesome opponents Idesta got to face along the way: :iconFlamingScorpion:'s suave half-demon Lokin, 's conflicted Andrew and Votch, his taunting shadow, 's quirky and creative LeJuix and Warmy, 's formidable assassin Derek and his dog Cerberus, and finally 's determined warrior Subaru. They were all amazing opponents, and it was such an honor to be able to work with their characters! You guys are awesome - and I can't wait to read/see your new work.

Thanks a ton to and too - the creators of this awesome tournament! You completely rock!

And a huge thanks to the readers and friends who followed Idesta to the end in this tournament - I really appreciated your comments, reactions, impressions, and support! You really provided a lot of help for me as a writer, and I hope to write more of Idesta in the future! If I do, I'll post it here - so keep an eye out

All in all - yay ATK! And happy holidays to everyone - hope yours are amazing!!!!


You can view the results from the judges here, with their comments: [link]