User blog:RuckusQuantum/The All-new "Mystery Writing Contest"!

Introduction
Hello folks! Ruckus here. I know this sounds somehow out of place, since Rinskuro's art contest is being held (I'm sure people can find a way to multitask: writing and drawing at the same time). Also, I know that some of you might have been exhausted and burned out after joining these past contests, but that reason's not enough to stop me. What... the last contest was July, right? Banning's Demon/Devil Writing Challenge. So, maybe your minds' been refreshed.

Moving on to the main topic, we have a new contest here. And you know what it's all about? Mystery Writing Contest! I guess it's self a explanatory, but I don't want Lord Cthulhu punishing my petty soul... and for humanity's sake, I'll explain it, plus some more details about the contest.

The Contest
As I said, the contest is self explanatory (I'm getting pretty out of hand, so let me get straight to the point). In this contest, this and that participant must submit a creepypasta, (just a reminder) a pasta spiced up with elements of mystery and a few things Sir Conan Doyle would add to his stories and novels. It's like Sherlock Holmes plus Jeff the Killer (rude choice, isn't it? I prefer Pennywise, anyway.) I guess that explains it all.

Well... since the contest's about mystery writing, pastas with no mystery elements will not be considered. You can write about a murderer murdering people (or dogs, if you feel like being different), a ghost freak who eats children alive, a cult who kidnaps people to be sacrificed, you name it; as long as it is mysterious and... creepy, of course, it will be considered a mystery pasta (I feel like breeding another kind of pasta: mystpasta.)

Let's discuss the technicalities:

Rules
To enter the contest, you just need to comment, "I'm in!" Easy, no hassle, just like the other contests. That being discussed, if you want to take back everything you said, just comment, "I'm out!" and you're out of the contest.

Of all submitted works, only 50 pastas (since 15, as I initially proposed, was too few) will get to be judged. And out of that 50, only 20 will be picked, and out of that 20, only four are chosen: 4th, 3rd 2nd, and 1st. (Wait, there'll be also an Honorable Mention and People's Choice Award (I'll discuss it later), so six will be chosen.) I think it's cleared up.

As I want to... endorse creativity, the topic you want to write about is up to you. Choose anything as you please, you can even use the things I wrote up there. As long as it is creative, unique, and well-written, it's gonna pass the tollgate. Imagine writing about human-like dogs murdering stray cats at city streets, or aborted fetuses assassinating their cruel mothers... (that's way too dark; I don't recommend it) that would be so so fun!

Not safe for work (NSFW) elements got their souls condemned to suffer in hell, meaning they are not allowed. PERIOD.

There are no word limits. You can write stories at any length -- 1000 words, 2000 words, novelette-length, it's up to you. But I'm enforcing this rule: your pasta should not be less than 800 words (even 799 is unacceptable). But if your pasta is below the minimum word count, it doesn't mean you can add filler words. That's very desperate and dumb, and not all people are dumb. People can tell whether your story genuinely reaches 800-word count or you filled it with unwanted words. Just satin' though...

You will be given 14 days (two weeks for noobs) to write and submit your pasta. If you fail to submit under the 14 days, you can still submit it, but it's right-away disqualified and will only be mentioned at a part of the winner's blog dedicated to late-submitters. If you want to extend your 14 days, just tell me what happened and why you need extension; if I see a valid point, I'll give you extra two days. If you still fail, consider yourself noticed, we'll be in touch.

If you write a mystery pasta, I recommended you to have this plot device: the red herring. Red herring is a plot device where the protagonist's gathered information/clues leads him/her to the wrong conclusion, and thus must start all over again until he/she finds the right one. For more information, please visit the Wikipedia page dedicated to this plot device.

Since this is a contest, there should be some rewards. The rewards are not that great:

Rewards
Okay, this may sound lame, but these are all I got. You expect cash? Don't even have a cent in my wallet. You want things? Can't even go out of my house, much more go shopping. My credit card number? No; don't even have a bank account. A special date with Leonardo DiCaprio or Angelina Jolie, or any other actors/actresses? Well, fuck it. But I assure, the rewards are satisfying.

The first reward: Bragging rights. Yeah, go explain it.

The second reward: A special artwork (probably a banner) of your username, the place that you've won, and the title of your pasta. On my side, it will also help me, since I'm about to be an independent designer (Yas!).

The third reward: A congratulations from everyone! Well... all users that read and vote your work are recommended to send you a congratulations message. That will be the best day of my life.

The fourth reward: A special place in the front page. Take note that this is only for the first placer, but the other three works (excluding the Honorable Mention and People's Choice) are to be put in the Suggested Reading (is that fine?).

The fifth reward: No. There'll be no fifth reward. Just thank yourself, and Lord Cthulhu because he manipulated my mind or threatened to punish my soul if I didn't choose your work.

Let's talk about the criteria:

Criteria
So, here's the criteria. P.S. This criteria doesn't apply to the Honorable Mention.

Mystery factor: 50%

Creepy factor: 50%

Creativity: 25%

And Technicality (grammar, punctuation, formatting, etc.): 15%

=People's Choice Award== Regarding the People's Choice Award, the pastas which did not win any award are put in a poll in a separate blog. Users will then read these pastas, and vote for what they think the pasta deserving the award. Users are highly and strongly encouraged to deliver feedback after reading a pasta.

Judges
(I'm alone, and couldn't judge 20 pastas at once. So if you are experienced and want to volunteer as one of the judges, then message me and I'll evaluate you (if I don't know you); I need one or two judges to help me sort things out.

''P.S. I don't need anyone who watches oncoming submitions anymore. After 50 pastas are chosen (regardless of quality), those 50 will be cut down to 20, and 20's will be cut down to four (maybe six).''

So... why take time to think about joining when you can join now. Remember, as soon as 20 pastas are chosen, there will be no more accepted. Join now, or get lost? Decide.