tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post7919201495013927358..comments2023-08-27T04:22:55.468-07:00Comments on The Literary Lab: 3 Things That Happen When I Judge For a ContestUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-64211601298032813692012-02-06T12:58:47.454-08:002012-02-06T12:58:47.454-08:00I love that you judge the pieces blind. I love re...I love that you judge the pieces blind. I love reading works when I know the people who wrote them, but it DOES color my reaction.Wendyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03115002505324651653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-71996908961448849152012-02-02T08:29:24.687-08:002012-02-02T08:29:24.687-08:00Michelle, thanks for the info, but I feel like a u...Michelle, thanks for the info, but I feel like a university student and the professor just walked in, decked, of course, in tweed jacket with leather patches on the elbows. He sits down on his desk and says, "I just finished reading all your papers. I was pleasantly surprised." Then the professor leaves to go have a smoke 35' from the entrance to the building and leaves all the students in the room wondering how we did.<br /><br />Okay, maybe I don't feel exactly like that. And maybe that's never happened to me, but I guess I'm just interested to see how we all did and if we'll be included in the project. Good luck with the judging.Hygge Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07518356793147594574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-21688745034960839662012-02-01T22:44:53.646-08:002012-02-01T22:44:53.646-08:00Lester, what an awesome comment!Lester, what an awesome comment!Davin Malasarnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09385823575081492949noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-68788503894348172392012-02-01T21:09:46.666-08:002012-02-01T21:09:46.666-08:00I kept looking for that "lip twitch" upw...I kept looking for that "lip twitch" upward in my critique partners as they read it aloud. I'd never seen so many straight lines on mouths - except in cartoons.<br /><br />Now I'm grimacing; wondering if I somehow brought a smile to your lips anywhere in the reading, let alone the end. *big sigh* Ah well, it was fun writing to the theme anyway. <br /><br />And it was pretty cool getting to know what influences each of you as judges. I read both the prior anthologies and the quality of writing was excellent. I think I enjoyed the stories in Notes best though. I'm sure this collection will be as awesome as the others.<br /><br />Good luck picking just a few. I don't envy you guys at all.<br /><br />.......dholedolorahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08715849844092553699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-28015006244082161262012-02-01T18:20:07.892-08:002012-02-01T18:20:07.892-08:00Wow, Lester! That's pretty impressive. My whol...Wow, Lester! That's pretty impressive. My whole Bonded collection (the three fairy tale novellas that will be published in a collection) was inspired by one tiny idea. It literally came out of nowhere. I love it when that happens. :)Michelle D. Argylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696465137285587646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-51141875707019221762012-02-01T11:59:21.341-08:002012-02-01T11:59:21.341-08:00Yeah, I say soon!Yeah, I say soon!Michelle D. Argylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696465137285587646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-33273606104781878492012-02-01T11:58:23.511-08:002012-02-01T11:58:23.511-08:00We'll put in footnotes! An annotated anthology...We'll put in footnotes! An annotated anthology!scott g.f.baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05726743149139510832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-56947975923979897882012-02-01T11:52:38.587-08:002012-02-01T11:52:38.587-08:00Yeah, when?Yeah, when?scott g.f.baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05726743149139510832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-79408387052045714732012-02-01T11:35:37.161-08:002012-02-01T11:35:37.161-08:00Yeah, when are the three of us going to share each...Yeah, when are the three of us going to share each other's stories?Davin Malasarnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09385823575081492949noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-32389255132171535122012-02-01T11:35:08.127-08:002012-02-01T11:35:08.127-08:00Or...what if we go to the other extreme and bold a...Or...what if we go to the other extreme and bold all of the sections that are directly related to the stories! <br /><br />Yes, this is a joke.Davin Malasarnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09385823575081492949noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-1155860393151861272012-02-01T10:57:45.612-08:002012-02-01T10:57:45.612-08:00Rick, it has been fun reading them so far! I'v...Rick, it has been fun reading them so far! I've only seen a few where I can really tell where they got their ideas from. Some seem to have nothing to do with the two stories. Very interesting! <br /><br />My story is loosely based on the two stories. Like Davin's, I guess, which I have yet to read.Michelle D. Argylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696465137285587646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-1867039393739977362012-02-01T10:55:38.988-08:002012-02-01T10:55:38.988-08:00Scott, I agree about the cliche stuff, for sure. I...Scott, I agree about the cliche stuff, for sure. I think that's what I mean by being surprised by the story. If I'm being surprised, it's definitely not cliched storytelling.Michelle D. Argylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696465137285587646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-21892714620152924712012-02-01T10:54:25.847-08:002012-02-01T10:54:25.847-08:00I remember that too! And wasn't our first winn...I remember that too! And wasn't our first winner in the romance category? Love it. :)Michelle D. Argylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696465137285587646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-17824081300161820472012-02-01T10:45:55.140-08:002012-02-01T10:45:55.140-08:00We should organize the book alphabetically by titl...We should organize the book alphabetically by title. It should be like Elgar's "Enigma Variations" where the original theme is never played by the orchestra.scott g.f.baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05726743149139510832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-75312701525694522312012-02-01T10:25:39.928-08:002012-02-01T10:25:39.928-08:00I think organizing the anthology based on the conn...I think organizing the anthology based on the connections will also be fun and interesting. My only story is very loosely connected to the source. Very. Loosely. <br /><br />Loosely. <br /><br />Very.Davin Malasarnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09385823575081492949noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-86582010627796914452012-02-01T10:04:48.891-08:002012-02-01T10:04:48.891-08:00I think that'll be a big part of the fun, tryi...I think that'll be a big part of the fun, trying to figure out the connection to the theme story. Sometimes it's pretty tenuous. Mine actually refers to the source stories as works of fiction with which the characters are familiar. It's a hoot.scott g.f.baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05726743149139510832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-71712379010844793152012-02-01T09:45:35.852-08:002012-02-01T09:45:35.852-08:00Enjoy the entries, I'm eager to read the compi...Enjoy the entries, I'm eager to read the compilation when it's published. It will be neat to see where each entrant was influenced by the source material and where the variations take over. This was a great concept!Rick Daleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05173516899130463413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-9209100306638448592012-02-01T09:09:48.625-08:002012-02-01T09:09:48.625-08:00Yeah, the whole Genre Wars project was a great eye...Yeah, the whole <i>Genre Wars</i> project was a great eye-opener for me, because I was reading in genres I'd ignored for decades. It reminded me what I liked about genre fiction when I was a kid and now I read more of it.<br /><br />I don't try to guess who wrote what submissions, though. Sometimes I get an inkling, but I'm always wrong.<br /><br />When I'm reading the submissions, my first question is <i>Do I want to keep reading this?</i> Even if the answer is no, I keep reading because, as Michelle points out, some stories with rough starts have excellent development. The next thing I ask myself is <i>Am I enjoying reading this?</i> What that means has to do with the story being told, the characters used to tell it, and the prose. I can look past some clunky prose if the writer has a real understanding of the characters. <br /><br />The real killers, for me, are stories that never turn into stories (which is hard to define because I can't say what the word "story" means) and the use of cliche. Cliche is the big bad. Have I read this story a hundred times before? Why am I reading it again now? Cliche language can be fixed in editing, but cliche storytelling generally dies on the table.scott g.f.baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05726743149139510832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2092805684169371138.post-67816624547741151592012-02-01T08:46:02.161-08:002012-02-01T08:46:02.161-08:00I still remember how my understanding grew for the...I still remember how my understanding grew for the romance genre when we judged the first anthology. As I read through the stories in that section, I really felt like I learned something new that I had never seen before in my attempts to read romance novels. It was so cool to see how many great romance short stories were submitted!Davin Malasarnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09385823575081492949noreply@blogger.com