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Louder Than a Bomb 2013 - call for support!Please

and spread the word!
:iconElocutionists:
Louder Than a Bomb Poetry Slam
In 2013, #Elocutionists will be hosting its first spoken word competition, dubbed 'Louder Than a Bomb' (named after the Chicago Poetry Slam of the same name). The competition will consist of writers either having their work performed to their specifications by readers or representing themselves in the competition with their own recordings. There may also be the possibility of two categories to enter: a category for individual slam poets and another for groups. If you are not aware of what a poetry slam is, here is a quick definition and rundown of some basic, universal rules:
A poetry slam is a competitive event in which poets perform their work and are judged by members of the audience. Everyone who signs up has the opportunity to read in the first round; the lineup for subsequent rounds is determined by the judges' scores. Though rules vary from slam to slam, the basic rules are

[CLOSED] The Alternate Universe Contestthis contest is now closed.
do NOT note me!
I will have to tell you it's not valid, and that'll make me sad.

With a tip of the hat to all the people who came up with alternate universes as a way to explore awesome, impossible ideas...I bring you the alternate universe contest for original literature!
This contest is open from January 18-February 18 (PST, aka dA time). No extensions.
The process is simple.
Start with one of your own stories. It doesn't have to be super-fleshed out, but it does need to be written down in some form, even if it's as simple as a series of character sketches and the world they live in.Change something important. There's a lot of options. Ask yourself 'what if X had happened differently' and go from there. Aside from changing key plot points, you may want to significantly alter a character (yes, genderbending is acceptable).
Write it down! Not completely willy-nilly; there will be guidelines, of course. Oh my stars and gart

Critmas is here! (Last Day!)

Today is the LAST DAY for you to get your 12 critiques in! Make sure you leave a comment in this journal linking all your pieces. There's plenty of prizes up for grabs

Remember you have until 11:59 PM pst TODAY to complete your critiques!
On the first day of Critmas, a deviant gave to me.
Back by popular demand, I bring you...
The 12 days of CRITMAS challenge!
"CRITMAS IS COMING, THE PROSE IS GETTING FAT. OUT COMES THE RED PEN TO GET RID OF THAT!" (`Memnalar)
Now most of you are relaxing and chilling out on your Christmas vacations; some of you have time off work/school and will be staying at home in the warm over the next week or so. So why don't we make use of that hermit time and do something productive? Get your onesie on, warm up a mince pie, pour yourself a Baileys and let’s get comfortable around our computers!
The Challenge

Literature Scavenger Hunt PrizewinnersThis is quite the belated results journal. My apologies. Because of that, let's get down to business. Since we had such a large prize pool I was able to tack on an additional prize category in order to reward all of those who participated. Be sure to thank our generous donors and those who offered unique prizes. Here are our participants, and subsequently, our prizewinners:
Surprise Winner Prizes

100 points + feature by *RiseandBe (*Hfeather53)

100 points + feature by *RiseandBe (=MirachRavaia)

100 points + feature by *RiseandBe (*SubjugatedSandwich)

100 points + feature by *RiseandBe (=AzizrianDaoXrak)
Secondary Participation Prizes

425 points + feature by *RiseandBe (=star-blazer)

425 points + feature by *RiseandBe (=xxthefallenangelsxx)

425 points + feature by *RiseandBe (*ReallyLostMyMind)

425 points + feature by *RiseandBe (:devEitvys200

France's Fancy Fixed Forms: Rondeau and FriendsFrance's Fancy Fixed Forms: The Rondeau (& Friends)
:iconlegaspplz: Ah, the French. Their proud romantic culture has provided us with a wealth of artistic innovation: a wide range of cheeses and pastries; the Louvre, Versailles, and the iconic Eiffel Tower; and some memorable poetic forms, including the ballade, the villanelle, and today's subject: the rondeau (ron-DOH).
While not as well-known today as the sonnet or haiku, these French styles have been around just as long, if not longer. The rondeau, like its cousins, has a restricted number of end rhymes (two, usually labeled 'a' and 'b') and a short refrain repeated throughout. This refrain, also known as the rentrement, comes from the first half of the poem's first line.

If you've heard of the rondeau before, chances are it's thanks to the World War I p

Thank YouDDs are supposed to be about the art. When I line something up for a feature, I try to make it just about the art. But it'd be shortsighted on my part to pretend that nothing is ever controversial, and that certain features are going to attract more negativity than others.
That said, I'm delighted to have been completely wrong over where the drama has fallen out.
And this is all because of you!
:iconrlyplz:
You awesome people, who get that a feature is just a feature and realize, if you have something to criticise about the art, you should do it without taking into account the fact that it got featured on a noticeable part of the site for 24 hours. That it's not the artist's fault they said something so well, and so profoundly, that other people thought the whole community needed to see it. (Seriously. It's my decision even when it's a self-suggest.)
And, finally, that part of making art and especially written art involves getting controversial sometimes. There's this quote we u

DEAR TEEN ME CONTEST: The Results are IN!
Whoa. You guys came to play! We got over 200 entries for the DEAR TEEN ME contest, and we are both delighted and shocked and...well, exhausted after reading so many heartfelt entries!
First of all, I want to thank everyone who entered. This is a very personal writing endeavor and I know it's hard to put yourselves out there so I hope you all give yourselves a hug for me!
Secondly, I want to thank my co-judges, $wreckling, =Cassildra, ^neurotype and ~Vocable. I think I would have drowned in letters if it weren't for you guys!
SO. Without further ado, here are your winners!

First place, which wins a prize pack of Zest books including DEAR TEEN ME signed by various authors in the anthology (and ME!); a1 year premium membership, a laptop bag

Complaint Challenge Contest!

We got our complaints out in December 2012. Now, 2013 is about doing something productive with them. I am not going to sit and grumble about my pet peeves. Neither should you!
Anyone who knows me should have been suspicious from the start of Phase 1 because complaining is one of my own complaints. (And you saw this trick last year!) That's right. I complain about people complaining. Silly, yes? Well I decided to do something about it with this challenge.
I hope everyone enjoyed sharing their gripes in Phase 1 because it is time for Phase 2!

And Phase 2 is open to everyone, even if you didn't participate in Phase 1, or decided to change what complaint you'd like to address!
Complaint Challenge – Phase 2
The challenge in a nutshell: Pick one of your dA complaints and do something proactive about it. Work toward a solution or improvement in a positive way.
Now a few of you are probably thinking things like, "I

Two Poems: A Contest (DEADLINE EXTENDED)NaNoWriMo is on its final wind-down, and many of you are hopefully very ready to terminate your one-month lease of a headspace where editing was unwelcome. Even more of you are, like us, feeling near-fatally neglected by the muses who have been showering their grace on prosehounds and keeping their distance from verse (or so they would have had you believe). On the heels of the no-editing, no-poetry silence let's recapture our words mid-arabesque--and then hilariously beat them down to nice respectable pliés while that one leg's still stretched backward. #confessional-poetry and a mangled cast of extras present:
Two Poems: A Contest of Poetry and Editing
Essential Info
- Poetry contest, obviously.
- Submissions open December 1, 2012, and close February 28, 2013. (NO MORE EXCUSES. YOU HAVE PLENTY OF TIME NOW.)
- Open to all members of the site.
- ORIGINAL WORKS ONLY. Nothing that wasn't written specifically for this. This i

Literature DD Roundup - July 2012 July Literature Daily Deviations
Featured by ^Beccalicious

Featured by `thorns

Our wonderful suggestors!
Again many thanks to EVERYONE who suggested DDs, but here are those whose suggested pieces were featured this month!
^NicSwaner, `Kneeling-Glory, =TheSkaBoss, *UnspecifiedUnknown, :devV

Writing Without Publishing: Exillior speaksThe second interview in a new series focusing on writers who—le gasp! —aren't writing to get published. If you have any ideas on discussion topics or people I should interview, please drop me a note.

Writing Without Publishing: raspil speaks

Boring question first! How long have you been writing?
I wrote a lot as a teen, but then I had this writing block when I was in school in my late teens and couldn't write a single sentence, whether for essays or for my personal writing. I only started writing again once I mingled in with the Lit people here. (So now you know who's to blame.)
Slightly less boring follow-up! I know you're a doctor, so was there some point where you chose that over writing, or was it the plan from the beginning?
No, they're all part of the same person. I'm me, I write,

Your characters aren't real.One of the most popular discussions among writers on any website has got to be some variation of 'what's your relationship with your characters like?' And especially on a site like here where a lot of people are coming from an RP background, people start in on these long conversations about how their characters run around and do things and would love to tear 'em one for that scene where they lose their whole family.
And you know what?
I can't participate in this conversation because I don't see characters like that and I'm so jealous I'm going to rant about it now
Okay, I was just guessing how you'd feel after reading this rant. I swear I have a serious point to make, though.
First things first. It confuses me when you talk like your characters are people. I just don't get it. There are a couple of reasons for this:
I start with the plot and setting and then come up with characters, so anything I make is tied to the story.How can I create an independent existence f

Operation WFP is coming! [Started!]Find the start article here: http://nicswaner.deviantart.com/journal/Operation-WFP-Start-344101940
You have around 12 hours remaining to submit your feedback comment and wishlists to win a prize! We've only had a few entries thus far so your chances of winning are good.
It's been nearly a year since Operation TYP. `GrimFace242 and I have plotted some terrible shenanigans, but this time it's even worse! We've flung poop at ^NicSwaner and ~~brainwashed~~ convinced him to join the dark side with us! Why? To remind you guys that giving is important.
What is Operation WFP?
It's 48 hours of fun for the entire community. At the start date you will be given a short list of simple tasks that can be done in as little as half an hour.
What is this task? It's so super secret we can't tell you until the start date!

Flash Fiction Month July 2012Preface
This article is written for #LitResources. Our goal is to be a collection and creation station for all resources pertaining to literature on deviantART. This article will focus on Flash Fiction Month! It will include information about what specifies flash fiction, activities around dA for flash fiction month, and links to resources revolving around FFM activities.
If, after reading the article, you have more information or resources to add, please leave your thoughts in a comment! And don't forget to this article to help spread the word.
What Is Flash Fiction?
Put simply, flash fiction is a very short story. Lengths can vary from as few as six words (i.e. Hemingway's famous Baby Shoes) to a thousand, sometimes more. It depends largely on the outfit for which the author decides to write a piece of flash fiction. For the

Sing Me A Swan Song ContestMy very first Literature Only contest...
Sing Me A
:iconsplz::iconwplz::iconaplz::iconnplz: :iconsplz::iconoplz::iconnplz::icongplz:

Wanna hear about it? :icontrollface:

Okay... calm the fuck down.

For those who don't know, allow me to explain...

What is a Swan Song?

"Swan song" is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that the Mute Swan is completely silent during its lifetime until the moment just before death, when it sings one beautiful song.

What I'm looking for...

First of all, a Swan Song does not mean that your entry must be strictly related to Swans. Swan Song in itself

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Submitted: December 18, 2012
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Saturnalia Contest + Chat Event

Tue Dec 18, 2012, 12:03 AM

Contest deadline extended! You can submit it until the end of the chat event, so writing it during the Word Wars will be acceptable

We have entries, but it doesn't seem fair to let all those points go without a good fight.

Original post here. It has GIFs, so obviously you should click on it. A quick summary is below!

Contest Details:

Deadline has been extended to after the chat event, so you can write it during the Word Wars!
Write one awesome piece of satire in 250 words or less.
If you need inspiration you may want to check out the Wikipedia entry on Saturnalia.
Note both =Cassildra and ^neurotype with your finished entry between 3 PM EST on December 25th and 3 PM EST on December 27th.
This gives you 48 hours to upload and note your entry over to us. Do not submit early. You will be disqualified.
Winner will be announced December 28th during the chat event.
Prizes: If you win, you will get 250 points, unless you include abs we can feel, and then it's a 50 point bonus. There may also be sekrit extras. We're not telling.

Chat Details:

The chat will be held in #CRLiterature on December 28th.
The first half of the chat—from 3-4:30 PM EST—will be a party in the spirit of the decadence of Saturnalia. If you are sensitive about rowdy fun, you may want to hold back here.
The second half of the chat—from 4:30 to 6 PM EST—is going to be an unofficial, decadence-themed Word Wars event with all manner of glorious prizes. Glorious, glorious prizes.
Need time zone information? Look up the event here.

Thank you to everyone who donated points for this event! (Including you anonymous donors. You know who you are. Get yourselves some cookies.)

5 Comments

Saturnalia Contest + Chat Eventby ^neurotype

Journals / Culture / Contests

1000 points u gaiz!

Contest deadline extended! You can submit it until the end of the chat event, so writing it during the Word Wars will be acceptable

Community Relations-sponsored contest and chat! Writers untie! ...wait a minute....

This even is =Cassildra's brainchild, so that's why you should go to [link] instead. (I once again apologize for the lack of GIFs from 'Caligula.')

What is Saturnalia? Saturnalia is a Roman festival centered around being silly and decadent. It's good times, and we're spreading it around.