This oughtta be good... Count me in!

Ugh. Got Search & Rescue training all of Sunday and Friday night is booked. I guess I'll have to see if I can work out an idea I can write more quickly. :\

I can honestly say I read Mono's message on mobile and thought it said "get fuck" which I thought could also be appropriate for the Writeoff. In my defense, I am both dyslexic and used to being sworn at.

>>Monokeras
Colt, Prench is a weird language.

>>DuskPhoenix
I had almost the same initial reading!

>>horizon
I hope you can join in. I've got events on Friday and Saturday myself, plus I need to keep spending time on an ongoing house moving process. Hoping not to end up trying to slam something together overnight on Sunday to Monday. D:

Hmmmm:

The ponyfic I started last month instead of taking part in the April minific contest has just reached 12,000 words, and I figure another 6,000 oughtta finish it. So again, I think I'm likely to spend the weekend doing that...

Mike

I wonder if I can create and type up a short story on my phone during EFNW?

>>Hap
I'm staffing EFNW, so my only chance is if I write the entire story during the two hours I'm monitoring the Iron Author contest there.

That's two contests in a row lining up on major event weekends for me. :-/

>>Xepher
We should both do it then!

I'll voice-to-text mine on the train ride down XD

Been quite a while, but looking forward to giving it a go.

You hear a hollow voice say, “A slim chance…”

>>Trick_Question
You have no idea how so. ;)

>>DuskPhoenix
Sush! It was a hidden message! ;)

>submit prompt
>decide I don't want it anymore and take away my vote
>wins anyway

I'll be hanging out in #mentors on the Discord server if anyone wants help with their story. The earlier you get to me, the less likely I'll be busy helping someone else, and I can help anywhere from the planning stage to looking over a finished draft. I'll be on from around 8 to 12 Eastern each night, and feel free to message me questions if it's something you don't need a live interaction to get an answer for.

It's been a while since I was able to say this, but...

I'm in.

After some reflection, I think I should bow out. I'm deep in the midst of editing a pony novel that's already eaten a few years of my life, and at this point I just want to keep that ball rolling. It's also a bit daunting to think of cranking out another fic that'll inevitably need TLC and editing before I can truly call it "done."

I was hoping to try my hoof at this again, good luck everypony, and “See you on the other side!”

The First Last Time: An Old Idea With A New Twist, Breath of Fresh Air.

“The BCU, JUHNY! Twice As Bright; Good as New!”

“Brass Tacks. You Can Blame It on Me--”

“The Joke’s on Me.”

“Friendship: A Test Subject. The Gift That Keeps on Giving…”

“Friendship Is Tragic. Dead-End Friends. autistic screeching. Another One Bites the Butts.”

“Want Me Back? Search & Rescue.”

“I’ve looked at love from both sides now; The Other Side By the Book.”

“Sweeter Dreams! What We Do in the Shadows, The Day That Nothing Arose.”

“Game of Pones. Know Thine Enemy.”

“Optimism and You: A Dystopian Tale, Paper Thin.”

“It’s okay, Jump!”

drink me

No art round, then.
Bummer.
Guess I'll have to write.

>>Zaid Val'Roa
Roger said he could add one. Perhaps it’s still possible.

The best laid plans:

Of pigs and ponies, as they say...

I took a look at the prompt, got hit hard by a story idea, and reckon I'll see if I can't spackle something together by the deadline.

Mike

I hope I haven't spoken too soon.

I've been in a downward spiral of depression over the past few weeks even though I'm starting a new treatment (transcranial magnetic stimulation), and concentration is currently beyond my abilities (hence my lack of updates online). I have a story planned out and begun but I don't know if I can complete it or not. At the moment I can't even relax with a game.

We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Poop

>>Syeekoh
This is largely my sentiment. I have one idea that I can neither shake nor properly form. It's frustrating.

Ugh. I'm afraid I'm out. Saturday I met with some fellow authors for a writing productivity day, got my idea solidified, and got 1600 words written. Unfortunately, that 1600 words is nowhere near an ending, and Sunday is fully booked with Search & Rescue training, so there's just no way I can bring it to completion with the time I'll have. If I have any time Sunday night I'll use it to restart my editing on TEFL instead.

I've missed rounds before, but I think this is the first time I've actually given up mid-writing period. :(

Good luck to the rest of you!

Just started writing, because I only got an idea about an hour ago. I think I'm screwed.

I really don't want to miss two in a row, but I'm throwing in the towel. Hopefully next round I'll have a quieter Saturday to get a story written.

At least there's an art round this time. ^^ Looking forward to seeing what everyone else has written!

It's in. It probably sucks, but it's in. See you guys in the morning. :P

See everyone on the other side!

>>Miller Minus
I’ve got friends on the other side...

I hate to say it, but I think I'm out again. I came up with my idea too late, lost a day of writing, and didn't have enough time to put it into action. And I've got work in the early morning now.

I hate missing even one round, much less back-to-back rounds. And I was really looking forward to this one. Haven't written and posted a damn thing since March...

I don't know. Maybe I'll still put my idea together and submit it separate from the writeoff, but... right now, I just, I got nothing. I don't have the time, or the motivation, to finish what I have.

dammit, a week later and I could've done this...

I am in, with a poor pathetic shambling thing. Good night!

Alright, first time submission, let's see how it goes! Special thanks to the attendees of SadSac 2018 who helped me push it through!

First time in three years. Let's go!

I'll just quietly submit something here for the first time ever nbd

"This is the most ham-fisted bullshit I have ever written." - Me, like 10 minutes ago.
"The Godfather Part III of my career." - Also me.

>>The_24th_Pegasus
Welcome to the party. Don't mind all the existential dread lingering around. It gets a little thick near the deadline, but usually clears up by morning.

>>Flashgen
Glad to have you back, Wonder Red.

>>Rao
“I feel sorry for the fool that has to read this shit” -me, last night at 12:00

Just your daily intermission to say thank you all for having such great opinions and thoughts on every fic. I haven’t seen one harmful word thrown out at a story yet and I’m so happy to be here lol.

I was just so afraid to come back to my fic and have someone tearing it to shreds but so far everyone has gotten beautifully done constructive criticism. (Just thanks y’all omg <3)

Wheh, that's my slate! I'm hoping to get around to the rest of our entries before prelims close, though, since we don't have all that many of them this month.

>>Anon Y Mous
Constructive criticism is what the Writeoff is all about! ...Or, it's what it should be about, in my opinion, anyway, Glad you're enjoying the event so far! It's good to see some fresh faces around here.

My art is in. Not even three cups of coffee will help me arise tomorrow. Good night and good luck!

Is there any way to withdraw a submission?

>>Rocket Lawn Chair
After the event concludes you can uncheck the "publish" box on the submission page to remove it from the site.

Congratulations to the finalists! I regret my utter uselessness thus far this Writeoff, but I am greatly pleased to see that both the Limestone/Petunia fic and the coffee fic are still in the mix. I can promise to read at least those two before the end. ^^

Meanwhile, the editing I skipped this to focus on is going fantastic. I hate skipping Pony Writeoffs but I made the right choice this time.

It’s time again for…

GGA’s Art Filtration Folly Extravaganza!

Do you have a skillful eye? Are you a good guesser? Take part in my GAFFE! Guess which piece or pieces are mine and win a free sketch!

Conditions: You must pick out only the art for which I was responsible; no more or less. Submissions should be made in PM and must be received at least an hour before the Writeoff entries are revealed. One prize will be given; ties will be decided by die roll.

Thanks to a gentle prod from >>Baal Bunny, I went ahead and created this round's folder over in the FIMFiction Writeoff group. If your story migrates from here to FIMFiction, please add it to the group so that your fellow authors can check out your final draft!

In order to add stories to the group you need to be a "Contributor", which just means you have to have written a story for the Writeoffs at some point. (We locked it against random submissions a while back due to spam.) If you have any problems adding your story there, PM me on FIMFiction and I'll get you hooked up.

"I want to know about the old ways."

The old seer frowned at me. The eye that was red and metal shone brightly in the dark of the cave as it darted left and right, leaving spots in my vision that would only go away when I blinked quickly.

"The old ways are meaningless," said the seer, even as a Servo-sprite buzzed around his head. "The old ways are dead."

"How can you say that?" I asked, stupefied at his words. "You who have witnessed so much—you who have studied their wonders!"

"I know enough to know that what I do know is worthless," he said.

His red eye darted towards the Servo-sprite, which immediately halted its flight. It darted downwards towards the dying campfire and released a dark mist. The mist reinvigorated the flames, which burned hot and bright until I could see the iron and the polymer in the seer's arms and legs. A new trio of Servo-sprites, with long arms like snakes, flew forth and spun their arms to beat away the smoke and vent it out the cave mouth.

"You order machines without speaking," I said, "and if what the village-folk say is true, you slip into the stories and the knowledge of the old ones during your every waking moment, as though they were a dream."

The seer chuckled, mirthlessly.

"I have a Wi-Fi connection, yes. More datahubs crumble every year, so the connection gets slower and slower."

"How can I be the same?" I implored the seer. "How I can share the thoughts of the old ones as if they were my own?"

"You'll have to go to Finland," he said. "Very, very, far away. There's a Neuro-Prosthetic center there that pinged back my search query. Might be the only one that still works in the world. You can get your implant there."

"Yes!" I said leaping to my feet. I took my spear and shook it. It was a very good spear, made of hollowed bronze. "I'll go to the Land of Fin! I will find the pinging query, and I will steal the implant that they've hidden away, and when I've completed this trial for you, will you reward me with the whispers of the old ones?"

The seer frowned, disappointed.

"You don't understand. You won't until you see it all."

"Understand what, great prophet?" I asked.

"The old ways. They are beyond what you can imagine. One megabyte of the Flow is more complicated and more beautiful and more horrible than your entire life and the entire lives of your whole village put together." His living eye looked wistful. "The thoughts and the plans of the old ones were so convoluted and so indescribable, that they created machines to think and to remember the thoughts for them. They created machines to create machines to create machines, until not a single old one knew exactly how any of their machines performed their miracles. Machines so complicated, that an old one's life dream would be to study and comprehend how one part of a thousand worked."

"I can learn it all!" I shouted. "I will learn it all, and become powerful like you! You cannot stop me, so help me instead!"

The seer looked at me for a long time. Finally he motioned for me to sit.

"Before we even think about getting your implant," he said, "you need to understand what the old ones were really like. The true pointlessness of everything they did. The sorts of frightening and disgusting things they did to entertain themselves."

"Teach me," I said, thought I was confused. The old ones only knew magic and wonders, after all. "Teach me!"

"Okay," said the Seer. He closed his eyes, and the Servo-sprites orbited his head ever quickly.

"What do you know," said the man wise beyond centuries, "about Writeoff Mashups?"

---

Nod Your Head to the Might Have Beens: Cadance asks a magical book to show her what her life would be like if she actually ever reached the top of that staircase. The answer is: Toned as hell. That was a lotta damn stairs.

Fire Burns at Three: Over a late-night cup of coffee, Spike and Sunset discuss why pony-communism never seems to work out.

Checkpoints of Fright and Butterscotch: After an interview with a friendly reporter, Luna reveals her deep dark secret that she makes her royal riches from pushing dope across the planes of reality.

Fluttershy Saves the Duck with a Tree: Fluttershy kills an assortment of things for the glory of Duck'thulu. Twilight wisely decides to break things off with her.

>>Bachiavellian
I was super into this, and you hit me with (very clever) Mashups?! I demand more lore!

>>Rao
Sorry, that's all the lore I've got. And now since I've written it, I don't think I can even adapt it for an OF Writeoff, with the whole rule about not writing things related to your previous works. You'll have to be satisfied with what you have. :P

>>Bachiavellian
Just continue it in the next Writeoff comments.

>>GroaningGreyAgony
That's.... actually kind of a tempting idea. But I was honest when I said I had absolutely no ideas, outside of what I've written... But I'll still give it a bit of thought, and see if I come up with anything interesting by the time I participate in the next one of these. :P

>>Bachiavellian

Striding into the old seer’s cave on three fleshy legs and one of Plasteel with a noisy servo, I stood and waited. His attention was not mine to command.

“So you got the implant,” he observed. “And you left much else behind. But do you now understand?”

My brain ached, my mind whirled with images… millions of images. Cyclotron shit. But none of them were worth even a thousand words. I had nothing to say. I could only meme in silence, applying distortive filters that degraded the jpegs even as they warped them… I quietly selected the font that had the most impact.

“I now understand…” I said, “all about Art Round Mashups.”

---

Okey-Dokey Literature Club

Why’d I Forget I Could Fly?

Wow, what a finish. I wasn't expecting that.

Well done to our medal winners, especially Miller Minus for making first place in both rounds. Very nice!

Congrats to our medalists:

And a big Yow-Wow to BlueChameleonVI! Over 21,000 words written in three days, makes the finals with all three stories, and it's only your 2nd Writeoff? I'm definitely looking forward to reading more from you!

Mike

First things first: I'll pool everything here for future reference. A lot of comments spread out over three fics and no fics? I'm getting this all done in one fell swoop. Apologies ahead of time if I miss anyone out.

Also, pleased as punch to get the bronze medal. After the mad rush of the weekend, I should hope to see something for it, and this is a nice something indeed.

But let's deal with the here-and-now first:

>>Baal Bunny

Thanks! Writing that many words so quickly is possible, but it was a frantic weekend of writing, let's just say that. Sure as sugar I won't be doing that again in a hurry. Besides, in hindsight - and judging from those comments - the scars on the resultant fics are bloody obvious.

>>CoffeeMinion

Damn, now I wish you had come back. Sounds like I pushed a hell of a button.

>>Baal Bunny

Sprawling is the word. Particularly around the circus scene, I was sure I needed to trim it here and there, but a combo of author's blind love and will-I-wreck-it jitters stayed the scissors. I think this "good to great" brevity lark is something I'm just gonna have to learn on the job, guv. Still glad your first word on it was "lovely". That did my heart good, so it did.

>>Bachiavellian

First of all, sweet! You reviewed every fic here. I wish more had done that, so credit where it's due. And for a stellar use of the f-bomb, if I may be so bold.

Petunia being sweeter than sugar-marinated muffin was a sort of necessary evil; she had to be the normal one to contrast with the world full of crazies, and inevitably that makes her less interesting, relatively speaking. On top of that like a cherry on the aforementioned muffin, her canon characterization doesn't really delve much into who she is as a person (pony?), so there's that. Plus I was writing this last minute and chanting profanities at myself like a madness mantra, which might have been a minor factor.

Honestly, after two dead serious epics, I thought I had enough time to toss in a lark. A lark written like a goddamn whirlwind on crack, but hey, that's part of the fun, right?

>>Bachiavellian

That said, really not sure about this comment. Since I took longest on this one - plus it's the only one I had time to get proofread - I might get a tad defensive here, but I'll try to be fair and hear you out.

So fair's fair, I'm going to blame the slow burn leading up to the midway point as the red herring that led your sniffer astray. Otherwise, I'm not sure it's that radical a shift in tone. At least the subject matter and how one thing led to another never struck me as off, but as a logical followup of what went before. Don't know if that's an explanation, an excuse, or actual (gasp!) exculpation. All I know is I really don't see it as that drastic. But then I wrote the thing; I had access to the worker's notes.

Disappointed the ending didn't stir your cup of coffee. My proofreader did suggest the speech tie in more with Amity's philosophy rather than her emotions, which I guess is what you meant by themes carrying over from the start, but I didn't see it as that serious an issue given the drama on display. Going for the psychological angle was on the cards from Word One; I thought it was enough to cool Amity's emotions but leave her a sad wreck of her former self, and Sugar's defusing of the bomb with empathy (i.e. seeing things from the Other Side) was kind of the point, given her history. What I'm saying is: I'm not sure about your criticism here.

And while I'm at it, I'm not sure describing something as "cliche" really helps as a criticism; cliches aren't automatically bad, and can be done well. It's sort of like telling someone "Oh it's been done before". I think the Book of Ecclesiastes had a saying about what's new under the sun, or somesuch. At the least, this criticism's not specific enough for it to be actionable for me...

>>HiTime

I did cut corners, yes, but mostly because I thought it would bog things down to go on about the "hows" and the "whyfores". The slow start I've already talked about with Bachiavellian up top, but suffice it to say I did get a note from my proofreader about this, and I just said, "I'll take it on the chin; I don't think it's that serious". Ho hum.

Glad you seem to have liked it so much, at least. This was the one I had the highest hopes for until the comments started pouring in. And yes, Amity/Arcadia was a big part of why.

>>HiTime

I'll say more about this when we get to TitaniumDragon. Needless to say, I don't disagree with the criticisms, and the abrupt ending was inevitable, given how late I left this madcap monstrosity. Also, I really, really, really wanted to write more scenes with the family together again, believe me, even if writing Ye Olde English the first time put me in a faux-Shakespearean panic. I'm sure some linguist who loves antiquity is going to roast me giblets for those mangled lines.

>>Miller Minus

Same caveat with Bach above; I may get a teensy-weensy bit defensive here, but I'll try my best. I think the long list of story elements was a bit much, though. Yeah, I'm willing to concede a few things got lost in translation. Still, I'm not a complete neophyte; I did have those elements in mind.

I think the problem here, in the specific example and more generally, is one of assuming it's obvious what I mean when I write something. Take Double D here: to you, it's a jumble of unorganized mini-arcs with no coherent overall plan. To me: well, everything fits under the super-arc of being blindly overprotective because his empathy's lacking. Starlight's influence and him turning "evil" were the results of his spying habits for a (once) good cause, which he still has trouble with even in the emancipation era of Our Town. His affection for and bravery around Sugar likewise reflect his trouble recognizing when his good intentions are shooting him in the foot (note how Sugar brushes him off "brusquely" when he tries this once too often).

All these threads are products of the theme of empathy and good intentions: in his efforts to do good as best he can, Double D doesn't realize how he comes across. He compromises his own goal, both under Starlight - hence his bad habits - and now that he's free to determine things himself, even on this quest. The ending comes when he realizes he's neglected Sugar's POV in all this, to the point where he doesn't actually know her. Celestia's speech wakes him up, he reaches out for the first time, bingo! Complete arc.

How this didn't get across, I dare not speculate. I will say this, though; your opening paragraph at least was music to my ears. Uh, eyes. Brain. Well, it was music, one way or another, and I loved the damn thing. That's exactly how it felt, and why I'm kind of galled it didn't do so well in finals.

>>HiTime

Yeah, I'm making no excuses for the first half. What happened was that I actually started when Lyra came home from the funeral, and after finishing the circus scene I was like, "Wait a sec, people are gonna get confused about this". So I finished the later scenes, then scurried back to add the opening scenes as a patch job. I was never fully cheered by the sight of them, because around that point the word count bit me in the posterior and the clock hit me round the head screaming "TIME'S A-WASTING! TIME'S A-WASTING!"

The other thing, about the scene being dull? I think that was a deliberate ploy that worked a little too well. See, I was trying to contrast the dull real world with the lively nightmare of Everyland and Nothingland. Sadly, the trouble with trying to make something dull to read is that you make something dull to read. Part of the reason for the earlier scenes was also to shout at the reader, before they got to that scene, "I'm not a bad writer! I'm doing this deliberately! See, here's some more interesting writing to reassure you!"

Also, same as Bach: good work getting a review out for every fic in the contest! Naturally, I had a good time reading the good bits. Especially here, where the strong emotion was exactly what I wanted to see shine.

>>Bachiavellian

Funny you should mention Coraline, because that was a big influence on the fic (along with Alice in Wonderland, the Discworld books on Death, that one parade scene in Pom Poko, The Greatest Showman, and Inside-Out; I had a LOT of ideas bubbling away for this one). But yeah, Coraline was a big one. Without straying far into hyperbole here, I would marry that film if I could.

Said my piece about those scenes to HiTime above; needless to add, they're my least favourite scenes of the bunch. The circus one bothers me too. On the other hand, I'm trying not to rely on flashbacks in case they quickly become a crutch, and they seem awkward to use in a dream going more for abstract or half-formed imagery.

What I was going for was suspense rather than mystery; we know early on that Lyra's avoiding something, and that it's clearly too touchy to bring up. I didn't care if anyone guessed within the first few words that this was about Granny Virgo's funeral, since the emphasis was on how Lyra's escapist denials would lose to reality, and how she'd handle the clash. Those first scenes were meant to be spiced up by that suspenseful wait.

Lastly, it's probably the most "stock" of the three I wrote, but I loved every second of it. Kind of happy it made it as far as it did, though I twinge a little it didn't go further.

>>TitaniumDragon

Thanks! Although I don't think it works because of Limestone's anti-humour so much as she's a straight-up nutjob. It's her incredibly parochial but passionate POV which makes her the living end, if I do say so myself. The rest almost literally writes itself from there.

The ending I make no excuses for. The reason it reads like a rush-job is simple: it was. I only started writing this thing hours before the deadline, and frankly I'm shocked it's actually legible. I wanted to put in at least a couple more scenes to show the bond strengthening, but past a certain point I went "Crap, crap, crap, time to wrap this up".

That in mind, I'm also kind of shocked it did as well as it did. I mean, I didn't even have time to proofread it (same went for Everyland and Nothingland, but I was still editing that one myself anyway, so ran out of time).

>>CoffeeMinion

It may please you to know I'm submitting this Limestone malarkey to FIMFiction.net even as we speak. Keep an eye out for it, mate!

>>Rao

Professor, I ran out of words sooner than I would have hoped. This was a last-minute entry, in every meaning of the word.

Also, since when was Limestone a baby sister? I could have sworn she was one of the eldest, at least (can't remember Maud's age).

Other than that, another nice little comment to add to my collection. Shame we seemed to run out in the finals, but then it is THAT time of year. I know I'll be kept busy for the next couple of weeks. Still, ta and thank ye for the two cents!

>>horizon

Soon as it's published, my first fic will be joining that folder. No worries there!

>>Baal Bunny

See, I want to respond cleverly to this, but I'm having a little trouble for similar reasons to the predecessor reviewers above: the criticism seems a little off to me. Also, again, I might be jumping too quickly, sword and shield ready, to fight for this one.

Your comment suggests the fic doesn't have room to breathe, and needed more time to flesh out its concepts. I'll confess the ending piled it on a bit thick compared with the slow burn of the first half (now we're in an overgrown area, now we're getting attacked by fire demons, now we're in a cave with crazy unicorn, etc.). I'm not gonna pretend the word count wasn't against me on this one a bit, but I think the major problem structurally is that slow burn I mentioned, which if anything suggests to me that trimming it is the correct way to go.

I might be misunderstanding you here, fair enough. Plus, I cannot claim impartiality. Only everything at least seems to go at the right pace, and ending aside I guess I just don't see it as underdeveloped ("overdeveloped", now...?). I'll give it a ponder, at least.



Well, that seems to be everyone. You have my profound gratitude for the post-publication editorial assistance, guys. Hope to see you next time. Now I've got a taste of medal, I might just come back for more.

Before I forget: Well done, Miller Minus and Cold in Gardez, for the medal wins! Solid entries, both of them. I tip my hat to you two.

>>BlueChameleonVI
Just wanted to start by saying, no need at all to feel defensive. When I write reviews, I'm well-aware that I'm only writing my personal and highly subjective feelings. You're absolutely feel to disregard it or to consider it not applicable to the way you want to write. I know a lot of my thoughts are going to be based on a knee-jerk reaction, but I just wanted to be honest about the kind of knee-jerk I did have.

You're totally right that cliches are not automatically bad, and I do regret using that word in this case, since it tends to be emotionally charged. My intention with that piece of criticism was to convey that I had the feeling that I had read similar stories in the past, and for one reason or the other this feeling negatively impacted my reading.

Of course, there's nothing inherently wrong with writing familiar themes. In fact, last Short Story round I participated in, I distinctly remember that Horizon called my entry a "string of cliches" but ended up liking it (somehow). So I can't be 100% sure why I reacted negatively to Fire Burns's resolution. But I do think it is important to give you my honest feelings, rather than a white lie. In the end, you know the story better than I do (of course), and you're free to write it however you want (of course!).

>>BlueChameleonVI
Congratulations on your huge success this round! My editing process has dragged on in its slow devolution into a brutal, masochistic thing from which I dearly crave release. But the end is in sight and I pray sincerely that the end product will be worth the pain.

Anyway: I may be running behind but I will catch this back up as opportunities allow. And yeah definitely, Limestone and Petunia are a teamup that pushes a good percentage of my Author Appeal buttons right out of the gate.

>>BlueChameleonVI
You're super right, Limestone is the oldest. Her cantankerous attitude always reminds me of a middle/youngest child, so I tend to forget. Anyway, congrats are being just astonishingly awesome this round!

>>BlueChameleonVI
You're right, the second part of my comment was totally off base. I apologize. The point that I was trying to make was what you've basically illustrated in your response--it's all clear in your head, which is excellent, and looking back it's not surprising, but as you must have noticed, it's not super clear with the readers. All I was trying to say is that the gap wasn't bridged as much as it needed to be for me to truly enjoy the story.

Thanks again for writing! It was great fun reading your ensemble. Everything and Nothingland was my favourite, for the record :) Despite being so abstract, the core was much easier to follow.

Hope to see you in the next round!

Also, I just realised I correctly guessed all the artists in the art round.
Yay!