Wolves, Snow, Blood, Scrapes, and Scarps
Challenge 1 Results and Standings
The First Challenge. “Write us a story depicting a chase scene.” Easy, right?
I didn’t give a lot of guidance. No instructions as to genre, no instructions as to content. Just give us something chasey. Well, you saw them folks, we got it. Boy did we ever.
and I had our work cut out for us to evaluate all five of these amazing tales. And we got them read and reviewed in record time.Let’s break it down like a fraction!
The Stories, The Results
I’ve been going alphabetically, so this time let’s go reverse alphabetically.
of wrote his story, “Howling”
This story was a heart wrenching emotional roller-coaster, taking us on a journey of grief, a chase of revenge, into the icy heart of northern Mongolia’s wolf-country. This story was at once emotionally complex and thrillingly intense. The best thing about this story was it’s Characterization, where each of the characters had a complex story that tied into the central wolf-hunt. My comments to Hyun Woo centered on enhancing his Pacing, to take the reader on a journey that mirrored the trials of the characters. Hyun Woo’s Overall Score is 18/27.
This story was an intense thriller, taking us on a fantastical wolf-hunt to be worthy of becoming King! Taking turns in perspective between hunter and hunted, Hanna took us into a blustering winter setting and forced us to ask whether we really know what we are really chasing. The best part about this story was it’s Pacing—the shifting perspectives made this not just an exciting read but an immersive one. My comments to Hanna centered on Craftsmanship, giving readers some clues early in the story so that our minds are properly blown when we get the big reveal. Hanna’s Overall Score is 20/27.
Eric wrote us an adventuresome, pulpy monster-hunt into the snowy mountains near Sombrefal, so a son can prove he is worthy of becoming King! This was an expansive feeling world, with drama, mystery, and tension. It was stunningly visual, it was emotionally evocative—presenting his main character with impossible choices multiple times. And that ending! The best part of this story was it’s Pacing. I was breathless when Eric’s main character was breathless, I was on the edge of my seat awaiting the resolution of each impossible choice. My comments to Eric centered on Craftsmanship: he crammed a LOT of ideas, concepts, and even characters into the maximum allowable word-count for this challenge, and less sometimes is more. Eric’s Overall Score is 15/27.
This story is an experience. E.B. took us on an easy educational cruise, and then casually tossed us overboard into shark infested waters. I almost couldn’t finish this story, afraid of how shark chases usually end, yet E.B. with cleverness and humor managed to keep us on our toes, and dish up a surprise. The best part of this story was it’s Setting: “The Dead Zone” gave the story an immediately ominous air, and gave us a reason for both hunter and hunted to be in the water. My comments to E.B. centered on Characterization: as thrilling as this story was, it’s important to make sure that everyone in the story has some job that serves the story. E.B.’s Overall Score is 21/27.
Last but by no means least, we have
of with her story “A Martian Fairy Tale”
Alice took us to Mars, to confront an age old challenge: algebra homework. But, a mischievous Martian has other plans, and a chase is afoot. This story was fun, playful, and deceptively deep, and accomplished a lot despite the constraints this competition imposed! The best thing about this story was it’s Characterization: we got some truly excellent character descriptions in this story, and some wonderful descriptions of this alien environment. My comments to Alice focused on Pacing: dialing up the intensity for readers can help deepen our immersion into the stories, and make our hearts race when Alice’s precocious main character’s heart races. Alice’s Overall Score is 16/27.
Standings
After the first challenge, here are the standings:
E.B. Howard is in first place, with 21 points
Hanna Delaney is in second place, with 20 points
Hyun Woo Kim is in third place, with 18 points
Alice Meredith is in fourth place, with 16 points
Eric Falden is in fifth place, with 15 points
Will E.B. be able to fend off competitors and pull ahead of the competition?
Can Hanna give chase and make up the excruciatingly narrow one point difference with only two challenges to go?
Hyun Woo Kim will be battling in two directions—can he take on E.B. and Hanna, while simultaneously fending off the trailing competitors?
Can Alice course correct and bring her literary tools to bear, and climb the rankings?
Will Eric make the necessary adjustments with the pit-crew to put himself in contention for the first prize?
Don’t Let The Scores Fool You! With 54 points still up for grabs, this is still anyone’s game. The Second challenge will present opportunities to adjust based on the comments, grow as writers, and showcase their unique talents and skills. The Challenges will be tough, the scoring tougher, but now our competitors have the necessary information to improve.
This was an AMAZING cohort of stories, and while every competitor should be VERY PROUD of what they have written, they should not be complacent—every detail counts, and with only five points per category, they need every point they can get.
Special shout out to
, , , and our very own for writing their own takes on this challenge!Which was your favorite story? Have you subscribed to them all yet? What do you expect to see in the next challenge?
What great reading- thoroughly enjoyed all of these!
I've subscribed to all. I think my favorite was the one with the lowest score! Yes, there was a lot, but I think for the ending to have that kind of punch, the reader almost needs too much information.