SHORT STORY WRITERS CONTEST for Dec 2021-Jan 2022 --TTS2022-- TIS THE SEASON --Winners Announced

This is an Official ATS Short Story Writers Contest!

It is open to ALL members of ATS.

This area is a safe place for our 'mighty fine creative minds' to gather. If you'd like to participate, know that the Terms and Conditions of your membership are strongly enforced. You are not in the Mud-Pit. Profanity, Political baiting, Personal attacks, are not allowed or welcomed at all. Want to talk about something else? Then go to the other forums here at ATS. We only discuss the stories in here written by YOU, the membership.

Your Entry Has to be Original Fiction & posted in it's own thread HERE in the Short Stories forum,. Then in this contest thread, create a post with a link to your story. If you need any help with Spelling or Grammar-checking, Word-Counting, and more please visit; Writer Tools; Spell Check and More

Your Story Should be written and edited with proper paragraphs. We have noticed that stories copy & pasted from 'mobile devices' might lose their formatting. Please review how it looks on the ATS Thread and add the proper editing (as you have only about 20 minutes to make edits/corrections). This is a contest, no one wants to read a solid block of words.

"The END" needs to be at the bottom of your story, it wont add to the wordcount.

You will be awarded "Writer" Status if you win 1st or 2nd in the non-writer category, please add in your title 'non-writer'.

The contest will run from NOW to Saturday, January 1, 2022. Any submissions after that date will be disqualified. A period of ONE WEEK after the closing of the contest will be provided for reading & voting.

Contest Winners get to choose the next Contest Theme. This contest theme is courtesy of our last winner AccessDenied, and is entitled; "TIS THE SEASON" [TTS2022]

Tis The Season... Now that does not just mean Christmas. It could be just winter. Or whatever people do in the beginning of the cold season. Winter sports. Building a winter camp. Volunteering at a homeless shelter. Going on a hike looking for Bigfoot tracks in the snow....Season of my Discontent. Fishing/Hunting. A Season to Harvest.
All kinds of stories can be written about this time of the year.
How you perceive this Season is entirely up to YOU!

RULES OF ENTRY (are simple)

* Entries must be original fiction. ATS members cannot be characters.
* Entries MUST include -TTS2022- in your Stories title. ( e.g. Remembering My First Snow -TTS2022- non-writer )
* No word-count limit (in this Current contest), but remember it is a 'SHORT STORY' Contest. Stories that run past the OP are accepted but no points given for additional posts.
* You need to post a link to your story here in this contest thread so others know that you made up an entry.
* You must stay within the Terms and Conditions (please read)

WINNERS and SCORING

ATS "Writer" status, prizes as follows:
1st -- 5 Applause, and gets to choose the next contest theme (Repeat winners can choose to pass to another for the theme of a future contest).
2nd -- 3 Applause
3rd -- 1 Applause

non-writer will receive the following:
1st Place -- 3 Applause & Writer Status
2nd Place -- 2 Applause & Writer Status
3rd Place -- 1 Applause

How the Contestants get points to win all depends on you! You can give FLAGS to your favorite story and add STARS to your favorite stories opening post.

We then tally up the scores of 'Flags' (worth 2 points each). And 'Stars' in the opening post (worth 1 point each)

And that's it! Got a question? We're happy to try and answer anything about the
contests/rules etc. But ENJOY this new contest, GOOD LUCK, HAPPY READING and HAVE FUN!

Note: New OP contest format, image selection and artwork thanks to JohnnyAnonymous.





Winners are announced:
www.abovetopsecret.com...

a reply to: DontTreadOnMe

It's been a while since I've taken quill to parchment.

Might have to start again. . . . .

Looking forward to all the submissions!

a reply to: DBCowboy

Do it!!!!!

Question.
If it is very short, will that still count. When I write, I like to have every word tell a story. ( an attachment to the heart )

a reply to: DontTreadOnMe

Oh man, I've been waiting for this! How exciting. I'm going to drop sci-fi, comedy, and Christmas into a word blender and see what comes out lol

I am really looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with. Good luck to all!!!

a reply to: musicismagic

Yes it will still count, some of the stories we get are short, short stories. I think we've even had some that were poems.

a reply to: DreadKnock

An interesting combo....
Happy writing.

a reply to: DontTreadOnMe

Thank you.

TTS2022 (Benson) www.abovetopsecret.com...

If you are talking about paragraph indentions ATS does not allow, as all my stuff has breaks and paragraph 5 space indentions until posted then they disappear leaving the breaks/spacing for the paragraphs but no 5 space indention at the beginning of the paragraph. I probably misunderstood..?

a reply to: DontTreadOnMe

Okay I guess I got it kinda right in the last thread...
But then you said it doesn't have to be about Christmas necessarily. Well, I have a brilliant idea for just that.

Well....

This should be fun..

Here's mine!

I got the idea after seeing in the OP "the season of my discontent" and it just came to mind that not many people like winter, much less love it. Hope you enjoy it.

Here's my entry www.abovetopsecret.com...

It snowed here a couple days ago and I live quite close to a well-known castle. It looked great with a light dusting of snow and I imagined what it would be like to prepare for battle. I planned to make it longer but I have to go to work.

A Moment In Time : TTS2022 - Just for Fun

Not in the contest, but thought I would jump in for fun.

Hope you all have a VERY Merry Christmas!!!

Semper

20 bucks said if I wrote about the season y’all would walk away wondering wtf just happened 🤔

What a wonderful start for our End of the Year Contest!

Remember that you can twist the Season theme to where ever your mind takes you, (within the T&C's of course.. lol). Can't wait to read what 'you' submit.

Thanks, DTOM

I love reading all the offerings and participating as well.