[Community Project] Pathfinder Fiction Contest 2014


Lost Omens Campaign Setting General Discussion

The Exchange

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Hello everybody!

It is that time again. Pathfinder Fiction Contest Time.

This is our official Paizo thread for the length of the contest and we'll be making special announcements here as well.

For information on how to enter the contest, follow this link here: Pathfinder Fiction Contest Details.

This will be the fifth contest we have run of its kind. I personally have overseen three of these contests and Robert Gresham (Malikjoker) oversaw our contest back in 2012. No single contest is ever the same. This year we are featuring "Guilds and Organizations of Golarion."

We hope you enjoy our theme choice.

Just an FYI, Pathfinder Chronicler holds the largest fan made Pathfinder Fiction base to date on the web. Check out our stories on our Website:
Pathfinder Chronicler Stories by Title and feel free to leave us a comment.

Thank you everyone for making our last four years of contesting amazing!

The Exchange

This question was brought to my attention in an email.

Am I required to use an organization that already has been written about, or can I create an organization using knowledge of the setting that fits well within the style and feel? Just wondering which is preferred, or if there even is a preference.

To put it simply, you would choose an established organization (however remote) and then write about it as you see fit. The idea is to flex your Pathfinder knowledge and as a contest we are testing your ability to incorporate existing canon into a new story.

That said, I encourage all contestants to not lean on pre-existing Pathfinder knowledge as a given for your audience. Obscure shockers directly related to the material that is meaningless to those who are not "in the know" is clear indicator that your writing talent stretches only so far beyond the GM Screen.

My advice, make a great story first. Make it intense as it is engaging. Do not write a story without a satisfying ending. Consider the whole cha-bang before you start writing. It should have a beginning, middle and end. Readers like resolution, not....and it goes on and on like that.

The best contest stories by far hold these principles first when it comes to storytelling, and then cautiously add in canon as it seems fit or reasonable.


Dot.

RPG Superstar 2014 Top 16, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 16

The rules say that "professional publication" is defined as at least 5 cents per word from a major publisher. What counts as a "major" publisher?


Guilds and Organizations seems like a pretty broad concept, possibly by design. Would that include things like, for instance, the combat schools in Inner Sea Combat, or universities, etc?

I assume the answer is yes, but just for sake of clarity. :)


Adventure Path Charter Subscriber; Pathfinder Rulebook, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Maps, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Ohh fun - for those posting questions here, you might get a quicker response by posting to the official questions mail addy in the rules.

Posted here for ease of your finding it... ;)

pathfinderchronicler.net/contest-details wrote:


If you have a question, contact us at pfcontestquestions@pathfinderchronicler.net

Lantern Lodge RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32

Dotting

The Exchange

When it comes to the five cent a word thing, that excludes RPG related work. In my opinion, those two are different meters in the creative craft.

As for "Major Publishers," I would again fallback on the 5 cents a word paid gigs for "writing," specifically.

However, I do realize there are token projects out there such as Wily Writers that pay for stories that win their writing contests. This has some gray areas in it (as in did they pay your for your story or did you get a "prize")and I would not presume to tie anyone down to being a professional or paid as such.

But let's say you got Published by Bane or Penguin or Paizo (for a story), that would mean you could not participate.

As for the Combat Schools or Universities, hell yea! They count and would make for a more interesting read for several reasons. One, we can relate better to those who never held a sword or those that are attending college or a trade school.

Just my 2 cents.

The Exchange

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We have news!

Todd Stewart has climbed aboard as one of our judges. Todd has consistently moved on to the Sutter Round time and time again in our contest and we've published his stories in all our Anthologies. He decided this year that he felt the call to give something back to all the contestants and judges from previous years.

We are very proud to have a planar expert on board!

There will be more news to come...


Is there only one round before the Sutter Round this time?

Contributor

Zuxius wrote:

We have news!

Todd Stewart has climbed aboard as one of our judges. Todd has consistently moved on to the Sutter Round time and time again in our contest and we've published his stories in all our Anthologies. He decided this year that he felt the call to give something back to all the contestants and judges from previous years.

We are very proud to have a planar expert on board!

There will be more news to come...

I'm certainly looking forward to reading, critiquing, and where requested providing feedback on stories submitted to the contest. :)


And I promise not to provide something so horrible you lobotomize yourself with a spoon!

Sczarni RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 16, RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32

Dot

The Exchange

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Phouka wrote:
Is there only one round before the Sutter Round this time?

That is correct. One round to rule them all. One round to find them. One round to find the top five and in the Sutter Round grind them.


Well, that ups the challenge a bit. :) Good luck to everyone.

The Exchange

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We have news!

Clinton Boomer will be reprising his role as our 4th Judge for this year's 2014 contest. Boomer is well known around the Community for an assortment of "things." I remember him most for his bragging contest and Christopher Walken impressions, but you may know him as author of "The Hole in Midnight" and as a writer and co-writer of various adventure paths.

We are glad to have our Twisted Wishes answered and welcome Boomer back to the team!


Good luck to everyone.


Wow! This is getting intense!


I'm super excited to see what kind of creative stories people come up with this time. So many factions and organizations to choose from! I wonder if anyone will write about the Aspis Consortium...

The Exchange

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We have news!

Just in case you may not know, we have just had our Volume III posted to the Paizo Website for free download. Go get your download here.

This new addition to the existing material has many stories that were originally derived from this Pathfinder Fiction Contest. Those original stories went through extensive re-edits and are perfected for all to read. If you ever wonder what kind of story we're looking for in our contests, look no further than these Volumes.

Currently, we are working on Volume IV using stories from last year's contest. We look forward to your participation this year to craft Volume V!

On another note, we have been nominated as Paizo Fans United along with Wayfinder for FAN FAVORITE PUBLISHER at this years GenCon Ennies. Wayfinder and Pathfinder Chronicler would appreciate your vote.

I will just happen to be attending the Ennies this year at GenCon and would be tickled to hear that somehow...through some fluke, we won this award. You can vote for us and make this possible by giving us your vote! Check it out here.

Thank you everyone for being the best RPG Community ever seen in RPG and a tip of the hat goes out to all Paizo Employees that frequent our posts and stimulate us with their input.

Special thanks to Liz Courts for getting our Volume III up on the web for all to see.

The Exchange

And we're down to 17 days. That's right writers, 17 days to present us with something quite remarkable. I know...I know...if you only had a little more time since...July 4th! Get off your high horse or low horse and stop telling yourselves that great storytelling takes time...that must be years and years in the making to reach the never before ever seen bin, and just give yourself a chance to make something that is well within your capabilities.

We're standing by.

Grand Lodge

Challenge accepted.


I'd love to participate, only I do not want to write about Golarion, good luck to everyone else.

The Exchange

And just 8 days to go. I understand that Wayfinder just closed the door on submissions for their upcoming issue...so...that means a lot of people's creative time has been freed up. 8 days!

The Exchange

And now just three...teheh.

The Exchange

Now just one more day. Contest ends on Friday, just a minute before midnight. 5 lucky people will then been selected to go on to the Sutter Round, and of those five, James will choose three to win 200 dollars worth of Paizo Gift Certificates.


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Got my submission in. This is the 5th story I've written for these contests.

I hate to say it, but a deadline is the most effective way to get me writing.

Grand Lodge

I missed this one - I'll get on the next one (in the mean time, my short story draft so far has given me a couple of good bits for my submissions for Wayfinder 13, so it's definitely effort well-spent!)

The Exchange

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Five finalists to Sutter Round.

We did start the contest in July. July 4th to be exact. We may move it up to May because it has usually coincided with PaizoCon. I don't mind giving you guys a summer to procrastinate, and I think the next contest will have a date that will precede a Wayfinder due date so that excuse can go out the window too.

The Exchange

And we have the results for our Pathfinder Fiction Contest 2014!

Just click on Pathfinder Chronicler here to see just how it all went down. Enjoy reading the winners and see a rare glimpse of an industry perspective on the pieces.

Managing Editor

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Congratulations to all of the finalists, and kudos to everyone who participated! It take courage to sit down and write a story, and even more to submit it for critiquing, so everyone who wrote for this contest clearly has that first and most important part of being a professional author.

As always, it was an honor to be involved. And though this is my last year as final judge, it's *not* the last year that the final round will involve a special Paizo judge. Stay tuned... ;)


Congratulations to Samuel L. Berry and thanks to James Sutter, Ted/Zuxius and all who participated. I think this makes 5 years now we've had this contest?

Off to read all the other finalists' stories now.

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