The Gen 3 Contest (2023)

INTRODUCTION

Finally, it's time for the third Gen 3 Contest!

We're changing things yet again, but third time's the charm, right? It's the magical number, after all. Hopefully this version will be the best so we can keep it this way.

Let's get into it.

WHAT IS THE GEN 3 CONTEST?

The contest originated in the Literary Lounge Discord server, named after our nonexistent third general channel. The goal is to write a novelette between 7.5K and 20K, using 3 keywords. It's a community-based contest, so if you're interested in participating, please join the server! The link is in our bio.

Unlike previous years, we are doing away with the anonymity requirements. (We will leave it up to the judges' discretion whether they prefer to stay anonymous or not, though.) This means that you, as a contestant, are allowed and encouraged to talk about your story. Although the secrecy was a fun aspect when we started this, we've decided to leave it in the past because there's nothing more motivating than hyping each other up!

(Sidenote: We will ask judges to refrain from coming into spaces where entry details are discussed to minimize influenced judging. To make this easier, we ask that conversations about the contest and the entries remain contained to the #contest channel. This is explained in more detail in the FAQ.)

There are two parts to the contest:

The first is the offline writing period. This is the shortest period: 4 weeks. You may use this to plot your story, write your first draft, or whatever suits your fancy. All we ask is that you publish your first chapter on Wattpad at the end of this period. There will be an official deadline for this, and you will be required to publish your first chapter before round two starts.

During the second period, which lasts 7 weeks, you will need to write and publish the rest of your story so that all parts are available on the day of the final deadline. You can space it out so you've got a chapter coming out every week or you can publish it all in one go at the start or at the end of the period. Whatever you like. It doesn't really matter, as long as all parts are up by the end of round 2!

And then the judging will begin.

WHAT ARE THE DATES?

May 26: The keywords are released. The contest officially starts.

June 23-25: End of round 1.

At this time, we ask participants to publish their first chapter on Wattpad. You have the whole weekend to post chapter one. You can start posting chapters after this at your leisure.

Note: Please don't make any major changes after posting the first chapter as the judges may start reading at any time. Fixing errors is fine.

Also, please send the link to your published story to either Glyn or Haley or send it in the #contest channel, tagging one of us, so it can be added to the LL contest reading list. Readers can begin reading!

August 11: End of round 2.

Now is the time to submit your finished entry. It has to be between 7.5K and 20K and it has to include all 3 keywords or it will be disqualified. All chapters must be uploaded to Wattpad by this deadline.

We also ask that you send a copy to either Glyn or Haley. This is mostly just to verify word count, use of keywords, and that no large changes happen after the submission deadline. Any changes or additions made after the deadline will not be included in judging.

September 8: End of judging period.

At this point the judges will have completed reading all entries, and final deliberations for results will take place.

September 15: Results.

All deadlines are at 10PM GMT/UTC.

HOW DO I SUBMIT MY CONTEST ENTRY?

As mentioned above, you have to send your entry to the contest organizers (Glyn or Haley, aka NerdOfAllTrades), and you can only do this on Discord, in a private message. You can send a docx or pdf file or a link to a Google Doc. Make sure that the document is easy to read. Do not send it via any other platform.

Your entry must also be published on Wattpad in its entirety, but this does not count as a complete submission! Don't forget to send us an actual file and don't forget to do it before August 11, 10PM GMT/UTC.

If you have any questions about this, you're welcome to ask them in our #contest channel.

HOW ARE THE STORIES JUDGED?

On top of your general writing quality, we look at 3 elements in your novelette: characterization, plot, and atmosphere. We'll be creating a report card to judge your story in these categories, which you can request once the contest is over.

There will be a grand winner, a 2nd place winner, and a 3rd place winner.

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I NEED TO KNOW?

You are required to publish your novelette in full on Wattpad by August 11. When we post the results, we need to be able to refer people to your story, and it will be added to a reading list on our Wattpad account. When you submit your entry, you agree to keep it up on Wattpad for 3 months; you need to give people time to read it. After that, you can do whatever you want.

Your novelette must contain all 3 keywords, or it will be disqualified. You can use them however and wherever you want, either as a direct quote or metaphorically. For example, if you need to include the word "bridge" you can write about a literal bridge, or you can describe a metaphorical bridge between two things. Either way, it must be obvious to the judges that you used all three keywords in one way or another.

Your novelette must be written specifically for this contest. No recycling old stories, please. You have more than enough time to write something new.

If your final word count is a few words off from 7.5K or 20K, that's fine. We won't make a big deal out of one extra sentence. Just don't go overboard.

Also, follow Wattpad's guidelines. Thanks.

That is all the information you need for now. In the next part, we'll go over all the frequently asked questions. If you're confused about anything, please ask your question in the #contest channel so we can add it on the list. Questions and answers sometimes get lost in the server, so we'll try to compile everything here on Wattpad for easy access.