The Ever Generating Story Awards (TEGSA)

Winners of the 2024 TEGSA

If I go backward, you will know. So here goes...

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1st Place goes to:

Stitches by EvilMaybeWriter

Title/Cover: 10/10

The cover is startling, with the dismembered hand on the checkered floor of the diner and dark-colored thread coming from it. The title and cover match the story perfectly. I absolutely understand why you turned down the offer for a new cover.

Blurb: 10/10

The blurb was of just the right length and included several substantial hooks that practically demanded the story to be read.

Character Development: 10/10

In the first few chapters, the main characters (Travis, Kendra, Tiffany) are described in detail, as are their personalities.These insights affect how they reacted upon meeting/greeting Miss Della, our matriarch who demands manners and civil words.

World Building: 10/10

This little town in Pennsylvania is in for the shock of its life as its world comes to an end. We can see every aspect of the diner and how it holds the town together within its alternate reality. At least, I hope it's an alternate reality...

Grammar & Punctuation: 8/10

Both judges picked up on a few errors, however, they seemed to be edits you made but somehow ended up back within the story, creating duplicate (but reworded) paragraphs.

Plot:10/10

This is where you shined. Using needles that are almost sentient but bent on destruction is something not seen before. If you add the jilted lover, the woman who feels trapped in the small town, and the disc jockey carrying a horrifying secret–it's a gold mine.

Prompt Usage: 20/20

Using the car radio and music blasting through speakers at the diner was a stroke of genius. I noticed you put the meaning of the prompts where you could include them, but this technique made using each one easy without disrupting your storyline.

Flow: 18/20

The flow from chapter to chapter was perfect, and I would not change a thing. The two points were lost because there were two times (Travis' car accident and Kendra's final walk through the diner) where, in trying to describe the scene, you went into too much detail and ended up confusing your reader as to what the image was you were trying to portray.

Total: 96/100

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2nd Place goes to:

Fractured Petals (Dusk and Dawn) by Cool-cat2023

Title/Cover: 7/10

At the time of judging, the name had been changed from Dusk til Dawn to Fractured Petals. After reading the story, I did not agree with this change, as her love for gardening did not play enough of a part in the story to make the title match. However, the original title of Dusk Til Dawn matched perfectly. I would recommend changing it back. (After the judging, you changed it to Dusk and Dawn.)