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Smut Marathon Round 4 Feedback
For this round of feedback, I chose to use a “teacher” strategy called “2 Stars and a Wish” — that’s two things well done and one suggestion or question or critique. I’ll admit, I did have to work a little hard to find two stars on some than others. As I read, and tracked my thoughts, I also marked stories with a “*” or “**” when they really stood out to me. Somehow, I got lucky enough to end up with just the right number of double-star entries. Then, it was just a matter of ranking them. As with previous rounds, what I looked for specifically were well-written pieces (grammatically…
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Smut Marathon – Round 3 Feedback
To read all of the entries for round three, please click HERE. I’ve learned something about how I judge – my first impressions and first loves are not always the ones that I choose as my topic picks. Here’s why: what strikes my fancy upfront doesn’t always pass the muster when I apply my criteria for judging. The Criteria 1) The story must be well-written. If it is poorly written, I will be turned off immediately, before I even have a chance to see if the story meets the remaining criteria. 2) There must be a story…elements of plot, such as an enticing setting, rising action, conflict, tension, a climax…
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Smut Marathon – Round 2 Feedback
Read the submissions HERE. See the voting results HERE. (I find it interesting that NONE of the pieces that placed in the top 3 for the public vote were in my top 9. And the winner of the jury vote was my #9. “Viva Voce” was my 3rd choice, and it came in as a first runner up. The others that placed for the jury vote were not in my top 9. The overall winner for round 2 wasn’t even in my top 30. So…I may be looking for something that others are not, and not seeing things that others are. Scroll to the bottom of the post to see…
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Smut Marthon Round 1 Feedback
The first round of Smut Marathon has been played and juried, and the results have been announced! What a fantastic start! I love finding out the results…seeing if I know any of the writers I’ve so carefully voted for. This round, I only recognized to of the names on my jury list. Below are the pieces (in order from first to last) that I voted for. To read all of the pieces, head HERE. 80) HUMIDITY – Mr. Ruby Their entry mixed smoke from the dance floor with the hallway light, illuminating a steaming mass of beating, breathing, bodies in the orgy room. 78) THE WHIP – Dioscurus Naked as…
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Accolades, Smut Marathon, and a “Regular Features” Update
Regular Features I am updating my regular features. Many of these things I already do to some extent now, but I’m trying to simplify and figure out the best way to cover the most ground as possible without over-extending myself. I can’t manage to write every day, and sometimes other topics come up and trump the usual plans, but on the days that I can manage (and when the memes inspire), this is where I’m headed: Monday: Mindfulness Monday – I need a lot more mindfulness in my life, especially in the categories of sex and marriage. This is going to be my place to explore that. Tuesday: Meme Rotation (This…
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Smut Marathon (quarter-finals) Feedback
If you don’t know about the Smut Marathon, please click HERE to head to the website and learn more. It’s a yearly writing competition. Last year, I was a contestant (made it through round 7) and this year I am a jury member (which I am thoroughly enjoying). I’m always intrigued to see the final results of a voting round. What I’ve found, especially as a jury member, is that I vote very differently than most. So, I suppose my feedback is valuable in the sense that it at least lets those interested know why I vote the way I do. I could look at the numbers and feel as…
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Smut Marathon Round 6 – My Vote, Thoughts, and Advice for the Next Round
To read the Round 6 stories, visit this LINK. To read the Round 6 voting results, visit this LINK. The Initial Read-through: Every round, I seem to follow a different strategy for selecting my top 10. This round, I had a bit of a tough time even finding a top 5 that I REALLY liked. I don’t want to make it sound like the writers didn’t do a good job, because I know how hard it s to write under this sort of pressure and under the strict guidelines of the prompts. However, on the first read-through, as I marked each “yes,” “maybe,” and “no” based on my initial reaction,…
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My Smut Marathon Thoughts- Round 4 (“Eavesdropping”)
This was a tough round for me to judge. The topic (EAVESDROPPING) lent itself to the reality that occurred, many cliche stories that didn’t even stick with me through the first reading. My first reading was just that…a reading. I didn’t even write anything down. I just read them and let the stories wash over me or sink in. Let’s just say that the majority washed over. But, I kind of expected that from the moment I saw the prompt. The next day, I went back and skimmed through to find the ones I “remembered” for some reason…all the once that sort of tickled my fancy or creeped me out…
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Smut Marathon 2019: My Thoughts (and Vote) for Round 3
Before reading my post, make sure to head over and read the entries for Round 3! This was a tough round. Dialogue is always hard, but to create a story that is 75% dialogue?!!! Well, that puts a lot of pressure on the writer to create the story THROUGH the dialogue rather than using dialogue to improve the story or help create the characters. Because of that, the boxes that needed to be ticked for this round (for me) were as follows: _____ grabs my attention/interest _____ unique and creative enough to stand out from the rest _____ actually tells a story rather than just creates a scene _____ dialogue…
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Smut Marathon (my thoughts on round 2)
I’m loving simply being a voter this round. It takes a lot of the pressure off, as I am neither a writer or a judge. This means I can be a critic, but I don’t have to be weighed down by the knowledge that my choices make or break the writers. The way I normally vote is to simply read through the entries one time…cold…with a pen in hand. Anything that grabs my attention gets written on my list. I don’t worry to much about why it catches my eye, I just follow my gut. What do I really like? What can I connect to on an emotion level? And what wows…
