Writing in Dialogue Competition
Hosted by Pen and Keyboard Writers
(an affiliate of OWFI – Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc.)
Contest Closed
Hosted by Pen and Keyboard Writers
(an affiliate of OWFI – Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc.)
Contest Closed
Results:
The first place story winner, as chosen by the judges and as an officer of Pen and Keyboard Writers, refused the placing. Therefore, the official winners are as follows:
1st: “Bigfoot on My Shoulder” / Ed Kowalski Prize $20.00
2nd: “The Send Off” / Holly Jahangiri Prize $15.00
3rd: “Danger at the Mid-High” / Rita Durrett Prize $5.00
HM: “Honey Upon Thy Lips” / Anne Wells
First through third place winners will receive checks in the mail by September 21.
Stories will be printed on this website and on the Pen and Keyboard Writers Facebook page.
Thank you, everyone who entered. We hope any of you who are in the Edmond, Oklahoma area will consider joining us the second Saturday of each month at Mardel's from 10-noon. Also, if you're not a member of OWFI (Oklahoma Writers' Federation, Inc., with members all over the world), we hope you will consider joining (OWFI.org). Pen and Keyboard Writers takes email members, too.
Some of the judges comments from various entries are copied below. Some writers did not follow the "rules."
Good take with self vs self. One minor point hyphen vs dash — need dash not hyphens
Good story, good use of dialogue only. Punctuation problems
Good story BUT difficult to read without indenting paragraphs. A bit predictable, but over all interesting.
Good story in dialogue but confusing when one characters thoughts are not in the same paragraph as spoken words. Good conflict, good plot, good climax
Good use of dialogue to create story. One problem, the friend was rather blasé about her “lover’s” death. A bit unbelievable. The twist was good, if polished a bit — a winner.
Good use of dialogue for story, but lack of full development.
Formatting a bit confusing. Just indenting each paragraph and quotation marks would have be better.
Good use of dialogue, even if it were stilted. I would have used more modern language to keep reader interest. Formatting off.
A bit short. The use of full word limit would allow more development.
Story line a bit flat. Could have used word allotment to develop more.
Where’s the conflict? A story needs conflict. Had plenty of words left.
Didn’t follow “rule” of use dialogue only.
More of a narrative than a story in dialogue. Could have been good.
No components for a story. Not really dialogue, but a narrative in first person.
Good interplay using thoughts from both parties in the discussion. Cute Story; good resolution
Intriguing story well told. (Would a vault door lock from the inside?)
Good use of multiple scenarios and several characters. Surprise ending was rather abrupt.
Good story that could have been expanded – did not use full word count.
Storyline shift wasn’t a surprise. Pam too unemotional about death of lover. “real gator” a good line.
Interesting formatting with one speaker’s dialog in more narrow margins. Attempt at humor falls short with me.
Over use of “Old English” trite phrases. The “Helen of Troy” disclosure was a surprise. Might have been better written in current terms.
Colloquial dialog a bit forced. Outcome predictable. Well thought out but lacks reality.
Surprise ending isn’t a surprise. Story lacks impact. Could be developed with full use of allotted words.
Cute story – I laughed – but too brief; This left me wanting more.
A discussion that really goes nowhere. Perhaps typical of today’s dialog. Needs more development.
Not in dialog format. Inappropriate punctuation. An interesting psych treatise but not in contest guidelines.
Formatting not to contest standards. Difficult to read. Unnecessary details that don’t really make a point.
No real story; no conflict; no resolution.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
The first place story winner, as chosen by the judges and as an officer of Pen and Keyboard Writers, refused the placing. Therefore, the official winners are as follows:
1st: “Bigfoot on My Shoulder” / Ed Kowalski Prize $20.00
2nd: “The Send Off” / Holly Jahangiri Prize $15.00
3rd: “Danger at the Mid-High” / Rita Durrett Prize $5.00
HM: “Honey Upon Thy Lips” / Anne Wells
First through third place winners will receive checks in the mail by September 21.
Stories will be printed on this website and on the Pen and Keyboard Writers Facebook page.
Thank you, everyone who entered. We hope any of you who are in the Edmond, Oklahoma area will consider joining us the second Saturday of each month at Mardel's from 10-noon. Also, if you're not a member of OWFI (Oklahoma Writers' Federation, Inc., with members all over the world), we hope you will consider joining (OWFI.org). Pen and Keyboard Writers takes email members, too.
Some of the judges comments from various entries are copied below. Some writers did not follow the "rules."
Good take with self vs self. One minor point hyphen vs dash — need dash not hyphens
Good story, good use of dialogue only. Punctuation problems
Good story BUT difficult to read without indenting paragraphs. A bit predictable, but over all interesting.
Good story in dialogue but confusing when one characters thoughts are not in the same paragraph as spoken words. Good conflict, good plot, good climax
Good use of dialogue to create story. One problem, the friend was rather blasé about her “lover’s” death. A bit unbelievable. The twist was good, if polished a bit — a winner.
Good use of dialogue for story, but lack of full development.
Formatting a bit confusing. Just indenting each paragraph and quotation marks would have be better.
Good use of dialogue, even if it were stilted. I would have used more modern language to keep reader interest. Formatting off.
A bit short. The use of full word limit would allow more development.
Story line a bit flat. Could have used word allotment to develop more.
Where’s the conflict? A story needs conflict. Had plenty of words left.
Didn’t follow “rule” of use dialogue only.
More of a narrative than a story in dialogue. Could have been good.
No components for a story. Not really dialogue, but a narrative in first person.
Good interplay using thoughts from both parties in the discussion. Cute Story; good resolution
Intriguing story well told. (Would a vault door lock from the inside?)
Good use of multiple scenarios and several characters. Surprise ending was rather abrupt.
Good story that could have been expanded – did not use full word count.
Storyline shift wasn’t a surprise. Pam too unemotional about death of lover. “real gator” a good line.
Interesting formatting with one speaker’s dialog in more narrow margins. Attempt at humor falls short with me.
Over use of “Old English” trite phrases. The “Helen of Troy” disclosure was a surprise. Might have been better written in current terms.
Colloquial dialog a bit forced. Outcome predictable. Well thought out but lacks reality.
Surprise ending isn’t a surprise. Story lacks impact. Could be developed with full use of allotted words.
Cute story – I laughed – but too brief; This left me wanting more.
A discussion that really goes nowhere. Perhaps typical of today’s dialog. Needs more development.
Not in dialog format. Inappropriate punctuation. An interesting psych treatise but not in contest guidelines.
Formatting not to contest standards. Difficult to read. Unnecessary details that don’t really make a point.
No real story; no conflict; no resolution.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Rules:
1. Only one entry per person
2. Entry must consist of only dialogue or internal monologue (thoughts in italics).
3. Entry should be a short story with conflict and resolution.
4. Entry must not exceed 750 words and not include erotica.
5. Include word count after the end of the story, 3-4 empty lines after last line.
6. Entry must be double spaced, 1” margins all around, typed in Times New Roman 12 font or equivalent
7. Contestant’s name, full address, phone number, and preferred email address needed in upper right hand corner of first page. This part can be single spaced.
8. Title, name of contestant, and page number needed in one line on top of pages after first page.
9. Entry is to be sent as a Word document attachment to [email protected]. Only electronic entries accepted.
NOTE: Grammar, spelling, and correct punctuation are absolutely essential for top rated stories. This contest is about craftsmanship. As a side note, your judges are patently biased towards stories with some kind of conflict and some kind of resolution.
Deadline: August 15, midnight CDT.
Winners will be announced September 15, 2013 on the Pen and Keyboard Writers website: http://pen-keyboard.weebly.com and the Pen and Keyboard Writers Facebook page.
Prizes: 1st place - $20 2nd place - $10 3rd place - $5
All winning entries plus an honorable mention will be posted on this website and our Facebook page.
1. Only one entry per person
2. Entry must consist of only dialogue or internal monologue (thoughts in italics).
3. Entry should be a short story with conflict and resolution.
4. Entry must not exceed 750 words and not include erotica.
5. Include word count after the end of the story, 3-4 empty lines after last line.
6. Entry must be double spaced, 1” margins all around, typed in Times New Roman 12 font or equivalent
7. Contestant’s name, full address, phone number, and preferred email address needed in upper right hand corner of first page. This part can be single spaced.
8. Title, name of contestant, and page number needed in one line on top of pages after first page.
9. Entry is to be sent as a Word document attachment to [email protected]. Only electronic entries accepted.
NOTE: Grammar, spelling, and correct punctuation are absolutely essential for top rated stories. This contest is about craftsmanship. As a side note, your judges are patently biased towards stories with some kind of conflict and some kind of resolution.
Deadline: August 15, midnight CDT.
Winners will be announced September 15, 2013 on the Pen and Keyboard Writers website: http://pen-keyboard.weebly.com and the Pen and Keyboard Writers Facebook page.
Prizes: 1st place - $20 2nd place - $10 3rd place - $5
All winning entries plus an honorable mention will be posted on this website and our Facebook page.