Spooky Writing Contest 2017 Questions and discussion go here!

As T TheRockInception asked, can we only enter one submission, or is more possible?

Also, I've written a """horror""" story last January. Am I allowed to use it?
 
What qualifies as "creepy"? I ask this because in many creepy stories, the idea behind it isn't really creepy in theory, but rather it's how it's written and structured or even just the contrast of some creepy elements with one that isn't supposed to be creepy that creates the fear and tension. In other words, what is or not creepy can be quite subjective, which makes me wonder what exactly the criteria will be for judging that.
 
Idea said:
What qualifies as "creepy"? I ask this because in many creepy stories, the idea behind it isn't really creepy in theory, but rather it's how it's written and structured or even just the contrast of some creepy elements with one that isn't supposed to be creepy that creates the fear and tension. In other words, what is or not creepy can be quite subjective, which makes me wonder what exactly the criteria will be for judging that.
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As long as the theme is creepy then it's really a free for all. If it's creepy to you then chances are it'll send shivers down some other spines too ^-^
 
PanOtterPus said:
As long as the theme is creepy then it's really a free for all. If it's creepy to you then chances are it'll send shivers down some other spines too ^-^
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Alright, I suppose I will change my question there to maybe understand better your answer, what exactly is the theme, in that sentence?

Edit: I don't mean that as in what is the content of the theme, but rather where do you look at to find the theme.
 
Idea said:
Alright, I suppose I will change my question there to maybe understand better your answer, what exactly is the theme, in that sentence?

Edit: I don't mean that as in what is the content of the theme, but rather where do you look at to find the theme.
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To be completely fair, I'm currently unaware as to what exactly the judges will be looking at, but as this competition is allowing for complete creative freedom, I assume you could have the theme lurking anywhere you like. Creepy is creepy.
 
Idea Idea

The overall theme needs to creepy. It's somewhat of an ambiguous theme, but that's part of the challenge. We're not giving you much other than the fact that it needs to be creepy so that we challenge you and push your creative writing.
 
Gilzar said:
Idea Idea

The overall theme needs to creepy. It's somewhat of an ambiguous theme, but that's part of the challenge. We're not giving you much other than the fact that it needs to be creepy so that we challenge you and push your creative writing.
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Well, yeah, I just think it would be a little in poor taste if I was writing something I thought had a creepy theme and then someone comes rejects the entry completely due to a difference in tastes. So I was just trying to make sure that didn't happen to me
 
Idea Idea

We know that everyone has something different that creeps them out. Overall as long as we can tell that you made the story with the goal of being a horror story you'll do just fine!
 
I don't plan on submitting one, but I'll be reading them because I love creepy things. So I'm just wondering, fandom stories are not allowed, correct? They have to be 100% original?
 
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Yay, I’m going to write one!



Aaaaand someone’s already basically used the high concept of my story. Damn.
 
Another question for the "original" part of the rules! If the story references a pre-existing legend or game (game that's already considered a creepy pasta like One Man Hide and Seek), would that be considered a rule breaker?
 
Sorry about the delay on answers guys!

Cold Ramen Noodles Cold Ramen Noodles We are not allowing Fandom. If you take inspiration from something that's fine, but we want the stories to be as original as possible.

BDark BDark If you'd like to make more than one submission you are welcome to. However, we encourage that you focus as much time and effort as you can into your stories rather than just trying to have a quantity vs quality game. As for your past stories, so long as they have not been posted yet you are allowed to use them.

@Lancelot Carrying over character names is fine.

Nano Nano could you please go into a little more detail on what you're asking? I'm not sure if I understand it entirely.
 
Gilzar said:
Nano Nano could you please go into a little more detail on what you're asking? I'm not sure if I understand it entirely.
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For example, if a character in the story decides for some reason that it's a great idea to play One Man Hide and Seek. The rules and concept would be the same, but the story would delve more into the individual events that the character experiences, since the concept itself is just a list of rules and procedures and not an actual story (not including the currently pre-existing songs/stories that the game already inspired which I won't be following anyway), or would that inclusion in the story be considered too strong to be just a reference/inspiration?
 
Is it OK if I try to write a horror story but it ends up bring more like a captain's log and mostly retrospecting? Also, is it OK if said retrospecting makes the story not all that horrific?

Edit: and what if I want to write a spoopy story about kids trick-or-treating? Nothing actually spooky, just lots of spoops.
 
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Ferociousfeind Ferociousfeind However you choose to convey your story is up to you. Using a journal/log format is completely acceptable, as I've read plenty of great horror stories that use the format. If the product doesn't end up being that creepy, but we can at least tell that you tried that's perfectly fine.

As for your second question, if I'm understanding this right, if the story isn't intended to be scary it shouldn't be entered into the contest, as that goes against the theme.
 
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