Writing challenges
Challenge type: Judged competitions.
Description: Contestants have to write something in answer to a prompt and to follow particular style rules. Once the predetermined duration of the challenge has elapsed, contestants submit their writing and either a jury or the public decide the winner.
Broadcasting: Some challenges require the writing and a recitation to be done on stage, while longer challenges only showcase the first sharing of the prompt and the final judging. Nevertheless, contestants can choose to share anything via the
Alien network, such as their brainstorming or a regular progress log.
The most popular writing challenge: It requires writing a novel over a year, following rules that change every year, with the final judging done by the entire
Alien population. The record so far has been 109 millions of voters. Because of the popularity of this challenge, groups of fans often had their own sub-challenge to it, such as a special prize for the writer who torment the most their character.
Example of style rules:
Main type of writing (e.g., a specific style of poetry, a short story, an entire novel...).
Themes (e.g., write something spooking, something romantic, a coming of age story...).
Plot points (e.g., include a sword fight, have a rhyme with "cloud",...)
Handicaps (e.g., write without using the letter "e", mention an animal in every sentence, do not ever letting the readers know who is the main character...).
Obstacles:
Uninspiring prompt and lack of ideas.
Difficult style rules.
Blank page syndrome.
Long challenge length making it difficult for some challengers to keep the motivation, energy and organisation for regular progress.
Public pressure and having to fulfil people's expectation when the judging is by popular vote.
Cheating and plagiarism of a challenger's writing by other contestants.
Strategical choices in how to answer the prompts and style rules to stand out from other contestants but also please the jury or public.
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