Competition » Science Fiction Contest II (2023 Feb 05 - Apr 02) · 1:42am Feb 24th, 2023
commissioned from: cereal
It's happening again!
About a year ago, a certain Science Fiction Contest transpired on this website. So many amazing stories were written for it that even the extensive results post was not enough to recognize them all.
Let's see if we can do it again!
From the moment you personally read this post, until 2023 Apr 02, the Science Fiction Contest II is officially open for submissions!
What is Science Fiction?
That is a very good question! It could be stories about the ramifications of scientific ideas and technological innovations on the world of magical pastel horses, or stories that explore a hard magic system grounded in the scientific method, or stories set in an AU that is "science-fictiony", but no list can really be exhaustive of such a broad term. At the very least, the previous contest's entries did all count, so you can get a feel for at least a part of the breadth of the genre.
We are looking for both interesting ideas executed well, and good stories told with those ideas!
Prizes!
All prize amounts will be sent by PayPal. If you are unable or unwilling to receive money by PayPal, alternative arrangements in the past have included redirecting winnings to other people, or a donation to a mutually agreed-upon charity.
The prize pool will be $400, with a guaranteed minimum to the following podium places:
- First Place: $150
- Second Place: $100
- Third Place: $65
At least three entrants and no more than one-third of all entrants will be awarded in the results post.
Judges!
I am very proud to announce that the judges for this contest will be the two First Place winners of the previous contest, and two veteran contest runners!
Judges are not allowed to preread, edit, or discuss any entries with the author before the contest results are released! In addition, judges are asked to withhold commenting on entries until after the release of contest results.
Rules!
- All entries must have Science Fiction as a genre tag.
- Stories must be E or T rated, though any tag is allowed except "Fetish".
- AUs, crossovers, and OCs are all allowed. But judges are not guaranteed to know anything outside of core G4 and G5 canon material, so please keep this in mind!
- Stories must be published and complete between 2023 Feb 05 7PM EST and 2023 Apr 02 8PM ET to qualify. This is a hard deadline that will not be extended. If you are publishing close to the deadline, you are advised to PM Bicyclette some way to access the full text of your completed entry before the deadline just in case it is stuck in the queue. Any entries published after the deadline whose authors have not done this will not be accepted, with no exceptions.
- Authors may submit multiple entries, though only one may win a prize. We officially encourage quality over quantity.
- The recommended word cap is 30kw, as we officially encourage quality over quantity. There is a hard cap of 50kw total across all entries by an author.
- Pre-readers and editors are freely allowed. Co-authored works are allowed, but in order to be credited to both authors they must have the sentence "Co-authored with Bicyclette." at the very start of the long description (with the name and FIMFic account link of the co-author instead of Bicyclette, of course).
- Submissions will be collected in the Science Fiction Contest II (2023) - Entries folder. Feel free to join the group and place it in yourself!
- If you have any questions about the contest not covered in this post, please feel free to PM me, Bicyclette.
- As I, Bicyclette, must interact with all entrants, please keep in mind my DNI policy.
That's it!
Good luck!
Of all the genres of stories I have found, I enjoy the science fiction the most. My previous statement may have been interpreted as a bit crass as I only wish to encourage potential authors and apologize if anyone was offended.
Awesome!
Time for more science fused with magic horses!
Boy I sure would love to take part in this contest, if only it weren't for that pesky DNI policy with no indication of if you can use an ALT account or not.
hmmm
ok then
This is probably a very silly question, but does cyberpunk count as Scifi?
Also does the story have to be original as of the time of writing or can it be something we've been working on that hasn't been publisued yet.
I have 2 questions.
a story about equestria getting invaded by beings of another universe counts? the invaders need to be technological or can be more fantastical?
I would love to participate. But unfortunately, this particular contest is not my strong suit.
Maybe next time
I might have a few ideas
Are we allowed to make stories base on the older Generations from 1-3? Not like it’s a cross over to G4 and G5 rather have a alien tech or whatever Sci-Fi stories base on those older shows like say for example MLP Tales has alien ponies like Dazzle which say the story is about her spying in the Tales town that the M7 live in with no cross overs with G4 and G5.
Wait… why it said starts in Feb 5th when this post was posted 5 hours ago?
Is it fine to write a story and enter the contest but willingly not earn a prize for it?
I've got an idea for mine
I have an idea for a story that I think is really unique.
5714982
We had some good stories last time, so probably?
5715013
because the person who started the contest already announced it then, but only now is it promoted all over the site.
>Bicyclette
Hahaha, nope.
5714987
I'm pretty sure you can't use an alt to interact with a user who blocked you, which makes things easier for me. Dunno if you managed to piss him off enough to get blocked (but it's very easy).
We got a downvote troller
and very suspicious that Turbotune doesn't have one
Why is Bicyclette, a judge here given his policy
A DNI policy? How pathetic. A judge should be able to separate the art from the artist and judge the story on its own merits, not on what the author previously wrote. Bicyclette is already a failure of a judge.
5715138
Ah yes because not wanting to interact with someone who writes child porn is "pathetic". Contests and judges are allowed to exclude people
Oh boy! What a fair contest!
5715164
Separating fantasy from reality is a good ability to have. Contrary to many people’s opinions, writing fiction about situations that would be tragic if they happened in real life, like child porn, rape, or murder, does not make someone a pedophile, rapist, or murderer, even if written in a positive light. Are you going to stop interacting with anyone who plays violent video games? Are you going to discriminate against the people who work at the companies who made said video games? What about the actors who play villains on TV shows and movies? Are they suddenly banned from talking to you?
A judge is supposed to be unbiased. If there are rules that exclude someone from a contest that has absolutely nothing to do with said contest, then that’s discrimination, and concrete proof that the person who made the rules, in this case Bicyclette, is someone who cannot be unbiased. As a result, the contest is already unfair before it even began. Someone writing foalcon in the past has absolutely nothing to do with a science fiction writing contest that doesn’t include pornography in any way. If it did include porn, just add a rule that says that no characters under 18 are allowed to be sexualized.
5715238
God what a dumb fucking take. There's a huge difference between writing about tragedy and writing child porn. If the rules state something then that's that, acting like its "biased" is dumb as hell.
5715238
I agree with this:
but……
please…… hold your words, and discuss with them directly, and not here, to prevent heated arguments. And calling others "pathetic" and "a failure" is not good, considering that she already hosted a successful contest before with the same DNI policy but for some reason it is only brought up now. (and this rule is relatively new so i'm sure there's room for discussion)
Also, ultimately, I think it only meant that she won't directly interact with those who fits, which doesn't mean anything to those who submit to the contest. (there are other judges and I don't see any rule saying that ). It probably just mean that she won't leave a comment, but the story itself can participate and be judged.
So just write an entry, and submit it, let's see who's going to stop anyone for an unrelated other story in the past.
5715112
already got it. :p
5715246
You heard it here, folks. Rules can't be biased.
5715262
. Obv rules can be biased, but thinking that people who write child porn not being allowed in someone's contest they themselves are running is "unfair bias", then you really need a reality check. Its their own rules, its not like them saying women arent allowed 
Never said that
5715264
Careful. Backpedaling so hard & abruptly is liable to kink the chain.
5715265
Ah yes the classic "i dont have an argument so i will claim they are backpedaling"
5715238
Increasingly rare ability, judging by this thread. I wonder if I'm on the list for writing chapter 9 of Manehattan Blues (2014 was a simpler time; I wrote it because "oof, what a gut punch to the audience", but these days people may get stupid ideas).
These downvote trollers are not funny
5715270
Stop counting votes on comments, the content is far more interesting.
5715271
???
glad to see that there is nothing to argue about the contest anymore.
5715252
in conclusion, the rules are fair for every story, case closed!
5715268
indeed, but the world is getting more chaotic in recent years, and it does make people more paranoid. and we know that all literature is based on reality and it is bound to make some people think about reality eventually so that's not really the root of the annoyance.
and to be honest, i don't see anyone under this thread that proves it's an "Increasingly rare ability".
5715272
i believe that he's trying to say that downvotes cannot be stopped so it's better to stop complaining about that and just talk about the comments themselves.
even if i don't think there are anything worth debating about anyway.
I'm just sick and tired of seeing a cool contest that I want to particilate in, only to see that Bicyclette is running it or judging it, meaning I can't be a part of it.
And I highly doubt that I could participate even if I removed every single story or chapter with foalcon that I have.
5715282
I wouldn't bother (or make your own contest. With blackjack and hookers).
5715292
What if a contest specifically about blackjack and hookers?
5715293
Yeah, that'd be interesting.
5714995
Yes.
As long as it hasn't been published anywhere else before, it will be an eligible entry for this contest.
5715000
Either way is fine. What's important is whether there are interesting ideas to be explored in the technological or fantastical elements involved in your story.
5715013
That's allowed. Just bear in mind that the judges may not be familiar with the older stuff.
since multiple people have PMed about this, "recommended wordcap" means that it is not recommended to go over 30kw. the recommended length for a story is however many words the story needs to be good!
5715020
hi, thanks for your interest! do you mean that you would not want to receive prize money if you win, or you would not want to be selected for any prize or honorable mention? if the former, i contact all winners by PM after the contest so you can tell me then to do something else with it! if the latter, you can state that you would rather not win a prize and the judges will take that into account.
5714983
yes i am very excited about this!
5715037
would be very excited to see it!
5715334
That would be great, thanks!
5715279
Oh, there’s still plenty to argue about when it comes to this contest, but it’s unlikely to be very productive. Fairness means a lot to me, so I guess that’s why I’m still going. Just the fact that anyone is excluded from this contest just because of certain fictional scenarios they have written in the past, which have nothing to do with the contest, by the way, is a strong indication that the person making the rules is conflating fantasy and reality. Something written in a fictional setting shouldn’t affect anything that has nothing to do with said setting. Not liking what someone has written is perfectly fine, but it’s unfair to the author to dictate what they can and cannot have written just for the sake of a competition.
What’s next? A contest that excludes anyone from entering if they have written about a character who doesn’t identify as the sex they were assigned to at birth? I’d be against that, too, if it had nothing to do with the proposed contest, although I imagine I wouldn’t need to get involved as there would most likely be plenty of people already arguing against it.
A possible solution to bias, and something that could help ensure fairness, in a writing contest is to refrain from allowing the judges to know who an author is before they judge a story. Have a third party keep track of who wrote what, and just submit the story itself without anything that could identify who wrote it.
It's funny because it legitimately is difficult to define!
5715340
no one is being excluded from submitting to the contest, they are being excluded from interacting with bicyclette which could meant she won't give you commentary like she does to all her entries and altering the method of sending the prize, but ultimately meant nothing about judgeing stories.
Just write an entry and submit it, see who dares to stop you only because of some story that is related to you in the past.
If she only made the rule like this, I and all of you can interpret it as such. If she never gave answers to our concern but still "disqualify stories" for a vague rule, that's her problem.
5715340
You take your disgusting reasonable ideas and you get the hell out!
5715395
This right here, nixes your idea completely. If they won't interact with anyone who has those kinds of stories, then any person who enters won't be able to be judged by them. And considering that they are the one who is running the contest and pays the winner (I'm 99% certain they do it), that means even if I submitted a story that all of the other judges said won one of the prize, they likely wouldn't pay.
Hence, entering is basically moot.
And because most of the contests these days (aside from any Incest is wincest and the new Arboreal contest) are run by them, I can't enter any of the contests I want! Especially the M/M shipping contest which I really wanted to enter.
I see, so let's end this directly.
5715334
Dear Bicyclette,
I, due to disagreements about your contest’s rules, would like to ask you to confirm that your rules meant that "those who have currently published content that has Sexual content involving characters under the age of 18 do not have the rights to submit stories to your contest, be considered by the judges, or win a prize if good enough"
Since you already commented under this thread, you will eventually see this comment before the deadlines, so if you ignore this comment or do not confirm the statement above by saying it or similar statements yourself, we will interpret the rule in question as: everyone has the rights to submit stories to your contest, be considered by the judges, and win a prize if good enough by default. And if you, the host of the current contest, do otherwise (for example, disqualify a story because of something other than its contents), despite not having confirmed the statement after seeing this comment, this contest will be considered to be unfair and dishonest.
I hope for the best for this contest, so please help us resolve this issue officially as soon as possible.
(Please excuse my choice of words, I just want this contest to have fewer conflicts.)
Sincerely, Turbotune.
5715413
Surely this will solve our conflict about the rules, one way or another.
5715423
hi, i will be clear.
i ask that people who have currently-published foalcon to respect my DNI and not enter this contest. any such entries i find will be disqualified by me as the host. to any such people: i am stating this publicly because i do not want you to waste your time. i bear you no ill will personally, i just wish to not interact.
the alternative to the publicly-posted DNI is to do the same thing, but to do it quietly. i thought that would be unfair. but the alternative to that is for me to not run contests at all.
i am not making any statement of fact besides that this is my policy. to any arguments against it or me as a person, i can only say that i am sincerely very sorry, but it is what it is.
i only ask one thing, and it is for anyone intending to defend my policy or me here to not do so. i would rather not see any arguments prolonged. furthermore, it is my policy alone and only i should answer for it.
5715395
In the light of this:
I'm afraid you may have made a mistake of assuming a fellow fimfic user to be reasonable.
media.tenor.com/oUvaabzjR3gAAAAM/rip-coffin.gif
5715444
You very much do bear the people who wrote foalcon or anything resembling foalcon ill will, you are literally preventing them from entering this competition because they wrote something you personally find abhorrent.
Then you shouldn't be a judge. Like others have said a judge is supposed to be neutral and the fact that you are literally preventing people from even being able to enter the contest if they've published foalcon at all on the site is dumb. The foalcon they wrote has no bearing on a science fiction contest. All it does is limit who can enter this and cause unnecessary animosity. Yes, I understand that they can still enter technically, but your DNI is clear, if they've published foalcon at all they don't interact with you, does that mean you won't judge their work? does that mean you won't even bother looking at the story they submit? or does that mean you won't comment on their work at all? If it's the latter fine, that just means you can still read their work and at least judge it like a judge is supposed to. If it means that you won't even look at it then you shouldn't be judging this contest at all.
Edit:
Yea no you shouldn't be judging
5715444
Actually your alternative is to ignore the other content you dont like thats not being submitted for the contest and be an impartial judge.
If youre not capable of being an impartial judge you shouldnt running the contest
5715264
It literally is like that lmao