Jake The Army Guy's Horseword Extravaganza 2: The Horsewordening! · 12:36am Jan 12th, 2020
Howdy, folks! First and foremost, as always, Adorable Applejack:
If Ah fits, Ah sits, sugar cube!
ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT, CUT THE MUSIC!!!
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLADIES AND GENTLEMEN, BOYS AND GIRLS, CHILDREN OF ALL AGES! JAKE THE ARMY GUY PROUDLY BRINGS TO YOU, FIMFICTION.NET'S GREATEST WRITING CONTEST IN THE WOOOOOOOOOOOOORLD...
*ahem*
Sorry...
Somebody call Bruce Buffer because it's time, baby! After way too dayum long on the shelf, I am very happy and proud to officially announce the second installment of Jake The Army Guy's Horseword Extravaganza! I was absolutely floored by the response to my first contest. I got forty entries from some of the best writers on the site, and some relatively unknown talents. Countless people read and loved the stories written for the contest, and that warms my cold, shriveled, Drill Sergeant heart. I've been wanting to put on another one for a while now, but I just... never got around to it for various reasons. However, the time is right, so here we are!
First, let me introduce the judges. Last time, stories were evaluated by myself and three incredibly talented judges, and this time is no different. First off, a returning judge from the last time, the overseer of everything Oversaturated, the ever-talented FanofMostEverything!
Sadly, the other two judges from the previous contest, Aquaman and Carabas, are both kind of swamped by life at the moment, and couldn't dedicate the time to participate this time. But, I've managed to corral someone just as talented, knowledgeable, and awesome! Our second judge is the immensely awesome Snuggle Master, CategoricalGrant!
Our third and final judge is a fellow veteran, and a guy who totallyisagreatwriter, totallynotabrony!
And now, what I;m sure you're all wondering about, the prizes! Like last time, there will be prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places. Our 3rd place winner will get a dedicated review from the venerable PresentPerfect. That's right, one of the most respected and knowledgeable reviewers on the site will let you know what he thinks of your work!
I am very excited to announce that I am teaming up with Flutterpriest for the runner up! The winner of the 2nd place prize will be featured in a spotlight interview by The Barcast! If you've never checked them out, you need to do so. Flutter, anonpencil, and the rest of the gang are hilarious and insightful, conducting in-depth interviews with some of the best writers on the site, all while maintaining an air of extreme shitposting.
Finally, the grand prize is, once again, cold hard cash, baby! Like last time, how much depends on how many participate. If 5 people write entries, the prize will be $25. If ten people enter, $30. Fifteen, $40! and if we get 20 people, the prize will be a whopping $50 cold hard cash! However, because this is a sequel, which means everything needs to be bigger, I am raising the stakes. If we surpass the forty submission mark form last time, I will jack up the grand prize to $75! So, it behooves you to tell your friends about this and encourage them to enter.
Now, let's get to the meat and potatoes of the contest: the prompt! A while back, I realized that the subject of the previous contest, "obscure shipping," was a bit restrictive. It required the story to be a romance. This time, I want to give y'all as much leeway as possible. I wanted a topic that would not only let the writers flex their muscles and brains a bit, but also something that would lead to a lot of unique stories and nifty takes on things. So, all that in mind, the prompt for this contest will be...
BEYOND EQUESTRIA'S BORDERS!
Over the course of Friendship is Magic, we've been introduced to a veritable menagerie of species that inhabit the world. Some of them—like griffons, dragons, and yaks—we got a pretty good look at how they operate. Others, like changelings and hippogriffs, we didn't spend as much time with. And still others—like Diamond Dogs, Kirin, or Breezies—we know next to nothing about. And that's the point of this contest.
I want you to take a deep dive into these cultures. You can tackle any aspect you want: historical figures, political systems, religious beliefs, whatever. You can also write any type of story you want. Romance, sci-fi, horror, adventure, slice of life, anything goes. There are only four solid rules about what species you can focus on:
1. You can have ponies in your story, of course. Hell, they can even be the main character! But the gist of the story must focus on a non-pony species and exploration of their culture. Also, crystal ponies and bat ponies both count as ponies, because they're, well... ponies.
2. No OC races. Any species you chose must have appeared in some form of canon. That can be the show, the movie, the comics, whatever. Want to write about Capper's species, or any of the other races we saw in Klugetown? Go for it! Want to explore Prince Bramble and the deer of the Everfree Forest or the Umbra in the Frozen North from the comics? Have at it! They just have to have appeared in some form of official media.
3. On the heels of that, only races from G4 canon. So no Flutter Ponies or Bush Woolies from G1 for example.
4. This might ruffle some feathers, but no Equestria Girls, because they're basically just human ponies. Sorry. However! You can do a story about the Dazzlings, since they are not endemic to the human world, and are not ponies.
Now, let's get into the nitty gritty details:
*No pure clopfics. I allowed them in the last contest because that was all about romance, and sex is a logical progression of romance. Now, you can write a Mature rated story, and you can have sexual elements in your story. It just can't be the main thrust (huehuehuehuehue) of the plot (huehuehuehuehue). Also, stories rated M for gore or violence are fine.
*Max word count is 10K. As I said, last time we got forty submissions, so I don't want to bog down the other judges and myself with massive stories. I feel 10K is plenty of page to get your story out there.
*Only new stories. I know you may have written an absolutely epic exploration of griffon culture last year, but any submission has to have been written for this contest.
*All submissions must be placed in the Jake's Horse Word Extravaganza group, which you can find here. Please be sure to place your story in the appropriate sub-folder in the 2020 contest folder.
*All submissions must meet FIMFic's posting guidelines.
*DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION IS FEBRUARY 29TH, 2020! This give you over a month-and-a-half to write. I'm allowing this long because I realize there are a few other contests going on now, and I want to give people the time they need.
I think I've been pretty clear about the rules, though I'm sure that, much like last time, y'all will have questions. Let me know down below, and if you come up with a good point, I'll post a follow up blog with the extended rule set.
I'm really excited for this one! I can't wait to see what you guys can come up with. Please share this blog around, because again, the more people participate, the high the prize! So, get your writing shoes on, and let's explore the world! Til next time stay safe, stay free, and stay metal! Jake The Army Guy out!
TLDR?
5184580
Write a story in a setting outside Equestria, with some of the non-pony creatures we've seen in the show.
5184582
Ah. I can do that.
Writing about beyond Equestria’s borders? Count me out, that’s way beyond my comfort zone.
Oh heck, this prompt is tailor made for one of my favorite things. Uh, would we be able to diverge from canon with a canon race, though? I never watched the show to completion and am one of those people here for the stories, and most of my ideas would revolve around diverging from later seasons in some way.
Is it okay if we work with established canon up to a certain point, using a canon race? And are we allowed to take other canon creatures and have them expanded upon or feature non-canon ones with canon species? i.e. Could I write a story about the Smooze being a species of some kind? (the former idea; the smooze is canon) Or could I have griffons and a griffon-centric story also featuring a non-canon race, like flutter ponies?
Oooh I’ve had a mature rated but not clop story on the back burner in my head for like 4 years! Maybe I’ll finally get my head out of my ass long enough to write it for this contest!
5184586
Totally! Just make sure to use the AU tag.
Hmm... I'll confer with the other judges and get back to you, okay?
5184597
Awesome, thanks!
It's a leap year?
5184601
According to the calendar on my computer, February has a 29th.
oh god, I'm venerable
5184629 Are you sure you've reached that age category on the Dungeons and Dragons Age Chart?
5184629
It's true tho.
When you get through that existential crisis, lemme know how to handle being Insightful.
I'm in.
Oh! For a second I thought you'd signed on SirNotAppearingInThisFic.
In any case, happy to be part of the team. I'll go send out a signal boost.
Just to clarify, how would the Dazzlings fit into this? Would a story featuring them in their human forms that explored siren culture be fair game, for instance, since it'd still be about a non-pony, non-human culture?
Question: Would bat ponies be allowed to partake in the contest, considering their appearance in Luna Eclipsed?
5184695
Given they appeared in Luna Eclipsed as well as a comic or two, I'm going to make an executive decision and say yeah, go for it!
5184689
Huh. That's... another good one. Checking with the other judges, and I'll get back to you.
Let's say someone wanted to explore Diamond Dog culture. Would a fic heavily centered around using Rarity's abduction as the window into their society with Rarity as a central character still be too pony?
5184743
No, that's fine. The main character can be a pony, so long as the main gist of the story is the other species.
Crystal Ponies/Sombra acceptable?
EDIT: I presume changelings are alright too, but would like to confirm.
I can tell there's going to be some real gems out of this one.
Am I alone in thinking the second prize might be the better of the three?
5184910
Changelings: A-okay!
Sombra: If you go by the comic canon that he's not really a pony, then sure.
Crystal Ponies: Eh... I'm gonna go ahead and say no. Crystal though they may be, they're still ponies. Sorry.
5185007
Okeydoke, thank you.
5184689
Okay! We've talked it over, and decided that yes, you can do a story about the Dazzlings, since they're not human. Just be sure that the main focus of the story is their cultural identity, you know?
Started my entry, hope to be able to make it in time.
> considers participating
Nah. I'll give the others a chance to win.
I'm confused as to why bat ponies are allowed but crystal ponies aren't?
They both seem to have diverged from the three Equestrian tribes to a certain degree, so like...
5186810
Good point. 5184695, I know I said yes earlier, but after confirming with the other judges, which I really should have done before running off at the mouth in the first place, we've decided that bat ponies are, at the end of the day, ponies. So, they can't be your focus. I really hope you haven't gotten too far in the story. I'm truly sorry.
5186955
Aw dang it. I had already the fic outlined and was making headway into the beginning - but now I have to come up with a new concept. Hrm. Gonna think a little on that then...
You should also make a follow up journal or edit the original because while I was the one who commented, there might be others who looked at the earlier and think it is alright just to get that straight.
5186771
You know you're only not participating because of the no clop rule. If you could, you know you'd write about Twilight and Shining having a threesome with every species on the planet.
So just to be clear: Kirin are allowed?
5187048
Yes!
5187009
Whaaat!? That- that's not true!
i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/097/687/0af.gif
5187278
Call it, Around the World in 80 Fucks.
Do windigos count? I am planning to give them an actual culture.
5188314
Hmm... sure, why not?
How come the site blog says the prompt is “Friendship beyond Equestria” but this one says it’s “Beyond Equestria’s borders”? Those are two wildly different prompts and my story only fits one of them.
5188941
Aww, dammit. I must have mistyped it in my email to Meester.
Suffice to say that the point of the contest is simply the exploration of other cultures.
Can't believe I forgot to ask, but is there a min/max wordcount limit?
5188966
Min count is the FIMFic minimum.
So... Batponies?
5189000
5188969
Derp. Serves me right for not reading carefully.
5189047
5189451
I'll say this: if the judges can read it, skip the clop entirely, and still understand the story, it should be fine.
However, I'd like to remind you that the whole point is cultural exploration, and showing how they differ from ponies. If you think you can do that through a romance story, then have at it.
I know it's called "Beyond Equestria's Borders", but must it take place physically outside Equestria? Can it be set in Equestria so long as the focus is the cultures of the non-pony species? For example, cows and donkeys, if not native to, at least have a significant presence in Equestria. Also, if one were to go for a non-canon, classical interpretation of changeling culture, it could be reasonably assumed that a hive could be established anywhere, regardless of sovereign territory.
5190344
Of course! Sorry if that wasn't all that clear, but yes. Stories can take place anywhere ya like!
Somehow, I don't think AJ's three apples are that large...