World-Building Alliance 2,159 members · 838 stories
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Professor Plum
Group Admin

Hello, and welcome to the return of the World-Building Alliance Writing Competitions!

I know at least three people who look like this right now

Yes, that's right. We're back, baby, and we're bringing competitions with us. Now, for those of you who weren't around when the last competition was held two years ago, we like to run quick competitions to encourage people to spread their headcanons about on fimfic. We give a prompt, you guys write stories based around it, and we pick a winner based on things like writing quality, idea strength, character portrayal, stuff like that.

So, without further ado:

The first WBAWC prompt is: Fairy Tale

Remember, you're free to interpret that how you wish. It can be the tale itself, or revolves around a fairy tale, or whatever else your little heart desires. Also of note, your story will partially be judged on how much like a fairy story it reads. And yes, Grimm Bros. fairy tales do count.

But a quick reminder: The WBA is about non-pony world-building. Please bear this in mind while writing your stories

The rules are as follows:

- 10k word limit. We'll stretch to 10.5k, but any longer than that and the fic will be disqualified, I'm afraid.

- No rating restrictions, but bear in mind that excessive gore/sex/whatever might not be to everyone's tastes, least of all the judges.

- Submit your story by posting a comment in this thread, with the following information:
Author Name:
Story Title:
Genre Tags:
Race:
Please provide links where necessary.

- Deadline is the the 30th of April at 11:59PM GMT. Any submissions after that time will not be counted. For those of you in different timezones, make a note of how timezones affect you. Or just submit before the last minute, ya bums.

- Only stories submitted to the site during this month will be accepted. That means your story from August of 2012 won’t be accepted.

- And finally, all site rules are in effect. If you’re not quite sure what they are, see link.

Any general questions? Be sure to check out the WBA FAQ thread. Something specific to this round? Post any queries you have in the comments below.

Good luck, and happy world-building!


~WBA Admin Team

Wanderer D
Moderator
Group Admin

Also remember guys: Fairy Tales are actually things that have shaped generations with morals, warnings, ideals, etc. The more fairy tale-like your story the better the chance that it will actually move up the ranks!

It's not easy writing them, so don't get cocky, and I suggest taking a look at some of your favorite ones to see what elements make them what they are!

RainbowBob
Group Admin

Wooooooo, let the submissions commence! Ah, this brings me back to the ol judging days of my youth... when we once had 18 submissions all at once... and the fics would just keep on piling on and on and on... never stopping, never resting...

Ha, but seriously, can't wait to see what the turn out will be! :twilightsmile:

Csquared08
Group Admin

Oh hey

We did the thing

Professor Plum
Group Admin

4276035
>implying you were there for any of it
:scootangel:

The hype train has arrived! All aboard for Hypeville!

Csquared08
Group Admin

4276042
You could have said something on Steam, but nooooooooooooo.




Looking forward to it.

Wanderer D
Moderator
Group Admin

4276062 I'm okay with it because Rarity.

Literal fairies in Equestria?

There's an idea...

1: Would stories surrounding material objects that happen to frequently be in the possession of ponies be allowed?

Csquared08
Group Admin

4276644
Assuming the story is focused on non-ponies, I don't see why not.

I'd love to give a more definitive answer, but no one tells me anything :(

Sounds like I can do a fairy tale about griffons.

(May or may not contain [oldie] guns :V)

Professor Plum
Group Admin

4276667

I'd love to give a more definitive answer, but no one tells me anything :(

Because you're a buttwhohasnoskype

4276644
Uh, sure? :twilightsmile:

4275995 Despite me being overwhelmed already I am going to try this.

I've been waiting for these to come back for so long. They were always the highlight of my month, even when I didn't participate.

4275995
Just checking: Are breezies sufficiently non-pony for this competition?

archonix
Group Admin

4293340 I can speak for plum. Yes.

Author Name: FanOfMostEverything
Story Title: The Flower's Dream
Genre Tags: Slice of Life
Race: Breezies

Professor Plum
Group Admin

4294653

Also, what would you do if I told you Arch didn't speak for me? :raritywink:

archonix
Group Admin

4294716 I speak for plum. Hush.

4294716
But... but he is archonix. He speaks for the Plums. He speaks for the Plums, for the Plums have no tongues. Or am I thinking of someone else?

Professor Plum
Group Admin

4294852
That is beautiful. If only he was wearing an Ushanka and had a bottle of gin in one hand, then it'd be perfect.

4294797
Plum-tongue is very much real, but sounds an awful lot like silence to those untrained in its nuances. Truth be told, it does involve silence, but it's more like silently disapproving of different things, in such a way that facilitates communication.

Wow, it has been a while, hasn't it? I'm so glad these competitions are back on again. They were inspiring. :ajsmug:

I've been out of the loop for ages - mostly just popping by this site every now and again while surfing the web - and I only stumbled on this contest quite by chance on 23rd April. Thankfully, I was geared up the moment I saw it, so I've been plotting and writing for days.


:rainbowdetermined2: Here's the result, my submission:

Name: Impossible Numbers
Title: Diminished
Chapter: One
Synopsis: When the Queen of the Changelings refuses to stick her neck out for a dying soldier, Moulder’s passionate love drives her beyond convention to seek a deal with the dreaded Sorceress, who seems more interested in a fairy tale from long ago.
Tags: Adventure, Dark, Sad
Race/Species: Changeling
Status: Incomplete*
Word Count: 9,576

*I did have a full story that was intended to fit the 10,500-word limit, but the scenes just grew and grew, and I realized yesterday I wasn't going to get a complete story submitted this time. So I figured I might as well submit what would fit while still being a coherent tale, and I wish it well.


:scootangel: So happy these contests are back! I think I might work for a second submission; I've just seen Wanderer D's update about the extension.

4275995

Author Name: CloverQuill
Story Title: Dragon Myths and Legends; In the Beginning
Genre Tags: Slice of Life
Race: Dragons

Now with [LINK] to the story.

4275995
Author Name: NorsePony
Story Title: The Trials Three
Genre Tags: Adventure
Race: Faeries

4275995
Author Name: NorsePony
Story Title: Our Mother's Wish
Genre Tags: Random, Alternate Universe (Fimfic doesn't have suitable tags for this one, so those are the least-bad alternatives)
Race: Griffons

4275995

I am super happy that the deadline got an extension. Now I get to join in the fun. Tallyho! :pinkiehappy:

Author Name: MyHobby
Story Title: An Equestrian Griffon
Genre Tags: Adventure
Race: Griffons

4275995 Oh good, I found the thread about the extension. I actually have no idea if this qualifies or not, but it is a fairy tale involving a non-pony (and one pony). I don't know how much it does to world-build, though. Oh well, I don't lose anything by trying, do I?

Author Name: Aurora-Borealis
Story Title: Goldie Delicious and the Three Heads
Genre Tags: Random, Adventure (Anyone else think we need a Cute tag?)
Race: Chimera

All right! Got my second submission ready just in time, and I am feeling awesome! Here it is:


Name: Impossible Numbers
Title: An Old Tale in a New World
Chapters: Four listed below
1 - Day 99
2 - Days 120 and 113, Part 1
3 - Days 120 and 113, Part 2
4 - Day 121 -- First half only, in order to keep it within word count guidelines (just read to the line in the centre of the page)
Synopsis: It was the dawn of a new age in a new world, but old tales are just as willing as anyone to colonize a frontier. Legacies and innovations collide on the shores of the Amaponian continent. Yet the kidnapping of an orange farmer's foal leads three unlikely creatures to join hooves and paws at the forging of the next tale.
Tags: Adventure, Dark, Tragedy
Race/Species: Multiple, including in particular Diamond Dogs and Ahuitzotls
Status: Complete
Word Count: 8,827 (roughly) for submission. The whole work is 12,556.

Okay, I got it in, but PLEASE NOTE THAT SOME PARAGRAPHS MAY HAVE BEEN EATEN UP BY GOOGLE DRIVE COS THE UPLOAD FUNCTION SUCKS

Name: Pearple Prose
Title: "The Sun, the Moon, and the Hunt"
Chapters: "Eve of the Hunt" and "The Sun, the Moon, and the Hunt"
Synopsis: The world was not always as peaceful as modern Equestria now knows it. Long, long ago, there was a race of immortal beings known as the perytons, who are long since abandoned to the footnotes of history.
Some believe that they still exist, somewhere, tucked away into a corner of the world. Some say they still return every decade, to take their tribute.
Meanwhile, in a little village, Bright Eyes prepares for his first hunt.
Tags: [Adventure]
Race/Species: Covers ponies, buffalo, gryphons, crystal ponies, and perytons in particular.
Status: Incomplete (It's finished-ish, for now, but I may come back to it later after the contest)
Word Count: 6,926

By the way, when do we get the judges' verdicts? There wasn't a memo about it in the update thread about the extension. Also, I'm kind of surprised no one's brought it up already (myself included), considering the different timing and overall different schedule.

Professor Plum
Group Admin

4386706
Ideally, we'll get them out by the end of the month. We're streamlining the way judging works, so it should be a lot quicker :twilightsmile:

Professor Plum
Group Admin

Results now posted!

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