This contest has been all kinds of unique, and we already have signs of people being unable to let go just yet (hey there Peregrine and Cosmic).

What could we do as a continuation of the spirit and community of the OC Slamjam? What aspects were the best and most important?

There was the head-to-head structure, which IMO was a huge motivating factor in getting a quality entry in on time. It effectively made you accountable to your opponent--both to oppose them and to avoid disappointing them.

The character-building aspect itself was interesting as well. The clashing styles and themes added an element of fun and randomness, not to mention the challenge of analyzing your opponents and using their character sheets as best as possible.

Or maybe the cast itself is something worth preserving? There are some Slamjam characters who we've really fallen in love with, and doing future events that all tie into a loosely defined Slamverse would be unique as well.

Running the exact same thing again might risk becoming stagnant. Or maybe not? What do you all think?

4585667 Considering that we still have four weeks left and every round we have less and less participation and interest since there's always less competitors, I don't think there's actually much potential for continuation after. If we do anything at all, I think the best option would be those exhibition matches we talked about before, though we probably should have started it two weeks ago so we could have something to read while we wait for the next voting round. It might be too late for that. I don't know. Any other ideas? Two-author collaborations just for fun? I'm actually kind of burned out here, two months in.

For my part, if a competition this demanding ever happens again, I doubt I'll be joining in.

4585726

Yeah actually, I was just thinking that doing anything that ties into the characters and stories here would limit it to too small of an in-group. It's sad but I guess there just isn't much to be done in that direction.

I think the only realistic thing you guys can do is to keep your characters alive by having them appear in some of your stories.

4585667
Well, in speaking for myself, I have a lengthy story planned for my character, and I plan on utilizing some of the OCs that I particularly enjoyed. Both those I already got to use and plenty I did not. Even if I will likely only be utilizing them in spirit, with my own alterations to remove some disliked elements.

For collaborative stuff, I felt the exhibition matches were our best bet, but Tactical and I really wanted Obs' OK on that, y'know? But yeah, maybe we should've just gone on with it. Oh well. Live and learn.

I think, for those of us with the time and interest, we can simply kind of stick around and work together where desired. Maybe make our own list of those author's still interested paired with their character. Then you kind of know who you might message on collaborating with.

Further on, I'm running an OC tournament right now, myself. Started before Obs', but it's a larger, slower beast. I fully intend on running more, and have a group dedicated to the goal. Though my initial tourneys are focused specifically on combat as well as characterization, being a part of this has shown me its perfectly possible for other types to exist. Proof of concept, if'n you will. So, again for those interested, I will gladly organize more competitions like this (although I can not readily offer prizes, since I'm not connected as someone like Obs is, heh). Just got to show me there's interest, and I can get right on that.

4585915

Oh yeah-- I was just reflecting on what I liked about this contest. Burraku says it was "demanding," I say it was "challenging" and that it "got me to write 12,000 more words than I would have otherwise."