C, exactly. No offence to Wayne, but I don't think anything that is decided by the "masses" can ever be truly objective and accurate. But, what the heck, we're not saving the world here. The object is to have fun.

Wayne Densley
Sun Nov 11 06:27:30 2012
Windhammer Competition

Hi pi4t,

The unexpected size of the entry list for the Windhammer Prize this year will require changes to the voting process and also the competition timetable next year. These changes will be made available as a part of the release of the 2013 guidelines next April. I can say there will be substantially increased prize money for all winners next year as well, and a broadening of the number of awards given. The changes will ensure that more authors get the recognition they deserve for their great work

The sheer size of the entry list was problematic for some readers and I will be making changes to the competition format to make this more manageable. I will be maintaining the mass voting process however, as it is the best way to meet the objectives I have set for the competition regarding broadening the exposure of authors, and the feedback that the voting process generates. This year more than 100 pages of feedback was forwarded from voters and for many of the entrants this is an important benefit of their participation.

I am also going to review the timetable to accommodate the time needed to consider all the entries. How that will be adjusted will be worked out in the new year.

Thanks to everyone who participated this year, and to all the readers who took the time to go over the entries. It was a great comp that wil definitely be continued in 2013.

Regards
Wayne Densley
http://www.arborell.com/

Robert Douglas
Sun Nov 11 14:35:16 2012
Windhammer Competition

I agree that fun is part of the Windhammer Competition, including excited anticipation of what's going to appear on the competitors list. But C-Star may have a point about the runners-up being successful in their own way. I consider all who entered Windhammer must have a certain talent for writing and creating adventure gamebooks.

As with X-Factor or Britain's Got Talent: I believe all the finalists have that star quality. They're chosen by public vote and often it's determined more by people's favourite entertainment circle, i.e: singing, dancing, magician, or comedian.

C-Star
Sun Nov 11 14:55:05 2012
Windhammer Competition

@ Robert Douglas

Now that you mention it, that's actually a good point. Many people may prefer certain genres in their gamebooks to others eg. some people may prefer sci-fi to fantasy. These people would naturally be biased towards these genres and vote for them, like how people may vote for singers over dancers, even if they are at the same talent level.

With school and laptop troubles, I didn't really get to take a look at much of the entries, just a (very) brief look at Ulysses' entry because I knew him from this site. I suppose that's my bias there.

Andre` Pietroschek
Sun Nov 11 15:03:24 2012
General Chat

Thanks to Robert Douglas and good muse for your writing! Thanks to Simon Osborne for the 'Strange case of Bodies in the Docks'. Otherwise feel free to visit http://pietroschek.deviantart.com

asgardian
Mon Nov 12 02:03:39 2012
Windhammer Competition

Yep, all the same phenomenon. I believe the winning entry this year actually wasn't that good, but got through more because it was different. And last year's winner was OK...but just not that well written and more of the stock standard fantasy. I can only say it depends on who is available to vote, what their current tastes are etc etc. That said, kudos to Wayne for continuing to try and coordinate such a competition.

Robert Douglas
Mon Nov 12 13:20:59 2012
Windhammer Competition

If the masses can't be relied on to vote, do you reckon Tin Man could do the selecting? All three entries would be published in their magazine, after all, so perhaps the magazine should have a say in the matter? Or, must public vote remain in place? Personally, I still consider public viewing of all entries and fan feedback should remain in place, whatever the case.

Walker Long
Mon Nov 12 14:59:44 2012
The Hypertrout

To Pat or Ulysses,
In Trout I killed the king, got the card and told the Capt. Only got 2 commendations. Any ideas whi no third award?
Thanks, Walker

Gaetano
Mon Nov 12 20:50:10 2012
Windhammer Competition

The winning entry wasn't one I personally voted for, but I did enjoy it. Zachary has entered the contest for a few years now, and it's been fun to watch his general writing and storytelling improve so much. Congratulations to him!

I did vote for one of the merit award winners, "Academy of Magic". My other vote (and my personal favorite in the entire group) was for Leidren Sweever's "Hwarang and Kumiho". It was a fun game to play in a rather original setting (Korea, as opposed to a more generic Asian setting) and I learned a lot about ancient Korean culture, without feeling like I was reading a history lesson. Plus, the storyteller device was brilliant- I've never seen anything quite like it in another gamebook.

If anything, I felt like since there were so many entries, we should have been allowed to cast more than two votes- it was VERY difficult to choose two out of over twenty submissions.

Zach
Mon Nov 12 23:17:06 2012
Windhammer Competition

Thanks Gaetano, I'm glad to hear you think I've improved since Phobia! Reader feedback is one of my favorite parts of Windhammer. I think this feedback has helped improve my writing a lot these past few years. I don't agree with everything that's said, but almost every comment brings up something valuable that I might have otherwise overlooked. I try to keep this feedback in mind when writing something new.

@asgardian I really tried to make Final Payment different. People seem to be divided about it in many respects, but I think at least in that sense I succeeded. If you have any specific criticisms about FP, I'd really like to hear them.

asgardian
Tue Nov 13 07:23:46 2012
Windhammer Competition

Zach, all OK here. Nothing was meant as a personal criticism. If anything, I would hope that perhaps another voting system might be suggested based on discussions here? I do like Robert's suggestion of Tin Man. Assuming of course that Wayne wishes to trial a different method. It just seems logical that as the number of entries increases in size, the rules in turn evolve in accordance with this growth. We'll see.

Tammy
Tue Nov 13 16:33:57 2012
General Chat

Hello everybody :)

Thanks, Douglas, for your kind comments.

Robert Douglas
Wed Nov 14 02:13:02 2012
General Chat

Hi Tammy,

Is this the first time you posted on FF Project? Please feel free to join in with any discussion or introduce one of your own topics - more the merrier! - and the community here I'm sure will appreciate it :)

You can also send any gamebooks you've written to Andy (check out the fantastic list, top left, and the Downloads section besides). I feel a bit like a tour guide now!

Again, we're sorry to have missed you at the Windhammer; hopefully you'll be thinking of submitting an entry August 2013? Only thing: I'm not sure if the world's going to end on 21/12/2013, if the Aztec prophecy is anything to go by!

Hope you keep in touch with us on this fun and friendly site :)

Robert Douglas
Wed Nov 14 02:16:10 2012
General Chat

Correction: 2012...why does that keep happening with me?!

Pat
Wed Nov 14 13:43:17 2012
The Hypertrout

to Walker Long:

I'm still in 'wrong way go back' can't help you atm, sorry

C-Star
Wed Nov 14 16:24:01 2012
The Hypertrout

To walker, you're missing the first commendation. Basically to get it, you need to have a radio when you first see your captain while they are in captivity. To get the radio, choose the following options in the beginning of the book.

SPOILER

END SPOILER

When you've taken this path, your encounter with the captain will change slightly when you find the crew and you will get the commendation. Good luck!

Pat
Wed Nov 14 18:39:57 2012
Publicity

I'm a backer for 2 new gamebooks, first one is Arcana Agency: The Thief of Memories (29 day's left). The second one is for Maelorum, an epic adventure (5 days left). They both need some more backers to reach their goal, so go and take a look! :-)

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1615043334/arcana-agency-the-thief-of-memories-a-full-color-g

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/314653974/maelorum-an-epic-gamebook?

C-Star
Thu Nov 15 17:51:31 2012
General Chat

Ha i'm heading off to a science quiz now. If the brainy mathimaticians among you could wish me luck, that'd be class!

Leidrin Sweever
Thu Nov 15 19:17:29 2012
Windhammer Competition

My personal thanks to all who have enjoyed my story despite my imperfect English! And my thanks to those who did not but took the time to read it! Your feedback means a lot to me!

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