[CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest
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I'd say the best advice I've ever been given is to be honest and write what you actually want to write. Tailoring stuff to a certain target audience or market is fraught with danger, especially when you're just starting out. For my part, I know that I would've never completed a single draft if my focus had been on what other people might want to read, and not on what I want to read. My most important target demographic is myself. And I know that if I want to read something, there's a good chance that there are others out there who might want to read it as well. It's just a question of finding my audience.
I have to say, passing the first round has given my confidence as a writer a major boost. Even if I don't make it through the second round, I now know that there's at least one person out there who has read and enjoyed something I've written. So it won't all have been entirely in vain. 😊
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Well I didn't make it through. It is a shame since my personal goal for the contest was to get through round 1 and I felt confident I would, so I feel a bit down about that. Still, I know I did the best I could with the time I gave myself so I have a lesson learned for next time with time management.
I still think my first half is relatively strong, it's the second half that let me down I think. It's a shame there won't be any feedback from the judges about it, but there's way too many entries to do that for round 1 so I just have to introspect and look at what I can do better if there is a next time.
Congratulations to everyone who did make it through.
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Having read the passing titles for round one, I love all of them and can’t wait to read them!
Good luck everyone!!
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@QuixoticHorizon said in [SUBMISSIONS NOW OPEN!] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
It's a shame there won't be any feedback from the judges about it, but there's way too many entries to do that for round 1 so I just have to introspect and look at what I can do better if there is a next time.
It's not guaranteed, but you might be able to get feedback if you email them back.
Someone on discord had asked:
Am I able to ask about an specifics about the rejection, maybe something I can avoid in future?
In response, Sam said:
In an email, you can ask, sure.
I'll not post any feedback publicly about specific works anyway
It's possible we have feedback from other judges I can share, but not guarranteed.It's worth a shot, even if it's a short note like "poor pacing" or "complex prose."
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@Hylebos Thanks, I have done that.
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@Hylebos Thanks for the heads up. Since neither of my works passed, I really want to know why so that I can improve as a writer and hopefully write something that can pass in the future. Especially so, since I've got a story cooking that I'm very confident on and want to see be successful.
Congratulations to those that passed. Some of the titles I actually recognize from the MALxHoneyfeed2023 writing contest so I'm glad those works made it past the first round. -
In breaking news, there has been an additional text added taking the total to 85.
If you wrote "The Young Lady is the Substitute Harvest Goddess" you are now in the Google doc.
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@Damon-Cavalchini
Well that's odd. I wonder what caused that novel to be initially left out. I probably shouldn't get my hopes up though that more novels that didn't previously pass will be added to the list. -
It was a copy, paste error. It passed round 1 but was left off the round 2 winners sheet.
So a technical error.
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Hmm. To be honest, I'm actually a bit surprised By Honor Bound made it through and Lost & Found did not. Then again, the very, very rushed nature of L&F probably didn't help with its readability. I like the concept enough that I'll probably polish and attempt to submit it again if they hold another contest this year.
Now to go review BHB to refresh my memory of what I actually wrote...
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@zwabbit Congratulations on. getting to the next round!
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@zwabbit Congratulations on making it through and good luck with the next round. Only two more hurdles to jump :)
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@hirei will there be another contest this year? Please say yes lol
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@admin will there be another contest this year?
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@Lamar0012 I suggest subscribing to the mailing list and paying attention since if we do another contest we will definitely announce it there (and elsewhere).
https://j-novel.club/jncolncontest -
@admin thanks a lot!
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Hello,
Everyone who made it past round 1 may wish to check their inboxes. Emails have gone out to all those who passed round 1.
Thank you to everyone who made it this far, and good luck to everyone who made it to round 2.
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Congratulations to all who made it! I look forward to seeing your work posted!
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Feedback for round 2 people who didn't make the cut are out, though of course the email filter decides it's spam so I had to go dig it out...
The good news from my perspective is that all of the critiques were centered around things I myself knew were likely to be problematic, and I suspect were also reasons why my second entry didn't get past round 1. Getting confirmation that the overall premise and prose were fine indicates that the foundation was good and is something I can work with for the future. I will have to think a little bit about how to rectify the noted issues, the challenge for me at least is to make sure there's sufficient action and development without also forcibly rushing the resolution as well. The catch I have is that, since I hewed towards a more realistic bent, often times the best solution to a problem is a direct solution (kill 'em all), and direct solutions tend to be quick solutions (no such thing as overkill). So, will need to get creative. Aside from just doubling the length of my next submission if JNC runs the contest again.
I did get a chuckle out of the "running around...committing copyright infringement" description of my main character.
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@zwabbit, are you considering publishing your stuff on another platform? From your short description some time ago, By Honor Bound sounded like something I'd really enjoy.
