[CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest
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@Angelus I’d read an alternate history written in Dickensian English, just saying 😉
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@admin said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
@Angelus the point is that the submission isn't a "volume 1", it's max the first 60K of the webnovel.
So it doesn't matter whether it has a conclusion or anything. If nothing interesting enough to hook us happens in that first 60K then that's a different problem.
Can we send variations of the same work for both categories? One that is trimmed down with a tighter conclusion for the self-contained category, the other a little more meandering and detailed , but also more open ended in its conclusion?
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@admin
So it can go over 60k words, but it will only be judged on those 60k right?If that's the case, what happens if our 1st volume/season is just under 60k words? Do we just add the 1st part of vol2 at the end?
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@jazzyjeoff said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
@admin said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
@Angelus the point is that the submission isn't a "volume 1", it's max the first 60K of the webnovel.
So it doesn't matter whether it has a conclusion or anything. If nothing interesting enough to hook us happens in that first 60K then that's a different problem.
Can we send variations of the same work for both categories? One that is trimmed down with a tighter conclusion for the self-contained category, the other a little more meandering and detailed , but also more open ended in its conclusion?
I would suspect this would run foul of the "If you submit a second application with a work which is substantially similar to a previously submitted work in this year's competition, both works may be disqualified" rule.
And, personally, I think it might be risky to use variations of the same work in different categories
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@AuthorMN said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
@admin
So it can go over 60k words, but it will only be judged on those 60k right?If that's the case, what happens if our 1st volume/season is just under 60k words? Do we just add the 1st part of vol2 at the end?
In my case, there is a natural stopping point at about the 50K word mark so I am planning on just submitting up to that and leaving the rest for the future.
We have to submit a story outline and character lists etc for the on-going one anyway so I suspect it doesn't help or hinder to be under.
But I'm an applicant and not a competition judge or admin person.
The standalone is less than 100K. Slightly different requirements for each category.
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@AuthorMN said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
If that's the case, what happens if our 1st volume/season is just under 60k words? Do we just add the 1st part of vol2 at the end?
I think that's largely up to you and your story.
What happens in that 1st part of your v2, and how will a judge react to running into the event horizon? Does it end on a good cliffhanger that will make them longing to read more, or a frustrating one? Will it transition nicely into the Plot Outline? ("So just what were those Aliens planning to do with those stolen barrels of Toxic Waste anyways? Well, it turns out...") Do you conveniently explain some idea or concept in those extra words that you'd otherwise have to explain in the limited 10k you have for your Plot Outline and Character List?
It is a contest after all, it's up to you to make the decisions you feel are correct, but there aren't necessarily objectively correct decisions to be made.
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@Hylebos
Thanks for the clarification. However, I still have a few more questions.-
Regarding the outline, how far do we need to go? The entire series or just what we've got planned? What do we do if we don't have the entire series planned out yet?
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Piggy-backing off of the 1st question, do we need to go into detail on what we plan for the major characters? For example, would we need to include a trait or plot-point about them that's only revealed latter in the overall story (ex. late mid-game stuff), or would basic summaries suffice?
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If we haven't yet finalized the entire series, do we need to include characters we're unsure might become major characters?
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What exactly is the criteria that will be used to determine if a character is major or not? I'm mainly referring to both antagonists that only appear for a few chapters, but have a big impact on the story, and recurring minor characters, that don't have a major impact on the overall plot. Do we have to include bios on those characters?
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Will there be any leeway given if it takes slightly over 60k words to set up a good cliffhanger? For example, ["So can you meet me at the park?" Mizuki asked. "Sure." "Great, then meet me there in about 10 minutes, please." Bob nodded (60k) and hung up. When he arrived at the park, he found a startling sight; Daisuke holding Mizuki hostage. "Care to explain yourself?"
Daisuke smirked and threw off his jacket, displaying the hydra tattoo upon his chest. "That answer things?"
Bob glared and threw off his jacket, preparing himself for the difficult task before him.] -
If we plan for there to be side-stories, do we need to include those in the outline too? For example, a side story that gives some background on a more obscure character. One that slightly expands the world a bit and introduces some minor characters? One that just has the characters fooling around for a chapter?
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In regards to the character bio, do we need to include detailed descriptions of their appearances for every one? Ex. Character has long spiky pink hair, and is 160 cm tall.
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If the character's names have meaning behind that, do we include that in the bio too? Ex. Murry Arty is a pun on Moriarty, due to being based off of Prof Moriarty. Or, this character is based off of Napoleon.
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If the characters have canonical names in other languages, like an official Japanese name, do we include those as well?
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@AuthorMN Maybe tag a mod like @Rahul-Balaggan so they can direct the staff back here.
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Hello,
I believe there is a bit of over-thinking happening here.
If you have a 10+ story on your hands then trying to fit all of that, characters included. Onto a 10,000 word summary would be impossible. Or possible but it would not be something that anyone, the writer included, would be happy with.
There is no "standard" for the outline. As the author you will determine what should be there. What characters count as "major", how far to go into the story, and any other information you feel makes your work shine.
That is one of the main things here. You are writing this outline to show your work has potential, and that you have an idea of where the story is going and how you will get there.
You have 10,000 extra words to make a sales pitch. Use those 10,000 words in a way that will leave you the writer satisfied.
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Thanks for the feedback. Since the guidelines mentioned there needed to be an outline for the entire series, I assumed that we needed to provide details from start to finish. I do have an idea on how the story will eventually end, but I've only written about half of the initial volumes I originally planned. I'm assuming then it's fine to just outline up to everything we've got planned then since that's honestly where I have the most confidence in my "sales pitch" so to speak.
I do have a very case specific separate question I do want to ask though. If our series features games such as shogi or chess, could we include logs of the games played in the outline as supplementary material for reader convenience? I know some shogi series tend to include game logs at the end of their volumes, which is why I'm curious if we should provide such material if our novels have a heavy focus on things that would benefit from having game logs.
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@AuthorMN game logs would eat into your 10,000 word limit.
Whether that would be conducive of a successful sales pitch to you is at your discretion.
If you wanted to include a visual log … the rules still state no images are to be submitted with your work.
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Thanks for the reply. Rest assured, the game logs are all text. Since the game logs will count towards the word limit, of the outline, it seems they shouldn't be included there. I guess that will lead to ask that if I put the game logs at the end of each relevant chapter, would that diminish the scoring of the entry even if adding them doesn't push things over 60k words?
Currently the word count for the game logs I have for all the games that occur in the 1st 60k words is around 1,870 words, so it's not a large amount, but if it diminishes the scoring, I won't include them.
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That is a question you will have to answer on your own. The question is, "is my work better with or without the logs".
Any insight at all into the internal scoring is an internal matter, and can not be publicly shared.
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@AuthorMN Just to give an example, the author of Rokujouma originally pitched his series to Hobby Japan with an outline that covered 3 volumes, 7 volumes, and then ~30 volumes.
I believe it was like, a 15 page powerpoint. If he boil down 30 volumes in a 15 page powerpoint, I'm sure you can fit something that covers the essence of your entire story in 10,000 words.
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The main question that I have is can the ongoing story entry push past 60K words post-submission? Like if it does well and there's feedback, but changes and edits make it longer, is that okay? Or would it still be required to stay beneath the limit?
Also should the outline include what happens in the volume that's being submitted as if that's going to be read first before the submission to get an idea what it's going to be about? Or should the outline begin where the submission ends?
I started working on mine the day it was announced that there would be a second contest and I'm almost done with what could be the first volume. I'm still not entirely sure if I'll have it be one long volume or if there's enough content to break it up. But once I finish the first main conflict, which ends at around 55,000 words, I'm just going to keep writing what happens next until the deadline and then see what the best course of action is.
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@RHNintendo said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
The main question that I have is can the ongoing story entry push past 60K words post-submission? Like if it does well and there's feedback, but changes and edits make it longer, is that okay? Or would it still be required to stay beneath the limit?
This answer in the FAQ should address this:
For the Ongoing Series category, your manuscript does not have to be the complete story, and will be judged as the first part of a longer serialized work. You must include character profiles and a plot outline of the complete story you wish to write, however.
So if your Volume 1 is 75,000 words. Please submit (around) the first 60,000 for the contest. This is to see if the first 60,000 words hooks the judges.
Also should the outline include what happens in the volume that's being submitted as if that's going to be read first before the submission to get an idea what it's going to be about? Or should the outline begin where the submission ends?
That will be up to you, but please remember you have a 10,000 word limit, and that includes character profiles.
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Edit: Whoops, Rahul beat me.
@RHNintendo said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
The main question that I have is can the ongoing story entry push past 60K words post-submission? Like if it does well and there's feedback, but changes and edits make it longer, is that okay? Or would it still be required to stay beneath the limit?
Sam (admin) made it pretty clear in his earlier post I think:
the point is that the submission isn't a "volume 1", it's max the first 60K of the webnovel.
So it doesn't matter whether it has a conclusion or anything. If nothing interesting enough to hook us happens in that first 60K then that's a different problem.
They're effectively saying "y'all possibly have really long series so to keep the judging a sane amount of work for us we're only judging the first 60k words of your story." Post submission (and assuming you win a publishing contract), it should have absolutely no bearing on how big your volume 1 ends up becoming regardless of the amount of feedback or editing or otherwise because that's just an arbitrary word limit used to smooth the contest along.
Also should the outline include what happens in the volume that's being submitted as if that's going to be read first before the submission to get an idea what it's going to be about? Or should the outline begin where the submission ends?
I think that's ultimately up to you, they can't really dictate the order in which the judges will want to read things, but I have a hard time imagining that a judge would want to read your full plot outline before reading your manuscript. If they want to get an idea of what your story is about before they read it, I think using whatever you put into the synopsis field is an easier and more natural way of doing it (I always put a short blurb in mine like you'd find on the back of a volume, I'm still not sure whether they were expecting a true synopsis in that or not :P).
You could always play it safe and put a brief summary of what happens in your 60k words, provided you have the space to do so, I think that's pretty useful even if you're just framing and focusing the Judge's attention on what has happened before and what is to come (e.g. if it's really important to convey that the Elven Slave is in turmoil about her forgotten past, bringing that up helps to refresh memories than just steam rolling into your future plot without that fact in mind).
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I actually have some more questions.
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On the topic of vulgar language, what is permissible? Would F*** need to be censored or removed from text entierly? Are characters allowed to give middle fingers?
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In regards to the 60k word limit, is it OK to stop right before it (58k words) if it marks the end of a volume?
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If we continue on with the 1st portion of our 2nd volume to hit 60k words, would we need to denote somewhere in the manuscript that it is part of volume 2? Ex: V2 Chapter 1.
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@AuthorMN said in [CONTEST OVER] JNC Original Light Novel Contest:
I actually have some more questions.
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On the topic of vulgar language, what is permissible? Would F*** need to be censored or removed from text entierly? Are characters allowed to give middle fingers?
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In regards to the 60k word limit, is it OK to stop right before it (58k words) if it marks the end of a volume?
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If we continue on with the 1st portion of our 2nd volume to hit 60k words, would we need to denote somewhere in the manuscript that it is part of volume 2? Ex: V2 Chapter 1.
Well, they use F*** in Tearmoon Empire of all things, so I imagine that if it is just used as an expression it should be okay (personally I found it a little cringey there, but still love the series). Anyway, I used it in my story, but if that is the biggest problem they have with my story, they are welcome to take it out!
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@AuthorMN As Rahul mentioned before, the 60K isn't meant to be some sort of delimiter for Vol 1 vs Vol 2, it's just, up to 60K of a series. So long as you hit the 35K minimum, your entry is at least submittable. Whether you decide to include 2K of your vol 2 is at your discretion, and based on whether you think it will help make your entry stand out more or not. And whether you delineate at all is at your discretion. For me I'm not even bothering with chapter breaks in my current draft, it's likely to be basically 60K of continuous paragraphs with just scene breaks in between.
