News
The Review Challenge (28/05/09 - 06:49 pm)
On a fanfiction site such as this one, stories and authors are obviously quite important. However, there is another element to this site that sometimes gets overlooked- reviews. Anyone with an account can leave a review and rating after each chapter on the site, allowing you to post your thoughts and reflections on the chapter directly to the author. Reviews can help motivate writers, improve their writing skills, and even improve your own writing, as they encourage you to look closely at the mechanics of writing. Despite the many benefits of reviewing, many people do not. To encourage more people to do so, PhoenixRider will be starting the Review Challenge.
The premise of the Review Challenge is simple: for 10 days, review as many chapters and stories as possible. At the end of the 10 days, PhoenixRider will look through the reviews and determine who was the best participant. He will not only be judging on the number of reviews left, but also on their quality. Points will be awarded to each review left, and the person deemed the best will recieve recognition on both the forums and here on SF3- and a nice banner to display online!
You can find out more about the Challenge or join up on the forums (at http://fanfiction.shurtugal.com/smf/index.php?topic=3032 ) or by private messaging PhoenixRider through the forums. And remember- if you review, you may get a few in return!
~ swenson
The Admin (12/05/09 - 02:07 am)
I’m going to get this over with and say it quickly. I am resigning from SFF/SF3 leadership. I no longer have the time or passion to dedicate to this site and you all deserve better than that. So, with that being said, I will miss terrorizing you guys. I’ll still be around, just not as often.
Now for the good news, Swenson will be replacing me as co-admin. I know she’ll do a great job and give that time in passion that I no longer posses.
Anyway, goodbye. If you all want to stay in contact with me you can feel free to add me as a Facebook friend or IM me..
Have a great life guys and good luck.
Dragonflame_05
AIM: Thewolfgirl005
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/profile.php?id=1223137280&ref=profile~ Dragonflame_05
Monthly Writing Prompts (07/05/09 - 09:55 pm)
Since the SFF Adventure is a little slow lately, we are starting up fanfiction challenges again... well, sort of.
These challenges DO NOT have prizes or special categories. They're simply prompts that will make you think--the challenge is to use them in the most creative way possible, and to show off your skillz to fellow fanfic readers/writers.
To participate in the challenge, simply write a story that follows the guidelines, and somewhere in the summary, add: "Written for the May 2009 SF3 Writing Prompt" or something similar. Optional: seek out others' entries and drop them a review. (Who knows, they might return the favor!)
If you have challenge ideas you'd like me to use, PM them to me (I will credit you for the idea if I use them).
Have fun!
May 2009 SF3 Writing Prompt:
Write a one-shot of at least 500 words that includes ALL FOUR of the following:
-a nice Urgal
-one of Solembum's or Angela's prophecies coming true
-the line "Eragon shouted and jumped forward just as--"
-a reference to Greek mythology
~ QueenMindi
Validated Applications, round 2 (04/05/09 - 05:28 am)
We are now accepting applications for Validated status!
Validated authors get to skip the queue and have their stories posted immediately to the site; they also get their own special category and the responsibility/honor of being role models for new members. Being Validated is a very high honor and means we trust you to consistently submit great-quality work without our modly supervision.
Check out the information here to see if you meet the requirements and to learn how to apply!
~ QueenMindi
Characters (21/04/09 - 04:39 am)
I've just added a few more characters to the list, including an "Original Character" option. (You can add characters to your story in "Edit Story.") If there is a character not on the list that you would like me to add, now's the time to ask.
Also, I had a complaint awhile ago about the people who add ALL the characters to their story. Please don't do this--it messes up the search function. The way the "add character" option is supposed to work is, you add one or two: the main characters and/or the ones whose POVs are represented in the story. Don't add all the minor characters that pop in once or are mentioned in passing.
Thanks for your cooperation!
~ QueenMindi
Nice try, guys (01/04/09 - 07:45 pm)
I've just been through the Validated category and found a few people who managed to sneak into the category without being validated. Then, when I checked the Mod Fictions category, I found a couple more there! I have moved all stories that don't belong there out of the category and into the appropriate General Fictions one.
Consider this a warning: if you are not validated, do not post in the Validated category. If you are not a mod, do not post in the Moderator Fictions category. After this, I will start handing out strikes to people who think they can be sneaky and get away with it!
Also, as a side note: please don't post series with no stories in them. I will be deleting all of those as well. Don't create a series unless you have two or more stories to put into it.
Thank you for your cooperation, and happy April Fool's Day! (no, this is not a joke.)
~ QueenMindi
New Validated Authors (31/03/09 - 10:31 pm)
The latest round of Validated applications is over—congratulations to SFF’s two new validated authors, Regitress and Lessagirl!
If you’re one of the people who didn’t apply this time around because they didn’t meet the requirements yet, don’t give up—another opportunity to apply will be given in a month or two, so keep working toward it!
Here are some things you can do to prepare:
—Not enough chapters? Keep posting!
—Grammar isn’t so great? “Hire” a beta reader and make them double check your stories. Edit old stories to fix past mistakes.
—Remember: you can ask your beta to help you with plot and characterization too!
—Show what an awesome user you are by reading and reviewing on SFF and participating helpfully in SF3 discussions.
~ QueenMindi
Now accepting Validated Author apps! (03/03/09 - 11:17 pm)
As some of you will already know, SFF divides its stories into two categories: "General" and "Validated." So far the Validated category has been kind of dormant, so here’s a refresher:
The standards for General fictions are very low (readable English, with correct paragraphing, at least 500 words per chapter, and rated properly for content), while the standards for Validated fictions are much higher. Achieving Validated status is a very high honor--it shows that you not only have creative ideas, but that you also are adept at developing your plot and have a firm grasp on writing mechanics. And you don't have to wait for a moderator to approve your story--you get to skip the queue and have your fic immediately posted to the public.
According to the current rules, you must APPLY to become Validated. To determine whether you may achieve Validated status, the moderating staff will consider all of your stories currently posted on the site.
To qualify for validation, you must meet one of the following:
A) One story, twenty chapters or longer, that has been updated within the past three months
B) One story, ten chapters or longer, updated in the last three months AND one story, ten chapters or longer, updated in the last year
C) One story, ten chapters or longer, updated in the last three months AND five stories of any length, two of which have been updated in the last year
D) One story, ten chapters or longer, updated in the last three months AND five poems, three of which updated within the last year
E) One story, ten chapters or longer, updated in the last three months AND one script, ten chapters or longer, updated within the past year.
The ENTIRE submission (not just the required number of chapters) must conform to the criteria listed on the
Writing Workshop on SF3--we are looking for consistency. We will also consider other stories you have posted, but they will not weight as heavily into our decision.
To apply, you must submit the following form to
shurtugalfanfiction (at) gmail (dot) com:
SFF Penname:
SF3 Penname (if different):
E-mail address:
A list of your fictions submitted for consideration (see A - E above), with the following information:
Title, format (story/poem/script), number of chapters
Beta reader(s) used for the above stories, if applicable (this will not count for or against you, we just want to know who they are)
Links would be nice
By submitting this form, you agree to the following:
1. You intend to continue writing stories on SFF in the near future. Please don't waste our time with an application if you've given up on writing or Inheritance.
2. Once you are validated, any stories you submit to the Validated Category will continue to meet the guidelines posted in the Writing Workshop (Note: you may continue to submit any stories that would not qualify for validated status to the General category. Also, you may only move existing stories that meet the validated requirements to the validated category).
3. You will continue to do your best to contribute to SFF/SF3 in an appropriate manner by reading/reviewing other stories and refraining from posting inflammatory material (i.e. flame reviews or posts). This is not required, but validated authors who commit serious infractions will lose their validated status.
If you are not accepted as a validated author this time, we will tell you what about your stories needs to be fixed in order for you to qualify the next time we have applications--you may apply repeatedly. If, however, you are accepted as a validated author but lose that status due to a breach of this agreement, you may NOT reapply.
Signed: (type your penname here)
We will be accepting applications all month—the tentative deadline is March 31, at which time we will announce the first wave of new Validated Authors. This deadline is NOT set in stone—if, after the first wave of applications is over, there is still interest, you will be given more time to apply. (Side note: I promise it won’t be a whole YEAR between the next round of applications.) You can expect an email from us by March 31, either to let you know you have been accepted or to give you an idea of what still needs work.
Good luck! If you're confused, concerned about the quality of your work, or have questions, PM me (QueenMindi) and I'll do my best to help. (I know this is potentially confusing and involves LOTS of work and revisions. Hopefully, it will be worth it.)
~ QueenMindi
SFF Adventure Activity Check (18/02/09 - 03:46 am)
Several people have left the SFF Adventure, so we'd like to check to see who is still planning to participate. If you are, please post in this thread. Any characters whose creators have not posted in this thread in a week's time will be deleted to clean out inactive threads. Please help us with this!
Remember, you can still join the Adventure! Just head over here to find out more.
~ swenson
Rating Change (03/02/09 - 01:25 pm)
We have changed the way things are rated. Instead of B, I and V we now have the standard G, PG, PG-13, and R. Because of the change all your stories have reverted into a G rating. It is your responsibility to go and change them to the proper rating. If you are unaware of what the new rating system means, it is illustrated below. Please get to this as soon as possible so people can avoid reading things they don't find appropriate.
G: General. Appropriate for all ages. Does not contain violence, language or sexual content.
PG: Parent’s Guidance. Contains a little bit of violence, language and sexual content.
PG-13: Not for people under 13 years of age. Contains violence, language and sexual content.
R: Restricted. Not recommended for people under the age of 17. Contains strong language, violence and sexual content.
~ Dragonflame_05
Deadline for serial submissions (24/01/09 - 12:10 am)
If you were thinking about submitting a story proposal for the serial fic, now is the time to do so. The deadline for submissions is next Saturday, January 31. We will be making the decision soon after that, and if yours is picked, we will be in touch via email.
~ QueenMindi
Wanted: Serial Writer (08/01/09 - 07:34 pm)
Wanted: Serial Writer
We need someone to write a serial for the upcoming SFF column on the Shurty mainsite!
The column will mostly be about SFF happenings and spotlighted fics (like Featured), but we hope to include a serial fan fiction in the column as well, written by one of our members! Installments of the story will be released once a week in the column. (The starting date for the column is TBA.)
Why you should care: If you write the serial, you will have free publicity and a guaranteed audience! Also, you’ll have built-in betas in the form of me (QueenMindi) and the column writers (Dragonknighttara and swenson), who’ll read through the story before it ever goes live and hopefully make it look all shiny and polished.
Requirements:
-Must be Eragon fanfiction—related to the Inheritance cycle in some way, and including at least a few of the canon characters. Other than that, you have creative license.
-Length is flexible, but a good target is between 6,000 and 10,000 words. Remember: you will have to write it all out in advance!
-No chapters, but make sure there are places every 500-1000 words where your story could be easily broken into pieces. Cliffhangers are good—they’ll keep readers coming back to the column the following week to find out what happens.
If you're interested, send your story proposal (a
summary of your idea, including the ending, in moderate detail; predicted
word count; and
how long you think it will take you to write it) to
shurtugalfanfiction@gmail.com.
Any questions? PM QueenMindi.
~ QueenMindi
Christmas Carol Contest (08/12/08 - 06:35 am)
Shurtugal.Com is holding a Christmas carol contest! See the details on the main site or below:
The holiday season is upon us once again, and the staff here at Shur'tugal want to celebrate with our fellow fans with our second Inheritance holiday carol contest!
Everyone has heard the same old holiday carols, year after year... but what would a Holiday carol in Alagaesia sound like? We're tasking our visitors to write their own Inheritance holiday carol either to the tune of an old holiday carol (Jingle Bells, Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire, Let it Snow, etc.) or to a completely new tune of your own creation. Please feel free to make your song as creative, tacky, or funny as possible!
You can base your carol around anything in the Inheritance universe, including the fandom itself, so you won't be running out of content any time soon. When submitting your carol, please include a written version of the carol in the email or as an attachment and make sure to state whether or not it's based off of an old holiday carol. Please also include your name and address for prize distribution purposes (your personal information will not be shared and will be used strictly for prize distribution only). Fans who submit an audio or video recording of themselves singing the carol will automatically receive an extra prize as well as having their video or audio featured on Shur'tugal.
Send your entry to shurtugalcarols@gmail.com by December 20th in order to qualify! Entries will be judged and the winners will be announced on the front page of Shur'tugal on December 22nd. Contest prizes will be announced on the site over the next few days. Good luck and happy holidays!
~ swenson
