|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Thunderbird Elder
Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Topics: 104 Posts: 2139 Location: Rising from the ashes Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 11:25 am Post subject: November Spotlight Competition |
|
|
This is a little early perhaps but here it is... figured I'd give you all some time to read through the blurbs (and perhaps even the full stories!),
City of IF Spotlight Competition
November, 2010
Our contestants are:
Mist in a Cave - by kkdestiny
Is this me? - by PopeAlessandrosXVIII
Murder in the Intergalactic Garden - by Lebrenth
SparkleSteps - by Tikanni Corazon
The following Blurbs have been submitted for your perusal. Please make sure you've at least read each one through before casting a vote. Voting will officially begin on Nov 15.
SparkleSteps - by Tikanni Corazon
Tikanni Corazon wrote: | He sat down on the sofa, and began to turn the pages. He looked at the now familiar pictures, studying them intently, trying to spot anything unusual. It suddenly occurred to him to get the other book, so that he could compare the two of them. He got up and placed the new book, open, on the floor. Then he went, took the other from the shelf, and laid it down in the same way. Then he sat down, cross-legged, before them, and proceeded to turn the pages, comparing each for any differences, no matter how tiny. But, page after page, the only difference was the language in which it was written.
He reached the pages where Tianna's story was, and where it should have been. He gazed down at the figure in golden armour, painted so intricately upon the page.
“Why was your story torn out?” he asked the figure. “What was so important about you Tianna?”
Suddenly, the window, which was locked and bolted, threw itself open. Moonlight streamed into the room, touching the pages of the open books. There was a flash of light, and Milo watched as a strange glow passed across the new book. Tendrils of the magical light, reached out to the other book, and then entered it. Milo watched, with astonished eyes, as the figure of Tianna the warrior, turned her graceful head, and looked directly at him.
With a gasp of shock, he backed quickly away from the shining books. He couldn’t believe what was happening, didn’t understand what was happening. He pressed against the wall, as hard as he could, as if, if he wished it enough, he might pass through into the room on the other side.
Then, as he watched with utter fear, a hand ascended from the book, closely followed by an arm. Then another. Milo squeezed his eyes closed, then opened then again, hoping that the vision would be gone. But it remained, and still more appeared. A face, covered in a bejewelled mask, a torso clad in pure gold armour. Shapely hips and long, elegant legs emerged, until a shimmering, life-sized image of Tianna, the Skylan warrior stood before him, looking down at him with the irises of the most incredible blue, surrounded in gold, where there should have been white, with thick, dark lashes.
Tianna reached up, and removed the mask, revealing a face of such beauty, that Milo didn’t even know existed. Her shining locks cascaded over her shoulders and down her back, more brilliant than the armour she wore. Her full lips parted, and she began to speak.
“Do not be frightened child,” Tianna said, in a soft voice, “I will not harm thee. ”
|
Murder in the Intergalactic Garden - by Lebrenth
Lebrenth wrote: | The following excerpt is from "Supplemental Info for Intergalactic Garden", it has extra links added to demonstrate the cross referencing style the SG is using for this Sci Fi murder mystery. Also see Shameless Advertising for summary.
Excerpt from Murder in the Intergalactic Garden:
Interview 3: Vladimir Stokov. 09/28/2104, 1539 hours
Vladimir: “There isn’t anything to say.”
John: “Then this won’t take much time. I already know you have a motive, so now I need to know what you can come up with for an alibi.”
Vladimir: “I don’t see why I should cooperate with you. You’re trying to convict me.”
John: “You’ll know when I’m trying to convict you, Vladimir. This gun will be pointed at you, and I’ll start reading you your rights. Haven’t you heard of innocent until proven guilty? Why don’t you start acting innocent and I’ll see what I can do to keep you that way?”
Vladimir: “You’re trying to make a joke out of me.”
John: “Can you blame me? You’ve made a joke of yourself. Why are you sleeping with a married woman?”
Vladimir: “I was not sleeping with her. We are just friends.”
John: “There you go again, making a joke of yourself. Why don’t we cut to chase and you tell me why her husband deserved to die?”
Vladimir: “I don’t know anything about that.”
John: “Playing dumb won’t help either. Everyone knows they had a terrible relationship; they weren’t right for each other. They fought till they didn’t know what they were fighting about, then they fought about that. So maybe it was his fault, is that what she said? Maybe you were doing her favor? It certainly wasn’t for your benefit, since you were getting all the action you wanted, weren’t you?”
Vladimir: “Stop this! You don’t know anything about us.”
John: “Tell me about it, Vladimir. Tell me about ‘us’. Did you do it or are you just covering for her?”
Vladimir: “I have nothing more to say. You can arrest me if you want, but I’m not going to listen to you anymore.”
John: “I wouldn’t want to get my handcuffs dirty. Get out of here Vladimir, and let me know when you’re ready to do the right thing. Oh, but one more thing. I’m going to confiscate your gun collection. Yeah I know about them, and they’ll be gone before you can get back to them. Anything you want to tell me now?”
Vladimir: “No.”
END INTERVIEW |
Is this me? - by PopeAlessandrosXVIII
PopeAlessandrosXVIII wrote: | The sun rises over a barren plain. It's red light giving birth to the visions of day. The tall copper colored grass scattered throughout with large boulders hides nestled within it the figure of a small child.
With hair as black as the darkest night, and skin tan like the sun dried soil, he rests amidst the grasses and stones like a baby bird asleep in it's nest. A faint rustle in the nearby foliage brings the sleeping boy out from his realm of dreams. His eyelids part revealing eyes whose steel gray depths hold no warmth. With small sighs of waking he stretches out his stiff limbs. Stretched to their limits, he rolls to his back.
Laying spread eagle in the small area of trampled grass, he looks up into the rusty sky. A small cloud of purplish gray passes slowly overhead. Sighing once again he sits upright. Still beneath the tops of the grass he looks about for what had made the noise that woke him. Seeing nothing in the immediate area he stretches once again before standing. Barely 4ft tall his eye line skims the tousled tops of the plant life surrounding him.
He absentmindedly brushes dirt from his dark brown tunic. Several sizes too big for him and ragged it falls just below his knees. A light wind carrying the scent of moist earth tosses his hair before his eyes.
Turning away from the sun he lets the wind blow it back before tucking it behind finely pointed ears. He scans the tops of the grass, but seeing no movement save for what the wind causes, he gives up on finding the thing that disturbed him.
Looking down at himself, a strange thought enters his mind. He brushes it off and heads towards the nearest boulder. Twice his height, he takes his time climbing to the top. Watching his own body move to fulfill his desire to reach the top, the thought again invades his mind. Again he lets it drift away. When he reaches the top he surveys his surroundings.
Looking towards the sun he sees only the waving tops of the tall grass. To his left, much of the same, broken only by rocks, much like the one he stands on now. To his right more grass, but not too far beyond trees rise to obscure what lay beyond. Finally, he turns his back to the sun's slowly intensifying rays. Another small gust lashes at his face, causing his hair to billow sightly.
This way, he sees tall gray mountains. Ranging from the forest edge in his left to the horizon on his right, he sees only one break in the dark mountain range. Between two high peaks there seems to be a valley. His eyes sharply focus on the spot, bringing forth more detail the longer he stares. A flickering light like the sun off water seems to shimmer at the base of the mountain on either side of the gap.
Blinking a few times his sight returns to normal. The thought he'd been avoiding up til now finally slams hard into his mind, unwilling to be ignored. With a small gasp of pain, he falls hard to his knees on the stone, clutching his head. The thought, at last acknowledged, finds it's way to his voice, and in a hushed whisper picked up and carried away by the wind he asks, "Who am I?"
Under the sun's fierce gaze the lone boy kneels upon a stone. Only one thing on his mind. One question. One thought. But of all the things in the world he could be thinking about, the one he can't stop thinking of, is one he has no answer for. The question slips slowly through his mind. Picking through his scattered memories, he realizes there is very little he knows about, well, anything. |
Mist in a Cave - by kkdestiny
kkdestiny wrote: | Once I got to the part of camp that we were having breakfast in, I looked around and noted who was helping with what. Denna was making pancakes, Paige was making eggs, and Henry was putting beans in a dutch oven for dinner. I smiled; he was wearing an apron. I looked around again, what could I help with? Suddenly I noticed the jar of instant coffee over by the cups. I could boil water for that. "Does anyone here actually drink coffee?"
"That would be me," answered Henry.
"And me" added Denna, looking up from her pancakes.
"Ok, well, I'll just boil some water for you guys, ok?"
"Alright, thanks." said Henry, who smiled at me before going to add some water to the beans. I wondered about what's for dinner as I went to grab a small pot. "Mind if I have some too?"
"Sure go ahead."
I smiled. Henry was nice. If I ever had a boyfriend; I'd want him to be nice like Henry. But I wouldn't want it to be Henry. I'd have an angry Denna after me, besides, I don't like him like that.
I went over to fill the pot with water, and on my way back to the little mini stove we had, I noticed 'The Blacks' setting up the eating area. I again wondered what it was they planned for an adventure. I lit the fire and set the water on. What would they plan anyways? I imagined a trek through the woods at night, or following bats to find which tree they're hanging in, or something dark and creepy like that. But then, what would the gamble be?
"A watched pot never boils" chimed Paige, effectively breaking me from my thoughts. I smiled a little at her, more out of embarressment than anything. "What else can I do?" I asked.
"How about buttering the toast?"
I look over at the table and see plates with pancakes and eggs on them. 'The Blacks' were there pouring milk for everybody. I looked for the plate with the toast on it. I found it over by where Denna was making pancakes. "Ok."
So I went over to the toast and started to butter it. Once I glanced over at Paige; only to find her watching the same pot I was. So much for that watched pot never boils thing. |
Another tough one. All of these tales have been wonderful so far! Remember, voting begins on the 15th! _________________
CHAPTER 25: Near-Light Speed (NEW CHAPTER! (12/4/2011))
Zephyrrr! And...
Last edited by Thunderbird on Tue Mar 15, 2011 8:32 pm; edited 1 time in total
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Thunderbird Elder
Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Topics: 104 Posts: 2139 Location: Rising from the ashes Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Vishal Muralidharan Respected Citizen
Joined: 24 Aug 2010 Topics: 24 Posts: 867 Location: City Of IF! Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2010 6:18 am Post subject: |
|
|
Sad, we have only four votes...... _________________
The eyes are useless if the mind is blind.
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Crunchyfrog Honorable IFian
Joined: 12 Dec 2006 Topics: 168 Posts: 3998
Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2010 6:35 am Post subject: |
|
|
It can take a long time for people to make their decision if they're not familiar with all of the stories, but we still have at least 10 days voting time to go.
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Thunderbird Elder
Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Topics: 104 Posts: 2139 Location: Rising from the ashes Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Thunderbird Elder
Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Topics: 104 Posts: 2139 Location: Rising from the ashes Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Crunchyfrog Honorable IFian
Joined: 12 Dec 2006 Topics: 168 Posts: 3998
Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Thu Nov 25, 2010 11:04 am Post subject: |
|
|
Less than a week left to vote folks!
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Lebrenth Honored Citizen
Joined: 29 Dec 2005 Topics: 43 Posts: 1484 Location: Utah Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Sat Nov 27, 2010 1:17 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Well, at least now I don't have to feel bad when I vote for myself! I must admit, the quality of the writing in SparkleSteps is amazing. There's certainly no hard feelings from falling behind on the votes versus such a well crafted story. _________________ Please visit my Library of completed works.
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Thunderbird Elder
Joined: 13 Sep 2009 Topics: 104 Posts: 2139 Location: Rising from the ashes Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Tikanni Corazon Honored Citizen
Joined: 25 Oct 2009 Topics: 75 Posts: 1286 Location: Running through the plains of my mind, my wolf spirit at my side (but doing so in the UK!). Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 3:11 am Post subject: |
|
|
Thankyou so much to everyone who voted! I really didn't expect to win, to the point that I was just too nervous to even look at the results, during the whole run of the competition. It's great to know that people are enjoying SparkleSteps, and I hope that you will continue to do so in the future.
Congratulations to my fellow competitors, for their wonderful sgs. They're all brilliant, and each one deserving of it's place in the spotlight.
Thankyou all again, a thousand times over, and I'll do my very best to keep the new chapters coming! _________________ .... there is no religion without love, and people may talk as much as they like about their religion, but if it does not teach them to be good and kind to man and beast, it is all a sham....
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell, 1887
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
PopeAlessandrosXVIII Arts and Poetry Mod
Joined: 10 Oct 2010 Topics: 122 Posts: 1858 Location: Surrounded by many beautiful naked men Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 6:04 am Post subject: Congratz!!! |
|
|
Congradulations on a well deserved win! I can't wait to see your story fill up that forum with many glorious chapters! _________________
To Be A Knight
And my first Finished work Death Day
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Crunchyfrog Honorable IFian
Joined: 12 Dec 2006 Topics: 168 Posts: 3998
Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 2:44 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Congratulations!
A well deserved win.
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Crunchyfrog Honorable IFian
Joined: 12 Dec 2006 Topics: 168 Posts: 3998
Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 12:14 am Post subject: |
|
|
SparkleSteps is now on the Home Page!
And very good it looks there too. Well done, Tiks, and well done Thunderbird for running this month's Spotlight.
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Lebrenth Honored Citizen
Joined: 29 Dec 2005 Topics: 43 Posts: 1484 Location: Utah Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 12:44 am Post subject: |
|
|
By the way, in the SGotM/Spotlight Results thread, Sparklesteps was misspelled. Congratulations Tikanni! _________________ Please visit my Library of completed works.
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author |
Message |
Crunchyfrog Honorable IFian
Joined: 12 Dec 2006 Topics: 168 Posts: 3998
Items Legends
Fables
Strata-gems
|
Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 1:03 am Post subject: |
|
|
Thanks Lebs! Now fixed....
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Who should win the November Spotlight? |
Mist in a Cave by kkdestiny |
|
0% |
[ 0 ] |
Is this Me? by PopeAlessandrosXVIII |
|
7% |
[ 1 ] |
Murder in the Intergalactic Garden by Lebrenth |
|
30% |
[ 4 ] |
SparkleSteps by Tikanni Corazon |
|
61% |
[ 8 ] |
|
Total Votes : 13 |
Who Voted: crazybookgal, Crunchyfrog, Emperor, Ingrothechundyer, Lebrenth, PopeAlessandrosXVIII, Shillelagh, Smee, Swordfish, Tatkret Sos, Thunderbird, Vishal Muralidharan, warriorofdoom |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|