carpedavid
First Post
Huh...this'll be interesting.
Good luck Berandor.
Good luck Berandor.
Ceramic Dm (final judgement posted, New Champion announced!)
Ao the Overkitty
First Post
alsih2o said:You two trash talk like fey.
Maybe, but remember this post.
carpedavid said:
He wasn't lying.
I originally posted this is the other thread because I did not want anyone to think I was "bashing" the judges, but I received feedback that the comments were fair and could be adressed to the judges directly. I understand judging is a voluntary thing, and I applaud you all for your hard work, but this is what my take was on the last round.
Okay, I have been giving this quite a bit of thought this morning, and I would like to respond to the judge's comments ...
First, I think Rodrigo deserved to win. This was definitely not my strongest story, and I think Rodrigo probably put more effort into it and it shows. Also, I agreed with most of the judges comments, and do not want to detract from anybodies well earned victory.
Having said that, I do take exception to a couple of things. First, is names. While the writers get bashed for spelling and gramar mistakes, I think it is not unreasonable for the judges to at least get the characters names right. Granted, Barsoomcore calling Tom 'Tim' could be written off as a simple oops, but Mythago calling Dale 'Doug'? To me that screams the judge did not really read the story ...
And that brings me to my second problem. Below is an excerpt from the story. I think it is clear that Dale's first dreams about his friends turning on him, then gym class, then his parents, and finally Jessica.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RPGgirl
That night, lying on the stone floor of the cave, Dale tossed and turned as sleep eluded him. ... If only his ‘friends’ had defended him, he grumbled half awake. He wouldn’t be in this cave. He should have known better. This was no different than high school, especially gym class. Every time he entered that building, he was humiliated...
In fact, if it was anybody’s fault it was his parents ...
Like Jessica, he thought, the little slut who led him on all through twelfth grade. Sure, she was nice to him, but that was just because she wanted help with calculus. He could still hear those mocking words, Dale, you’re a sweet guy, but can’t we just be friends? Friends? Do friends tell you what a nice and caring guy you are then date someone else? Do friends hang out with you during study hall then refuse your invitation to the senior prom? No, they don’t. Friends stand up for you, stand by you.
And here is the criticism I received from Mythago
Quote:
Originally Posted by MYTHAGO
It's harder to buy the wicker man saving Jessica's house for last--if we're going chronologically, why not his parents?--and the cataclysmic movie-ending destruction of the cliff falling in.
We know from the story to this point, the Wicker Man destroyed the SCA friends, then the school, then his parents house. Chronologically, Jessica's house is last.
Again, I feel the judge did not really read the story. I suppose I would be okay with it, if the judgements were posted immediately after the story, but it was over a week. As an author that struggled to come up with something presentable in a short period of time, I am insulted by the lack of attention to details in the reviews - not that more detail is needed, just accuracy.
I would also have liked to see more emphasis on picture use, as I thought that was the point of the contest.
Okay, I have been giving this quite a bit of thought this morning, and I would like to respond to the judge's comments ...
First, I think Rodrigo deserved to win. This was definitely not my strongest story, and I think Rodrigo probably put more effort into it and it shows. Also, I agreed with most of the judges comments, and do not want to detract from anybodies well earned victory.
Having said that, I do take exception to a couple of things. First, is names. While the writers get bashed for spelling and gramar mistakes, I think it is not unreasonable for the judges to at least get the characters names right. Granted, Barsoomcore calling Tom 'Tim' could be written off as a simple oops, but Mythago calling Dale 'Doug'? To me that screams the judge did not really read the story ...
And that brings me to my second problem. Below is an excerpt from the story. I think it is clear that Dale's first dreams about his friends turning on him, then gym class, then his parents, and finally Jessica.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RPGgirl
That night, lying on the stone floor of the cave, Dale tossed and turned as sleep eluded him. ... If only his ‘friends’ had defended him, he grumbled half awake. He wouldn’t be in this cave. He should have known better. This was no different than high school, especially gym class. Every time he entered that building, he was humiliated...
In fact, if it was anybody’s fault it was his parents ...
Like Jessica, he thought, the little slut who led him on all through twelfth grade. Sure, she was nice to him, but that was just because she wanted help with calculus. He could still hear those mocking words, Dale, you’re a sweet guy, but can’t we just be friends? Friends? Do friends tell you what a nice and caring guy you are then date someone else? Do friends hang out with you during study hall then refuse your invitation to the senior prom? No, they don’t. Friends stand up for you, stand by you.
And here is the criticism I received from Mythago
Quote:
Originally Posted by MYTHAGO
It's harder to buy the wicker man saving Jessica's house for last--if we're going chronologically, why not his parents?--and the cataclysmic movie-ending destruction of the cliff falling in.
We know from the story to this point, the Wicker Man destroyed the SCA friends, then the school, then his parents house. Chronologically, Jessica's house is last.
Again, I feel the judge did not really read the story. I suppose I would be okay with it, if the judgements were posted immediately after the story, but it was over a week. As an author that struggled to come up with something presentable in a short period of time, I am insulted by the lack of attention to details in the reviews - not that more detail is needed, just accuracy.
I would also have liked to see more emphasis on picture use, as I thought that was the point of the contest.
Berandor
lunatic
Yes, I am.Piratecat said:Are you kidding? They immediately suggested a particular story to me.
Good luck, guys!
I figured maybe, just maybe, going the other way will put carpedavid at ease, and then I'll follow up with a breath-taking story about twins, born with white skin and square heads, who fall in love with the same nurse.
Honestly, the pics *did* give me a story right away, but I'm not sure I want to tackle that one. I am thinking of other way to use the pics, and maybe I'll find one throughout the next day. Otherwise - see above.
mythago
Hero
Well, RPGgirl, now that makes two of us who are insulted.
First: yes, I read your story in detail. I don't know why you seized on my malaprop of "Doug" for "Dale" as an assumption that I didn't, especially when I referenced other details that were, in fact, present. (I'm not sure why I kept writing Doug, either.) My comments about the Wicker Man were not because I didn't read what was going on. They were criticisms, because I didn't think your progression made any narrative sense: it went from Doug's most recent humiliation to...well, logically it would be to the furthest away in time, which would have been his parents the family to the mill town, not his issues with Jessica in his final year of high school. Having Dale remember the events out of order, and then the Wicker Man going after his hurts in exactly that order, seemed like a contrived way to save Jessica for the heroic finale.
Second, we judges don't comment on everything in every story. If you want more detailed feedback, ask for it. If you want to know why a judge didn't say anything about your picture use, ask why. (In my case, because I didn't think yours was particularly good *or* bad, just adequate.)
And finally, on the judgment being delayed, I don't post them, I just send them on to the Big Guy. Mine was sent in to alsih2o days ago.
Part of being in Ceramic DM (and, in general, about being an author) is that not everybody will see or remark on everything you put in. Sometimes you will be yelling "What do you MEAN you didn't understand that scene?!" Sometimes you will be shaking your head that the judge completely missed your perfect characterization of the villain or your really sharp use of Photo #4. And sometimes you will get a pass because you did screw up, and at most one person caught it.
All of the judges this round have been in Ceramic DMs before. We all know what it's like to wait and wait and wait for a judgement, to feel like the judges just did not get what you wrote, or to feel that you were treated unfairly. We all know what it's like to work hard on a story and read a judgment thinking "That was all you had to say about it, after I busted my fanny?" So be assured that we are reading what you write carefully. We make mistakes and are human and all that stuff, so yes, there's nothing wrong with pointing out an error (may I never have a boss named Dale), or asking for a little more expanded criticism.
But I'm more than a little annoyed at being accused of being a lazy doof because I didn't write an essay-length dissection of your story.
First: yes, I read your story in detail. I don't know why you seized on my malaprop of "Doug" for "Dale" as an assumption that I didn't, especially when I referenced other details that were, in fact, present. (I'm not sure why I kept writing Doug, either.) My comments about the Wicker Man were not because I didn't read what was going on. They were criticisms, because I didn't think your progression made any narrative sense: it went from Doug's most recent humiliation to...well, logically it would be to the furthest away in time, which would have been his parents the family to the mill town, not his issues with Jessica in his final year of high school. Having Dale remember the events out of order, and then the Wicker Man going after his hurts in exactly that order, seemed like a contrived way to save Jessica for the heroic finale.
Second, we judges don't comment on everything in every story. If you want more detailed feedback, ask for it. If you want to know why a judge didn't say anything about your picture use, ask why. (In my case, because I didn't think yours was particularly good *or* bad, just adequate.)
And finally, on the judgment being delayed, I don't post them, I just send them on to the Big Guy. Mine was sent in to alsih2o days ago.
Part of being in Ceramic DM (and, in general, about being an author) is that not everybody will see or remark on everything you put in. Sometimes you will be yelling "What do you MEAN you didn't understand that scene?!" Sometimes you will be shaking your head that the judge completely missed your perfect characterization of the villain or your really sharp use of Photo #4. And sometimes you will get a pass because you did screw up, and at most one person caught it.
All of the judges this round have been in Ceramic DMs before. We all know what it's like to wait and wait and wait for a judgement, to feel like the judges just did not get what you wrote, or to feel that you were treated unfairly. We all know what it's like to work hard on a story and read a judgment thinking "That was all you had to say about it, after I busted my fanny?" So be assured that we are reading what you write carefully. We make mistakes and are human and all that stuff, so yes, there's nothing wrong with pointing out an error (may I never have a boss named Dale), or asking for a little more expanded criticism.
But I'm more than a little annoyed at being accused of being a lazy doof because I didn't write an essay-length dissection of your story.
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