YC 125 New Eden Capsuleers Writing Contest

I am pleased to announce the TENTH year for a writing contest for stories or poems by or about Capsuleers/Baseliners and their worlds and cultures.

BASIC DETAILS:

CATEGORIES: There will be THREE categories this year:

Poetry
Prose
Other: Academic/Scientific (e.g. Academic, Economic Reports, Science Reports, Theological Writings, Treatises, etc.) or News/Gossip/Opinion Pieces

RULES

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION - MAY 31st

There is no minimum length. Maximum length is 5,000 words. There is no required subject matter; the content may be fiction or non-fiction.

Prior works are eligible as long as posted or published AFTER May 15, YC 124 (2022). This means, for example, works in the recent story-time thread on the IGS or stories and gossip reports (in Player Fiction) in the past year can be nominated by their authors for consideration.

Please post entries by linking in this thread or by a clear label in the Eve Fiction category of these forums, e.g. [YC 124 NEWCWC your work title here] as the title.

PRIZES*

FIRST PLACE - 2.25 billion isk
SECOND PLACE - 1 billion isk
THIRD PLACE - 500 million isk
FOURTH PLACE - 250 million isk
Honorable Mentions - 50 million isk

*Prizes subject to change depending on fund raising!

SPECIAL PRIZES FOR THEMATIC ENTRIES:
You Must Indicate If You Are Seeking One Of These Prizes with your Entry

Best entry involving “Romance”. Should be an entry involving romance, love, or desire among the stars or the cultures existing in the Empires and beyond. Prize is 250 million isk plus 1 Box of Chocolates and 1 Bouquet of Flowers.

Best entry involving “Health and Fitness.” Should be an entry involving health & fitness. Could be amusing pieces of gym lore, or a thrilling adventure short story where the protagonist is a sportball player, bodybuilder, or other health&fitness enthusiast. Prize is 250 million isk plus a crate of Safety Mud 120,000m3 of sport mud, approx value 10M ISK.

Best entry involving “Gallente Culture.” Should be an entry involving Gallente culture - perhaps a Gallente tech-noir thriller, where the protagonist is a private detective, or the antagonist is an exotic dancer, set in the mean streets of nighttime Caille. Prize is 250 million isk plus a Trash Can, a crate of 250,000m3 of trash, approx value 15M ISK.

Best entry involving “Amarr Culture.” Should be an entry involving Amarr culture in some way. Perhaps a theological romantic comedy, in which goats and/or well-endowed Amarr ladies feature prominently. The Empire is vast and so are the possible themes! Prize is 250 million isk plus an Enormous Block of Cheese, consisting of 250,000m3 of cheese, approx equivalent value 80M ISK.

Entries involving “Minmatar Culture.” Should be an entry involving Minmatar culture in some way. Perhaps a coming of age tale involving tattoos and rituals? There’s a lot of possibilities. Prize is 250 million isk plus a Vargur.

Entries involving “Caldari Culture.” Should be an entry involving Caldari or State culture in some way. Perhaps a tale of cuthroat corporate intrigue? Achuran mysticism and star gazers? The culture of the State is deeper than supposed. Prize is 250 million isk plus a Golem.

ADDITIONAL RULES/COMMENTS

Each of the Judges may, in their discretion, award a personal prize to the favorite (regardless of the “place” of the submission)

The most “amusing” or “entertaining” to me* or intriguing gets treated to a candlelit dinner by me at a fine restaurant or a meal at another location

All judges and I (as administrator) are disqualified from submission for prizes.

All entries will be considered. However, no plagarism is allowed. The work must be the original work of the author.

if the quality of the entries does not merit the number of prizes, then prizes will be given up to the number deemed meritorious.

if people have any questions or need rulings, I am the contest administrator and you can feel free to message me directly.

Also a thank you to this year’s panel of judges for volunteering their time and efforts: Loai Qerl, Nevyn Kumamato, Cassandra Habulu, Pol Macsliebh,Henrik Suzaku, Kaladote Lafisques, Bin Orlenard and Shaikar.

A thank you also to our donors so far this year, Arrendis, Valerie Valate, Ushra’Khan, and ARC.

Cordially, and with God’s Blessings

Lunarisse Aspenstar Phonaga
Directrix Societas Sceptri Coronaeque
Executrix Khimi Harar

((OOC note - This year we are running a companion OOC Category for out of character submissions and details will be posted in Eve Fiction.))

Entrant Tracker. I will keep a list of entries here. If you entered and I somehow miss, let me know!

Poetry

  1. Katya Itzimaru - “Untitled” (Amarr/Romance)

Prose

Other: Academic/News/Gossip

  1. Amicia Cora - On the Nature of International Affairs in the Modern Era
11 Likes

Always happy to see this contest return for another year.

I’d like to submit my recent post ‘On the Nature of International Affairs in the Modern Era’ as part of the ‘Other’ category.

1 Like

My humble entry (a classic Amarrian romance):

There once was an Empress Jamyl Sarum,
Who caused some amount of alarum.
Rogues shot her dead,
and made off with her head,
now her corpse is part of a harem.

Updated to add a new special thematic category.

1 Like

One last update to add another thematic category!

2 Likes

We received a nice donation from ARC so the prize amounts have been adjusted upwards:)

2 Likes