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Winners of the Stories Space Dirty Martini 420 Competition

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magnificent1rascal
Divine Rapscallion
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Congratulations are in order for all the entrants in our Stories Space Dirty Martini 420 writing competition. The overall quality of submissions was excellent, and the stellar work of our talented and creative members made the judging panel's job a difficult one. However, after much deliberation, we are pleased to announce the winners:

1. The Right Tonic by Paperboy
2. Good Time Blues by Welshdreamer42
3. Whatever by Ping

There was a three-way tie among the Top 10, so we expanded it to Top 12. The runners-up (listed alphabetically by title) are:

• Black Birds by LloydOxton
• A Farewell Drink by NymphWriter
• Interstate 420 by Survivor
• The Last Beginning by rantingsenior
• Last Note by Dreamcatcher
• Letter to a Friend by gypsy
• One More by meredith
• The Penguin Says by DenimAngel
• Shining On by steffanie
Connect with Maggie

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Paperboy
Active Ink Slinger
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I'm utterly gobsmacked. From the entries I'd read, including Welshdreamer and Ping's which were both amazing, I never gave it a second thought that I might end up anywhere near the honours list. If anyone has seen Wayne's World and recalls the scene with them bowing down head to the floor screaming "We're not worthy!" I'm right with them there at the moment.

But thank you for holding this perfect memorial for a friend of the site. I never knew Alan, but I'd like to tip my hat to him and thank Stories Space for allowing me to participate. These flash fiction challenges are always a killer for me but a wonderful reminder about the effectiveness of brevity.

Cheers everyone,
Paperboy

Paperboy
Hey! I write!


If you're into Twilight Zone, read this: [url=https://www.storiesspace.com/stories/flash-fiction/-that-orange-feeling-.aspx][color=orange]That Orange Feeling[/url]
If you're feeling naughty, read this: [url=https://www.storiesspace.com/stories/micro-fiction/twas-the-night-after-christmas.aspx][color=green]Twas the Night After Christmas[/url]
If you're into tear jerkers, read this: A Hundred Breaths

Thank you!
Guest
Lurker
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Well, congrats all around, but especially to everyone who wanted this competition to happen, and then supported it. This was a lot of fun.

Congratulations Paperboy and our Welsh friend. Memorable pieces. Well done.

Thanks to all that read, vote, and commented.
Mendalla
Crazy old ape
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Congrats to all. Oddly, Paperboy's is one of the ones I missed when i did my crash reading of the comp entries. Shall remedy that.

A mighty warrior meets an unusual challenger. The Last Challenge of Jadek Prynn.

Survivor
Primus Omnium
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Just settled into a motel in Arizona. We're on vacation on our way to the Pacific coast. So proud of all the entries. Wonderfully done Paperboy, Welshdreamer42, and Ping. I'm so happy to be included in the honorable mentions with some grand pieces of writing.
elizabethblack
Active Ink Slinger
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I really know how hard this one was to judge. The range of work and tributes to Alan was amazing. And everyone one was thoughtful and a real delight to read. I really am so glad this was the first competition on StoriesSpace that I have seen since I've been a member. Couldn't have been a better showcase for the wonderful authors here. And to all who participated and those that won and placed.........

NymphWriter
Active Ink Slinger
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Holy moly! I made the Top 12!

Major congrats to Paperboy, Welshdreamer42, & Ping!



Unknown User
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So many congrats to give out. YOU ALL ROCK!



Unknown User
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Ohh, I didn't expect a podium and I’m thrilled to be sandwiched between Paperboy and Ping smile

Well done to everyone who took part in this competition - those who knew Alan and wrote touching tributes, those who didn't but entered into the spirit of the contest. cheers all round
meredith
Forum Facilitator
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OH Wow! I never expected to win anything! First I'd like to thank the members of the Academy, the producers and director, fellow cast members.... Ops, wrong speech.

I think most of the winners and entrants entered not to gain anything from the competition, but to honor a fellow member of our little community. That is what we are, a community of souls bound together by our love of written word.

Congratulations to Paperboy, Welshdreamer42 and Ping for doing so well.

I am glad I did not have the task of the judges. There several pieces I thought way better than my humble attempt. I think we should all thank them for the unenviable task of trying judge and somehow qualify all entries. Thank you for your efforts.

Thanks to all that took the time to read and comment. Not only on my entry, but all the entries.

One last thanks goes to Maggie for giving us all the opportunity to participate.

Okay, I'm done except for...

Woo-Hoo!!!



Sorry, I could not let that go by.
"Them ain't no militia, that's the Army of the Potomac!"
Unknown User
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Congratulations to everyone! Excellent entries and winners.cySJPSsDT0WcEIYG
Molly
Administration
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to all the winners! And thank you to everyone that entered. There were so many great entries.
Unknown User
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Congratulations everyone, there were so many really stellar entries in the Comp! Enjoyed seeing some familiar names in the Top 3 and top 12. A ridiculous amount of talent here!!!!
Unknown User
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Congrats to all the winners. Also a big congrats to all the writers as well for putting their own special touch on this competition. Everyone did a great job. Look forward to the next competition.
henrietta_fielding
Active Ink Slinger
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Well done everyone! Many congratulations to the Top Three, the qualifiers and all who entered.

This was such a great success that I do hope there might be another competition in the near future!
steffanie
Advanced Wordsmith
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Well done Paperboy and well done storiesspace.

I reckon everyone involved got a boost out of this - I know I did.

So thanks to all of you for making it happen.
Iamahappylady
Rookie Scribe
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Great job everyone!
Read, score, and comment on my very first story "Before My Eyes".
verbal
Kaiju-adjacent
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This was a very cool contest. Contrats to Paperboy, the Welsdh Dreamer, Ping!, and all the other who rounded oout the top ten!

Teeth of the Sky - Myths and Monsters competition, first place

Fire and Ice - A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words competition, first place

Monster - Survivor competition, first place

EyeOfTheBeholder
Active Ink Slinger
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It was a good contest with lots of good writers. Congrats to Paperboy, Welsh Dreamer, Ping!, and all the other top 12!

Unknown User
0 likes
This was a ton of fun. Congrats to the top 12, especially Paperboy, Welsh Dreamer, and Ping. I hope there are more contests to come.
etairay
Active Ink Slinger
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Congratulations to you all, you are all winners!! Congratulations Paperboy, Welshdreamer42, and Ping. Now, if I had submitted a poem, oh you never know 😂😂😂😂😂 Party in the SS conference room, is it 😊👍
Survivor
Primus Omnium
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On the road these past weeks I found the time to recognize and appreciate the outstanding work of Paperboy, as well as the living presentation of Welshdreamer42, and Ping's impossibly creative offering. In addition we had so many of outstandingly true worth that there had to be twelve, rather than ten, runners-up in this contest to salute and memorialize our own, still dancing and dreaming and reciting, our own Alan.

Will this be that long dreamt of and called for moment of coming together in sororal and fraternal fellowship and creation? Will all petty differences and inoffensive grudges be dusted off ones angry hands, wiped away from a distraught brow, be forgotten once for all. Will this be that time brought on by loving creativity and uplift presented to our own private godlings and individual godlets.

Shall we play some blues to release and respond with empathy and understanding, if only we may, if only. We may.

We traveled down the road of competition to completion and, at last, remembrance. Can We GET a WITNESS??

Haven't we, as members for so long and through so much, done enough to earn each other's respect and civil understanding that we might continue this modest experiment in friendship and reciprocity. May it be so.

Keep on reading, and writing, and posting, and talking, and joking, and creating in whatever way you may.

It will be grand, brilliant, dope, ours. Our own site of friendly creation.

I trust it will be done when the presentation of the winnings is complete.
AnnaMayZing
Chasing Dragons
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Quote by Survivor
On the road these past weeks I found the time to recognize and appreciate the outstanding work of Paperboy, as well as the living presentation of Welshdreamer42, and Ping's impossibly creative offering. In addition we had so many of outstandingly true worth that there had to be twelve, rather than ten, runners-up in this contest to salute and memorialize our own, still dancing and dreaming and reciting, our own Alan.

Will this be that long dreamt of and called for moment of coming together in sororal and fraternal fellowship and creation? Will all petty differences and inoffensive grudges be dusted off ones angry hands, wiped away from a distraught brow, be forgotten once for all. Will this be that time brought on by loving creativity and uplift presented to our own private godlings and individual godlets.

Shall we play some blues to release and respond with empathy and understanding, if only we may, if only. We may.

We travelled down the road of competition to completion and, at last, remembrance. Can We GET a WITNESS??

Haven't we, as members for so long and through so much, done enough to earn each other's respect and civil understanding that we might continue this modest experiment in friendship and reciprocity. May it be so.

Keep on reading, and writing, and posting, and talking, and joking, and creating in whatever way you may.

It will be grand, brilliant, dope, ours. Our own site of friendly creation.

I trust it will be done when the presentation of the winnings is complete.


It would appear not, Larry.

If anyone wishes to find the beginning of this epic saga, here it is:
https://www.storiesspace.com/stories/drama/the-nurses.aspx

However, since this story is now available in paperback, only the first few chapters remain. Buy at:

https://www.vbay.info/thenurses

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." George Santayana

Dreamcatcher
Forum Facilitator
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I never rule anything out. I thought the competition for Alan was quite a success. We might consider "bursts competitions"... short notice, short timeline, short winner announcements... random genres.. poems one month, story the next... maybe once a month.. no monies, but maybe a parking space on the front page? Name in lights.

If we can get more member participation, we can generate enthusiasm. I for one miss the cross-talk we used to get in the forums. We need an old style general Store cracker barrel type of circle-the-chairs confab... the mods could just post a random topic of conversation and see who bites... a separate posting on the front page, not from the ticker... that damn ticker is nothing but games anymore...
Guest
Lurker
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If I had my druthers. A new writer would get a badge to wear for thirty days. A mod would have a badge. A winner of a competition would wear a badge for thirty days. A veteran's
badge for over three years if still active. Badges should be earned and voted on by a panel of peers. Nothing should be a given because of entitlements or favors. It's not that difficult to slow a runaway horse. Actions do speak louder if heard.
Unknown User
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Quote by Dreamcatcher
I never rule anything out. I thought the competition for Alan was quite a success. We might consider "bursts competitions"... short notice, short timeline, short winner announcements... random genres.. poems one month, story the next... maybe once a month.. no monies, but maybe a parking space on the front page? Name in lights.

If we can get more member participation, we can generate enthusiasm. I for one miss the cross-talk we used to get in the forums. We need an old style general Store cracker barrel type of circle-the-chairs confab... the mods could just post a random topic of conversation and see who bites... a separate posting on the front page, not from the ticker... that damn ticker is nothing but games anymore...


The competition with its commemoration of Alan was great, and it was much needed. We were left adrift with his passing, and never had a wake or other memorial to share our feelings and sense of loss.

I miss the conversations in the forums as well, the discussions, the banter, the exchanges.

The games are popular right now, they are not my thing, but hey, others are into them. Hopefully the wind will turn and more writing and story oriented posts will come to be.
Unknown User
0 likes
Quote by Survivor
On the road these past weeks I found the time to recognize and appreciate the outstanding work of Paperboy, as well as the living presentation of Welshdreamer42, and Ping's impossibly creative offering. In addition we had so many of outstandingly true worth that there had to be twelve, rather than ten, runners-up in this contest to salute and memorialize our own, still dancing and dreaming and reciting, our own Alan.

Will this be that long dreamt of and called for moment of coming together in sororal and fraternal fellowship and creation? Will all petty differences and inoffensive grudges be dusted off ones angry hands, wiped away from a distraught brow, be forgotten once for all. Will this be that time brought on by loving creativity and uplift presented to our own private godlings and individual godlets.

Shall we play some blues to release and respond with empathy and understanding, if only we may, if only. We may.

We traveled down the road of competition to completion and, at last, remembrance. Can We GET a WITNESS??

Haven't we, as members for so long and through so much, done enough to earn each other's respect and civil understanding that we might continue this modest experiment in friendship and reciprocity. May it be so.

Keep on reading, and writing, and posting, and talking, and joking, and creating in whatever way you may.

It will be grand, brilliant, dope, ours. Our own site of friendly creation.

I trust it will be done when the presentation of the winnings is complete.


Beautiful sentiments, Larry. I had a blast writing for this contest and reading the submissions. There were so many inspiring, fun, and humorous entries.

I'm happy to be here. I hope your words will be made so.