Quote by expressomarkie
Congratulations to the runners up and the 2nd and 3rd places.. I have to ask, when does the winner 🏆 get announced?
Hiya. There was a glitch with the main competition page. It was all announced here. Sorry for any confusion! https://www.storiesspace.com/forum/site-announcements-and-members-feedback/announcing-the-winners-of-the-sound-of-silence-competition
Good morning/afternoon! Competition announcement day: https://www.storiesspace.com/forum/site-announcements-and-members-feedback/announcing-the-winners-of-the-sound-of-silence-competition?page=1&post=211733
And in honor of that, here are an assortment of bakery goodies.
When we first started this competition I didn't realize how deep into the emotions many of you would go. You got me and I am not ashamed to admit there may have been a few tears involved. You all never cease to amaze us and let me tell you, the one thing the judges all had in common, they struggled with this. Please know that mere points separated the majority of you so if you do not see your name up there, it's not because it wasn't great, because it was. Thank you all and without further ado, here are your top ten!
1st Place: Sixteen Minutes by verbal
2nd Place: Alone by TheShyThespian
3rd Place: Be careful What You Wish For! by AnnaMayZing
5th Place: Flurries of Angel Tears. by CuriousAnnie
6th Place: Damaged Goods by Ping
7th Place: The Most Wonderful Gift Of All by WriterGirl
8th Place: Like Icicles In Her Heart by OpheliaTusk
9th Place: The Only Living Boy on Bleaker Street by tinhatcat
10th Place: Absentia by TomEccleston
~
Thank you again to everyone who participated, or helped in any way. Y'all are amazing and I appreciate you. If you haven't read them all I suggest you do.
I look forward to the next competition!
To the top three, I'll be in touch shortly concerning your prizes!
EDIT TO ADD:
There was a tiny glitch with the leaderboard on the main Competition page. It does not show Verbal as 1st Place and it does not show Courgette as 4th Place. It is blank for both. We are working to get that sorted as soon as possible. This page is correct. Thanks.
It is with a heavy heart that I share with you that I found out earlier that Elliot passed away a couple of months ago, aged just 42.
He was such a wonderful person and friend to so many of us.
If you've never read anything of his, you really should, Elliot's poetry is just beautiful and a testament to who he was as a person. This is a huge loss and he will be missed.
Quote by Mendalla
By the way, I love the comp image. Very evocative. Not sure who does the work for those nowadays but if it isn't you, pass on my thanks and appreciation.
Thank you so much. It's been a team effort. Lately, I've picked a few pictures that I love and that match the theme and sent them to a brilliant friend who makes what you all see. They can see this thread, but I'll leave it up to them if they want to take the credit.
I took a few days away to sort some things and I'm very excited to see so many stories in the queue! I'll catch up on them soon and I look forward to seeing more. Not that I'm being greedy or anything.
Also, I can see the irony of a Sound of Silence comp with the first post of the thread being in all caps.
I'm not sure if this will help or hurt with clearing things up, but when we were first discussing new comp ideas and this one was proposed I told them my mind automatically went to horror. I had an entire scene play out in my mind. Of course it went to horror that's the category I enjoy writing in the most.
So, it doesn't have to be a real-life incident but as I said above we will accept them.
Quote by CuriousAnnie
Molly, when you say "Tell us what that sparks in you," are you referring to the previous paragraph: "If you’ve ever been outside alone in the snow, you know that silence is like no other. We’ve heard it said that the silence in the snow is so loud. It can even feel a bit unnatural or unsettling in the right setting. (my bolding added.) "
Or referring to the first paragraph “the utter absence of auditory distraction(s)” however that absence is caused, i.e. snow isn't essential and one could for instance be say underground in a cave or wearing noise cancelling headphones?
The simple answer is all of it. What does all of that pull from your creative mind?
Quote by TheShyThespian
Molly, is this to be a personal piece, or are we allowed completely fictional stories with a 'sound of silence' theme? Does it have to be 'real' - which I was sort of taking from your description?
We've left it open so it can be real or fictional. Whichever comes to your mind.
Good morning/afternoon! Things have been a bit hectic on my end, same as everyone else's. I hope everyone can take a moment for themselves to relax, breathe, enjoy, some sweets, and perhaps write a little. Perhaps in our new competition. https://www.storiesspace.com/forum/writing-competitions-and-calls-for-submissions/the-sound-of-silence-competition
To get you started on the sweets. This is the only Christmas treat I've had time to make. They are my granny's potato candy or peanut butter pinwheels. 
The Sound Of Silence
Welcome to our new and last competition of the year! We listened and decided to go with a Flash. We imagine that many of us see the title of this competition and instantly flash to Simon and Garfunkel’s song of the same name. Some say that song is about being next to someone and unable to connect with them. I once read that it may refer to “the utter absence of auditory distraction(s)”. This is the one we are going with.
If you’ve ever been outside alone in the snow, you know that silence is like no other. We’ve heard it said that the silence in the snow is so loud. It can even feel a bit unnatural or unsettling in the right setting.
This is where you come in. Tell us what that sparks in you. It doesn't have to be unnatural and unsettling, it can be beautiful and romantic. It can be a place to reset your mind and soul. Whatever it all means to you. All categories are open except poetry, songs, musings, and plays.
There is one requirement, (outside of the Flash word count), you must include the line "the silence is too loud" or "the silence was too loud" depending on past or present tense stories.
Edited to add: I apologize if I wasn't clear by the picture and by talking about the silence from the snow, but the theme of this comp is snow related.
Quick Rules:
You must include “the silence is/was too loud” (based on past or present tense).
The maximum word count is 1000.
You cannot submit already published work.
All Stories Space rules and guidelines apply. https://www.storiesspace.com/legal/acceptable-use-policy
The ending date is January 12, 2025
The winners will be announced on January 18, 2025
Prizes:
1st Place $175 (USD)
2nd Place $75 (USD)
3rd Place $50 (USD)
Have fun and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask!
Please know that I have seen all of these and hear all of you and your concerns. I take it to heart and care about SS too. Also, know that even if you don’t see the efforts, I have been doing things off of SS to bring in more readers and writers. I advertise and share word of mouth about each and every comp as well. It saddens me that the site has slowly grown silent and that it doesn’t get the attention and care it deserves. I will continue to move forward, offering y’all comps, and hoping that some of you will enter them. Perhaps one day StoriesSpace will get the consideration it deserves and we will once again flourish. Until then, know that I appreciate your efforts and your continued presence. We wouldn’t be here without all of you.
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Here's a little cheesecake for your evening snack.
