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1k Words: A Writing Contest

writingclub.world

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Re: 1k Words: A Writing Contest

#11

Post by kmoser »

bjourne wrote: post #10
kmoser wrote: post #3

> Does it have to be 1,000 words? > Yes. That’s what a picture is worth, after all. Not to be pedantic but does this mean "1,000 words or fewer ," " at least 1,000 words," or " exactly 1,000 words?" I'm asking because with school assignments the number is usually a lower bound, but with writing contests it's often an upper bound (sometimes even a fuzzy limit).

"Does it have to be 1,000 words? Yes. That’s what a picture is worth, after all. Your entry must be exactly 1,000 words, not including the title (if you choose to write one)."

Good catch, thanks. Unfortunately that information wasn't in the email.

Now, do hyphenated words count as one word or two? Do numbers count as words (e.g. is "12 years old" three words or two?) If I write 1,000 words but concatenate them without spaces, is that still considered 1,000 words, or one single word?

Re: 1k Words: A Writing Contest

#14

Post by esquivalience »

For all the people asking whether or not it is exactly a thousand words or only more or less than that, I think it is very plain from the content. For example:

> "Write 1,000 words about it"

> "you are writing the definitive 1,000 words for this photo. Make them count."

> "Does it have to be 1,000 words? Yes...Your entry must be exactly 1,000 words"

It also says that the prize is $1,000, and there's 1 picture - but I haven't seen anyone asking whether each of those is an upper or lower bound!

Re: 1k Words: A Writing Contest

#15

Post by bjourne »

kmoser wrote: post #11
bjourne wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Does it have to be 1,000 words? Yes. That’s what a picture is worth, after all. Your entry must be exactly 1,000 words, not including the title (if you choose to write one)."

Good catch, thanks. Unfortunately that information wasn't in the email. Now, do hyphenated words count as one word or two? Do numbers count as words (e.g. is "12 years old" three words or two?) If I write 1,000 words but concatenate them without spaces, is that still considered 1,000 words, or one single word?

I don't know of any English word counting algorithm or MoS that does not count "12" as a word, do you?

Re: 1k Words: A Writing Contest

#16

Post by msm_ »

moron4hire wrote: post #13

Sounds kind of like they are spending $1500 on an email list of people interested in creative writing, plus gaining writing samples.

There are A LOT of cheaper ways to get some writing samples on the internet. This is just someone having fun, and creating an interesting challenge for others to have fun with.

Re: 1k Words: A Writing Contest

#19

Post by gwern »

debo_ wrote: post #18

This is an exceptionally boring picture to write about. You can of course be imaginative about anything, but seriously.

That's what makes the contest interesting. Anyone can write an interesting 1k words about an interesting picture. But can you write an interesting 1k words about an uninteresting picture? Remember what G. K. Chesterton said...

(So far, judging from this page, it is easier to write an interesting debate about whether the rules require exactly 1k words and what is a 1k word entry, exactly, than about the picture. So far so good! We wouldn't want it to be too easy, after all. Gotta earn that $1k.)

Re: 1k Words: A Writing Contest

#20

Post by Metricon »

debo_ wrote: post #18

This is an exceptionally boring picture to write about. You can of course be imaginative about anything, but seriously.

Wouldn't a subjectively boring picture present an even greater challenge to the creativity of the writer involved in the competition? It could have been a picture of a Barton Newman painting; that would be a significant challenge to structure a 1000 word essay on.
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