The Official Author's Hangout 2015 Summer Lovin' Contest Support Thread

[HeyAll]

Is the Summer contest the most popular theme for writers or something? Why are so many people saying they're submitting more than one story? Or is it a popular theme for readers and everyone wants to get more than one story in front of eyes.

I actually have three stories ready, but I'm not sure how it happened. All the stars and planets aligned, I suppose.

I have also had zero luck finding an editor. If anyone here is willing, I'd be happy to swap stories with you.

The popular ones are Halloween & Winter.

But what's interesting is that the Nude Day official thread from Laurel had thousands of views. Meanwhile, the Summer Lovin official thread has only 500+.

So overall, who knows, this contest may have less stories than the previous contest.

 

[JagFarlane]

Lol. I was thinking true procrastinators haven't checked when the final deadline is yet and start dates don't have any real meaning to them, but maybe it's true procrastinators think of snappy responses but put off responding until after someone else does.

Hmmm quite potentially so, I'll have to get back to you on that.

 

[JagFarlane]

Is the Summer contest the most popular theme for writers or something? Why are so many people saying they're submitting more than one story? Or is it a popular theme for readers and everyone wants to get more than one story in front of eyes.

I actually have three stories ready, but I'm not sure how it happened. All the stars and planets aligned, I suppose.

I have also had zero luck finding an editor. If anyone here is willing, I'd be happy to swap stories with you.

It's perfectly timed so that as writers are recovering from being severely burned after discovering the molten burning object in the sky they have the time available to turn out loads of stories dedicated to doing things other than discovering how it feels to be KFC Extra Crispy.

 

[TxRad]

It's perfectly timed so that as writers are recovering from being severely burned after discovering the molten burning object in the sky they have the time available to turn out loads of stories dedicated to doing things other than discovering how it feels to be KFC Extra Crispy.

Extra Crispy sounds about right for here. We set a new all time record of 108 last week.

 

[legerdemer]

pdf's?

Does anyone know - are pdf's acceptable to submit? (They are not listed.) I ask because I'm considering an illustrated story. Illustrations are notoriously unstable in Word docs. (If no one has tried it, I'll PM Laurel.)

 

[TxRad]

Does anyone know - are pdf's acceptable to submit? (They are not listed.) I ask because I'm considering an illustrated story. Illustrations are notoriously unstable in Word docs. (If no one has tried it, I'll PM Laurel.)

Word doc and posting direct, (Cut & Paste) are the only two ways. I believe illustrated stories can be filed as a doc or they may have to be e-mailed like audio stories.

Also the pictures have many restrictions on them for context as well as copyright. There are less restrictions on drawing but the copyright is the same. You must hold it.

 

[legerdemer]

Word doc and posting direct, (Cut & Paste) are the only two ways. I believe illustrated stories can be filed as a doc or they may have to be e-mailed like audio stories.

Also the pictures have many restrictions on them for context as well as copyright. There are less restrictions on drawing but the copyright is the same. You must hold it.

Thanks, I have submitted audio files. I'll check with Laurel if they can take the pdf format or need jpegs.

Yes, no worries about copyright - they'd be my own pics (as in, pics I took myself ).

 

[TxRad]

Thanks, I have submitted audio files. I'll check with Laurel if they can take the pdf format or need jpegs.

Yes, no worries about copyright - they'd be my own pics (as in, pics I took myself ).

I'm pretty sure JPG's is the way to go but she's the last authority.

Let us know what you find out.

 

[JagFarlane]

Extra Crispy sounds about right for here. We set a new all time record of 108 last week.

Ouch, I'll stay here in my mountains. Most of our record highs are in the low 90's

 

[TxRad]

Ouch, I'll stay here in my mountains. Most of our record highs are in the low 90's

Yesterday was the first day below 95 in 36 straight days.

Ok, ok, I'll get back to the subject at hand. Four stories done. What can I say, I've been on a roll.

 

[legerdemer]

Options for submitting illustrated stories

... I'll check with Laurel if they can take the pdf format or need jpegs.

I'm pretty sure JPG's is the way to go but she's the last authority.

Let us know what you find out.

Laurel's very prompt answer was: "Unfortunately, we don't accept PDFs. What you could do is to create the poem (or story - my addition) in an image editing program - such as Draw or Photoshop. Another option - if you have the poem in PDF form already - is to convert the PDF to a PNG or JPG. I haven't tried this, but when I Googled I found this link:
http://pdf2png.com/"


Based on my own noodling around, here are some other options in addition to the converter Laurel suggested:

On a Mac, you can first convert any Word file to a pdf (Save as... or Print to pdf), then use Preview and Export to jpeg or png format. I checked Adobe Reader - the free version does not have this option, and I don't have the full version. I also use Pages, but most y'all probably don't, so I won't bother with that.

From Powerpoint, you can Export slides to pictures, which turns each slide independently into jpg format. Powerpoint is nice in that it allows you to overlay text on images, but it has other issues.

I've stopped using Adobe Photoshop many many moons ago in favor of Canvas, an old and wonderful Adobe program no longer updated or supported by the newest Mac OS X versions. Presumably Corel Draw on PCs probably have similar functions.

I have my answer. Now all I need to do is finish my f'ing story in time...

 

[8letters]

Does anyone know - are pdf's acceptable to submit? (They are not listed.) I ask because I'm considering an illustrated story. Illustrations are notoriously unstable in Word docs. (If no one has tried it, I'll PM Laurel.)

I would think the best way to do it would be as a text file with HTML tags to reference the illustrations, which would have to be uploaded separately.

Silkstockingslover dominates the Illustrated category and you could contact him/her. See "Moms & Daughters": A Family Affair for an example of Silkstockingslover's work.

Digging into the HTML, Silkstockingslover wrote:

<strong>THANKS</strong> to <strong>Wayne</strong>, <strong>goamz86</strong> and <strong>Robert</strong> for editing this story.<br />
<br />
<img src="/images/illustratedstories/2015/2015_06/silkstockingslover_moms-and-daughters-a-family-affair01.jpg" width="442" height="623"><br />
<br />
<strong><u>0. Prologue:</u></strong><br />

That translates to:

THANKS to Wayne, goamz86 and Robert for editing this story.
[Image]
0. Prologue:

If you can get the jpg's uploaded, then the little bit of HTML you need to display them is fairly simple. Use the story preview function of the story submission form to make sure everything looks just right. The challenge is getting the jpg's uploaded beforehand. You could ask Laurel about that.

 

[legerdemer]

I would think the best way to do it would be as a text file with HTML tags to reference the illustrations, which would have to be uploaded separately.

Silkstockingslover dominates the Illustrated category and you could contact him/her. See "Moms & Daughters": A Family Affair for an example of Silkstockingslover's work.

Digging into the HTML, Silkstockingslover wrote:


That translates to:


If you can get the jpg's uploaded, then the little bit of HTML you need to display them is fairly simple. Use the story preview function of the story submission form to make sure everything looks just right. The challenge is getting the jpg's uploaded beforehand. You could ask Laurel about that.

Embedding the images into a text file then turning the whole thing, through a couple of steps, into a jpg or png file, seems quite a bit easier, and gives me more control over where the images really go and what the final product looks like. That way I don't have to bother Laurel, or be disappointed if I don't like the final product. I'd have only myself to blame. I know, control freak.... what can you do...

 

[Laurel]

Laurel's very prompt answer was: "Unfortunately, we don't accept PDFs. What you could do is to create the poem (or story - my addition)

I wanted to pop in and add that my answer was based on an illustrated poem with text. It was not intended for longer length works with illustrations. That is, we will not accept a story that is one giant image.

The issue with illustrations in stories is that readers view Lit from a variety of browsers and devices - from big screens to (increasingly) mobile phones and e-readers. Your illustrated story will not look the same on an iPhone as it does on a 980+ resolution screen. My suggestion, if you want to include illustrations in a story on Lit and you want them to appear correctly for the maximum number of readers, is to submit the story as a Word .Doc with the pictures placed on their own line - without any text justified around them. OR submit the text to us, then upload the images to our image upload and note within the text of the story where each should go ("pic image01.jpg here", etc.).

The less complicated you make your formatting, the more chance that your submission will look and read nicely to the maximum number of readers.

If you have any questions on this, please let me know.

 

[JagFarlane]

Yesterday was the first day below 95 in 36 straight days.

Ok, ok, I'll get back to the subject at hand. Four stories done. What can I say, I've been on a roll.

-chuckles- we were always on subject, dropping off those plot bunnies.

Slowly getting one done for the contest. Hope to have it done before the end of Aug

 

[YDB95]

I've submitted my first two just now. (Hey, it's almost the 21st in Australia.) I'm going to try to finish a third over the weekend, but that one hasn't been coming along as well as I'd like.

 

[DG Hear]

I had a story started but had a setback when I had a stint put in last week. (had a 95% blockege in the old widow maker) All is ok now. Had to rest a few days and it gave me time to finish my story My editor got it back to me in one day. I expect to submit it sometime today. It's just enjoyable to be part of the contest. Best of luck to all who enter.
With respect
DG Hear

 

[TxRad]

I had a story started but had a setback when I had a stint put in last week. (had a 95% blockege in the old widow maker) All is ok now. Had to rest a few days and it gave me time to finish my story My editor got it back to me in one day. I expect to submit it sometime today. It's just enjoyable to be part of the contest. Best of luck to all who enter.
With respect
DG Hear

Glad you're still around to be with us. Sounds like a scary time. Getting old is a bitch but the alternatives ain't so hot either.

Dropped my first one in line last night.

Don't forget the catch phrase "SUMMER LOVIN STORY CONTEST 2015"

 

[DG Hear]

Glad you're still around to be with us. Sounds like a scary time. Getting old is a bitch but the alternatives ain't so hot either.

Dropped my first one in line last night.

Don't forget the catch phrase "SUMMER LOVIN STORY CONTEST 2015"

Thanks for the concern. I submitted my story this morning also. I did put the "SUMMER LOVIN STORY CONTEST 2015" quote in. Best of luck to you.
DG

 

[legerdemer]

I wanted to pop in and add that my answer was based on an illustrated poem with text. It was not intended for longer length works with illustrations. That is, we will not accept a story that is one giant image.

The issue with illustrations in stories is that readers view Lit from a variety of browsers and devices - from big screens to (increasingly) mobile phones and e-readers. Your illustrated story will not look the same on an iPhone as it does on a 980+ resolution screen. My suggestion, if you want to include illustrations in a story on Lit and you want them to appear correctly for the maximum number of readers, is to submit the story as a Word .Doc with the pictures placed on their own line - without any text justified around them. OR submit the text to us, then upload the images to our image upload and note within the text of the story where each should go ("pic image01.jpg here", etc.).

The less complicated you make your formatting, the more chance that your submission will look and read nicely to the maximum number of readers.

If you have any questions on this, please let me know.

Thanks much, Laurel, for the clarification. A Word doc will be my preferred option.

 

[SamScribble]

Just sent my contest story off. Not bad considering that I started it just over a year ago.

 

[TxRad]

Mine still says pending so.....

 

[MSTarot]

Just sent my contest story off. Not bad considering that I started it just over a year ago.

One of my entries this year was started back in 1997.

Been meaning to get to that rewrite.

 

[MSTarot]

Mine still says pending so.....

Maybe someone needs to go give Laurel a poke and a prod this morning.

I know it's a tough job, fraught with all kinds of dangers, but this pirate can certainly man up and do the "hard" tasks.

 

[Sammael Bard]

Dudes and ladies, I have a question.

My story has elements of First Time sex as well as Romance. I would've put it in Romance because this is the main focus rather than the first time sex, but the characters involved are eighteen year olds (in High School).

Where should I put it -- First Time or Romance?

From my experience, most commentators in Romance prefer mature people doing the mushy-wushy stuff. Eighteen year olds could raise a few eyebrows. But then, the theme is quite dark and the focus not on losing virginities. Hence, this one's not really fit for First Time either.

Any help?