#WEP WINNERS : FEBRUARY 2023 CHALLENGE - GONE WITH THE WIND

 Wow! - did you guys blow us away or what?  But on second thoughts, not surprising, given that the prompt was - 

And you are what you are -  a super talented bunch of people writing here - it makes the reading beyond wonderful, but the judging a herculean task. Thank you everyone, for the amazing entries for GWTW. Sadly, our numbers were down by half, but we see a drop off in blog activity across the blogosphere. We hope this is only temporary as the more who write to the WEP challenges, the better.

Hello, this is Nila with you, to sum up the Feb challenge results. But first a round-up of the entries:

 Denise Covey - Love and loss, a nation mortally divided, a people forever changed.

Yolanda Renee - Surrender does not mean giving up.

Nilanjana Bose - A bunch of B/W photos can open a can of worms.

Olga Godim - What do Martian women of the 24th century think of a classic love movie from three hundred years ago.

Sonia Dogra - Tomorrow is another day. 

J Lenni Dorner - Literally about a character who is GONE in a scene with THE WIND.

Donna Hole - Loss of culture, loss of life, loss of dreams. Loss of family.

N.R. Williams - Family Issues.

Jemi Fraser - Gone isn't always gone.

Ronald Yeomans - And here you thought you knew all about Gone with the Wind!

Ronald Clarke - Night Witches prepare for an imminent offensive.

Pat Garcia - When Miss Scarlet slap me, it hurt. Sometimes me gets pains in my head. We human beings too.

Damyanti Biswas - What do words like love and freedom mean to you?

Beth Camp - An Old Man remembers his life in the south.

Hilary Melton-Butcher - The wind that blows no ills. 

Sally Stackhouse - The world is changing. 

Shortlist

Such a bunch of awesome entries! It made the shortlisting super difficult this month even though the entries were down. Each of the team brings a slightly different perspective to the shortlisting process, someone gives a tad more weight to the creative interpretation, another to the execution, yet another to reader engagement, but all of us are looking for the same final result - a thundering good story, well crafted and well told. We each shortlist and defend our choices passionately there's a lot of back and forth that doesn't show up here, before we pass them on to Nick, our judge.

Here's the shortlist we sent on, but only three can win!

Sally Stackhouse

Beth Camp

Damyanti Biswas

Dolorah

Pat Garcia

Commenting:

Thank you to all those who comment widely, especially those who read and comment even when they do not have an entry in the ring or are unwell. Our top supporter and commenter, Elephant's Child is having health issues and could not be present this challenge. We send our thoughts and prayers to you, Sue. Commenting is the lifeblood of WEP both as feedback towards the improvement of writing craft and as a communication channel for community building.

Sadly, this month as in months past we've had commenting issues. No one's quite sure what is going on, but it is not just a WordPress/Blogger issue. Please check the comments on the WEP post or the C-Box where we posted comments that wouldn't take on blogs. 

Please note that due to incessant spamming issues, we have had to keep comment moderation on. So your comment may not show up right away, but we will get to it soonest possible. We value your comments, please keep them coming. 

THE FEBRUARY PRIZE

This month's prize is a first chapter or 10,000-word critique from L. Diane Wolfe whose work has been anthologized in the IWSG publications and the owner of the Dancing Lemur Press. Check our previous post for more information about L Diane.

Three winners! Three Oscars!

AND NOW IT'S TIME TO CONGRATULATE THE WINNERS!

WE HOPE YOU AGREE THE BADGES ARE BEYOND AWESOME!

THANKS, OLGA GODIM!

THE WINNER OF THE FEBRUARY 2023 CHALLENGE 

~ GONE WITH THE WIND ~ 

IS 

CONGRATULATIONS, DAMYANTI! 

Damyanti's story made us consider what do words like love and freedom mean to you?

Nick said, "Elegant and yearning, this brings up all sorts of thoughts and emotions about the different things love might mean. Really well done...."

Damyanti, if you will please post this badge on your blog and link it to your winning entry. Tweet it! Share the love! Use the critique prize or pass it on to the next winner if you can't avail yourself of it in the next few months.  Remember that this story will be considered for a place in the WEP anthology to be published next year. Details will follow.

THE RUNNER-UP OF THE FEBRUARY 2023 CHALLENGE 

~ GONE WITH THE WIND ~

IS 

CONGRATULATIONS, Beth!

Beth brought to mind an Old Man's remembrances of his life in the south.

Nick said, "A different take and one that I didn't expect - Quite sobering and humanises some harrowing history really effectively..."

Beth, please post this badge on your blog and link it to your entry. Promo any way you wish! This flash also will be considered for a place in next year's WEP anthology. Details will follow.

THE ENCOURAGEMENT AWARD FOR THE FEBRUARY 2023 CHALLENGE 

~ GONE WITH THE WIND ~

GOES TO

CONGRATULATIONS, Dolorah!

Dolorah's story highlighted the Loss of culture, loss of life, and loss of dreams. Loss of family.

Nick said, "A snapshot of a young man's family and friends all rallying around when things go awry. In that situation, you hope for the best, but there is really no way to prepare for the worst. Heartbreaking....."

Dolorah, please post this badge on your blog and link it to your flash. Promo any way you choose! You also will be considered for a place for this story in WEP's anthology scheduled for next year. Details will follow.

Thank you to all our participants for each of their captivating entries! 

We had such a varied and creative bunch of flashes this month. Each one a gem!

 

Please share this across your social media sites.

We announce our WEP FEBRUARY ‘23 GONE WITH THE WIND #winners @DeniseCCovey @yolandarenee @jemifraser @SoniaDogra16#amwriting #writingcontest #flashfiction #wepwinners https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2023/02/wep-winners-february-2023-challenge.html

#WEPFF FEBRUARY ’23 GONE WITH THE WIND #winners announced @DeniseCCovey @SoniaDogra16 @yolandarenee #jemifraser https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2023/02/wep-winners-february-2023-challenge.html #amwriting #flashfiction #wepwinners #writingcontest

Come congratulate our FEBRUARY ’23 GONE WITH THE WIND #winners! #WEPFF Challenge @DeniseCCovey @yolandarenee @SoniaDogra16 @jemifraser #amwriting #flashfiction #wepwinners #writingcontest  https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2023/02/wep-winners-february-2023-challenge.html

PLEASE JOIN US IN APRIL FOR THE NEXT CHALLENGE 

LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL

WIN  A CRITIQUE PRIZE! 

WIN A PLACE IN OUR ANTHOLOGY!

Look up the detailed Challenge blurb here. There are many potential directions to explore. Firstly, the indirect - the setting : war, fascism, the Holocaust, Italy, any one of them can inspire. The underpinning issues of  World War II or any war - the racism, the random cruelty, the injustice, the tragedy, the humour and poetry and other spinoffs. Then there is the direct, intimate angle - the not-so-rich-boy-meets-upper-class-girl motif. There's the bond between father and son. The games adults play with (their) children. The desire to safeguard one's own even at the cost of death. Countless possibilities. Use any of these, or ignore them totally and come with your own - it's up to you!

Post - April 19th to 21st 2023

Please join us for another fun prompt in April

See you then!

Nila, signing off now for: