rant: ppl abandoning their writing contests

as a writer and lover of money (even if it's just points on a website), i join a lot of writing contests. and only a couple of contests actually had any results. it especially pisses me off if i write a fic JUST for that contest, just to check up on that contest and realize the person holding it has deactivated / hasn't logged on 100 years / is ignoring the contest's existence. 

case points:

just have some fun - written for the lgbtq writing contest in 2014, but that contest doesn't exist anymore. 

red and regret and stolen by the moon - written for the solstice writing contest. it was the first contest i joined and was naturally so excited about it, but it hasn't been updated in 1 year. 

10010 - entered in the new year new story contest. can't really complain about this because the fic wasn't written for this contest, but it was supposed to be for 2014, and it's 2016 now with no news whatsoever

scribbled in the dark - THIS FIC IS MY ING LIFE. i joined the euphoric writing contest (page doesn't exist) and the polyamorous writing contest (user deactivated). i ing love this fic and i worked so damn hard, but i can't enter it into any other contests because it was written so long ago. 

why do people do this? is it bait for the subs/votes/kp?? because if so, then you

but if it's for personal reasons (getting too busy to host it etc) or the contest not getting enough entries, then i still think the participants deserve to be notified about it??

 

of course, there are many great contests that give timely updates and are awesome, but ugh some of these piss me off

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infinitelyreyaxo #1
I can relate to this. I've done the same and it's actually lead me to stop writing exclusively for contests. Now I only enter if something I'm writing for myself fits within one of the prompts. I can promise you I'm not abandoning mine unless circumstances absolutely call for it and even then I will make an announcement if I have to.
shineeinfinite #2
Try my friend's writing contest...
Freedom writing contest
Oh and there is another one too, Exoplosions Writing Contest, but it only accepts EXO as the main characters
Lucindaes #3
I really love your writing and I am actually thinking about holding a writing contest.. but you know, I hate when people leave things undone so you're just so fcking right!!
Hephaistos #4
I entered polyamorous, too. Suuuch bull to abandon it when there were so many participants. I actually commented on the competition when it's page was still up (something to the affect of "why the is this competition abandoned, you could at least close it before you go") and I got replies saying I was an for calling the three (3!!!!) Authors out on it. Also, I entered the Mental Breakdown competition a while ago, but the user didn't update the competition at all. When I messaged and asked about it, they said that they had contacted the winners separately and the competition was over. Like, I would have appreciated an update. ._. I feel you, fam. A lot.
sweetcandy65 #5
WTF
I JOINED POLYAMOURUS WRITING CONTEST WTF
So that's why there hasn't been any update on that contest
But why would they do that omfg
They could just make an update about it -.-
Anyways, thank you for saying this so I could know about this haha xD
I rarely enter contests because I only want to focus on the stories I have now but seeing this post made me sad. They couldn't just leave the contest alone and think that we don't care about it. We wrote the stories for the contests and boom, some of the contests disappeared with NO NOTIFICATION.
/le sigh/
This really made me disappointed.
niangniang #6
i agree! thats why ive been trying to decrease the number of contests i enter D:
but if its any consolation, i just want to let you know that neither i nor my co-hosts will abandon our contest! we have been excited about it for ages and the last thing on our minds would be betraying the contest and its participants :3 so i really hope other contests hostesses have the same mentality ; ^ ;
KaihleeLo #7
Just to play devil advocate for some there's also the possibility of death or Internet problems. For some they probably forgot about the contest. I've hosted multiple contests and they're usually my top privotiries but at certain times I forget when the deadline is for each so I may miss the date etc. (Not saying this happened to me but I can see it as another reason), but bottom line is I agree! I've joined some contests where sure the host succeed in meeting the deadline and gifting the winners but she never finished awarding before disappearing. For example she said she'd make me a trailer and character chart since two years ago. She never did though she did gift me the KP I won. It is disappointing.
-Tigress- #8
OMG I was in Solstice too. >.<
It drives me crazy! And as someone who is simultaneously addicted to contests AND has run several, I think that a lot of it is that the person running the contest likes the idea of it, but when it comes time to judge and dole out prizes, they realize it was a bigger project than they realized and so abandon it because they don't want to have to pick a winner. I truly feel like that is it. A lot of times, the main creators are the ones who abandon them, and leave co-authors holding the bag who are like "ummmm I don't know what to do". It's rude and pathetic of people to abandon them and it frustrates me so much because the least that can be done is to complete it as they said they would. GRRRR *steaming*
Blu3Wind #9
I agreee!! Design contests are the same! Like out of 10, maybe only3 or 4 continue. But i dont know whom can be trusted anymore.. So i just stop wasting my time on these altogetherr :(
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