Sighter Tnailog
09-18-06, 01:30 PM
A little over a week ago, Matt announced that a new rubric would be made available for Althanas.
It is now three days past the deadline for the unveiling of that rubric. We mods have run into a little snag in putting the rubric up for everyone, but I'd like to assure everyone that the new rubric is still coming. Let me tell everyone how it will work, though, so you can begin thinking about how you write and whether or not your writing fits the idea.
The new rubric, instead of just having ten areas, will also have three "headings." These headings are not judged, they merely serve to organize the smaller areas into related groups. These headings are STORY, CHARACTER, and WRITING STYLE.
This is how the rubric will be written by a moderator when they judge your threads. Of course, individual style may vary -- I like to use a tilde (~) while others may prefer a colon (:) -- but this is the basic layout.
STORY
Area 1 ~ 5/10
Area 2 ~ 6/10
Area 3 ~ 7/10
Story Subtotal ~ Sum of Areas 1-3, so 18/30
CHARACTER
Area 4 ~ 6/10
Area 5 ~ 6/10
Area 6 ~ 5/10
Character Subtotal ~ Sum of Areas 4-6, so 17/30
WRITING STYLE
Area 7 ~ 7/10
Area 8 ~ 6/10
Area 9 ~ 4/10
Writing Style Subtotal ~ Sum of Areas 7-9, so 17/30
WILD CARD ~ 6/10
TOTAL ~ Sum of Writing Style, Character, Story, and Wildcard, so 58/100
Here's a brief description of each of the overarching areas. As we move forward with this rubric, we'll be publishing short essays on each new area in order to help you adjust and adapt to our changing way of judging your work.
A good story is well-placed in time and location and proceeds with sufficient development to interest the reader without boring her at the same time. Good stories can involve drama, comedy, suspense, surprise, or any number of other elements. Most important, though...good stories are entertaining. That is not to say original, necessarily; even Shakespeare stole from other people at times. But he threw enough of his own genius into his work that it kept people coming back for more.
Character asks this questions: do the thoughts, words, and actions of your character exhibit who they are? If a particular character is doing something completely contrary to what they are like without any reasoning behind it, you'll probably score low. But if your actions and thoughts back up who your character is, then you will do well. Above all, a character should be BELIEVABLE. Does it make sense for an illiterate barbarian to talk his way out of a mess? No. Does it make sense for a dull-witted human to come up with a brilliant plan for ambushing the enemy? No. Does it make sense for a first-time lover to comprehend the depth of his emotions? No. In other words: simply because a character does something "smart" doesn't mean the player should get high scores. Sometimes, a stupid response to a situation can be just as valuable as an intelligent one.
Writing style comprises the bones, sinew, and skin of a thread’s “body.” You have to build your language properly, with good grammar, spelling, and punctuation -- the bones. You have to tie things together and make things make sense; just as sinew ties bones together, your writing should tie itself into being clear and concise. Finally, your skin is what people see, so make it attractive! Using different stylistic devices will help make your writing interesting, exciting, and accessible.
Above all, try to remember this: the overriding rule for all these areas is creativity. If you write the same stories over and over again, people will notice. Writing with good grammar and context isn't always a guarantor of good scores, especially if you're merely plugging in the same old stories over and over again. We here at Althanas try to be a bit more like artists and a bit less like factories. We're trying to produce Gormenghast, not Dragonlance. Even if you ace these three areas, without creativity you will not succeed.
I hope these general principles help people think about their writing on Althanas. The new rubric will promote balance and encourage better writing, and I am looking forward to the day when the full rubric is available for general use.
It is now three days past the deadline for the unveiling of that rubric. We mods have run into a little snag in putting the rubric up for everyone, but I'd like to assure everyone that the new rubric is still coming. Let me tell everyone how it will work, though, so you can begin thinking about how you write and whether or not your writing fits the idea.
The new rubric, instead of just having ten areas, will also have three "headings." These headings are not judged, they merely serve to organize the smaller areas into related groups. These headings are STORY, CHARACTER, and WRITING STYLE.
This is how the rubric will be written by a moderator when they judge your threads. Of course, individual style may vary -- I like to use a tilde (~) while others may prefer a colon (:) -- but this is the basic layout.
STORY
Area 1 ~ 5/10
Area 2 ~ 6/10
Area 3 ~ 7/10
Story Subtotal ~ Sum of Areas 1-3, so 18/30
CHARACTER
Area 4 ~ 6/10
Area 5 ~ 6/10
Area 6 ~ 5/10
Character Subtotal ~ Sum of Areas 4-6, so 17/30
WRITING STYLE
Area 7 ~ 7/10
Area 8 ~ 6/10
Area 9 ~ 4/10
Writing Style Subtotal ~ Sum of Areas 7-9, so 17/30
WILD CARD ~ 6/10
TOTAL ~ Sum of Writing Style, Character, Story, and Wildcard, so 58/100
Here's a brief description of each of the overarching areas. As we move forward with this rubric, we'll be publishing short essays on each new area in order to help you adjust and adapt to our changing way of judging your work.
A good story is well-placed in time and location and proceeds with sufficient development to interest the reader without boring her at the same time. Good stories can involve drama, comedy, suspense, surprise, or any number of other elements. Most important, though...good stories are entertaining. That is not to say original, necessarily; even Shakespeare stole from other people at times. But he threw enough of his own genius into his work that it kept people coming back for more.
Character asks this questions: do the thoughts, words, and actions of your character exhibit who they are? If a particular character is doing something completely contrary to what they are like without any reasoning behind it, you'll probably score low. But if your actions and thoughts back up who your character is, then you will do well. Above all, a character should be BELIEVABLE. Does it make sense for an illiterate barbarian to talk his way out of a mess? No. Does it make sense for a dull-witted human to come up with a brilliant plan for ambushing the enemy? No. Does it make sense for a first-time lover to comprehend the depth of his emotions? No. In other words: simply because a character does something "smart" doesn't mean the player should get high scores. Sometimes, a stupid response to a situation can be just as valuable as an intelligent one.
Writing style comprises the bones, sinew, and skin of a thread’s “body.” You have to build your language properly, with good grammar, spelling, and punctuation -- the bones. You have to tie things together and make things make sense; just as sinew ties bones together, your writing should tie itself into being clear and concise. Finally, your skin is what people see, so make it attractive! Using different stylistic devices will help make your writing interesting, exciting, and accessible.
Above all, try to remember this: the overriding rule for all these areas is creativity. If you write the same stories over and over again, people will notice. Writing with good grammar and context isn't always a guarantor of good scores, especially if you're merely plugging in the same old stories over and over again. We here at Althanas try to be a bit more like artists and a bit less like factories. We're trying to produce Gormenghast, not Dragonlance. Even if you ace these three areas, without creativity you will not succeed.
I hope these general principles help people think about their writing on Althanas. The new rubric will promote balance and encourage better writing, and I am looking forward to the day when the full rubric is available for general use.