An big announcement today from Stuart Lloyd, one of the leading bannermen of British gamebooks. I'll just hand over to him. Take it away, Stuart!
Hello all! I'm really excited to announce the Lindenbaum award for
short gamebook fiction.
The award is inspired by the Windhammer competition which ran from 2008-2015. I loved entering my books,
seeing other books, voting and getting feedback. To be fair, I loved every
aspect of it.
So, when it was discontinued, it left a hole. Between 2016 and now, I was
very busy. However, I have a bit more time now and I was also shocked when I
was on an online gamebook meetup to learn that almost no one there had heard of
the Windhammer competition.
If you look at the list of Windhammer entrants, you will see a few familiar
names. This is basically what kickstarted a lot of careers for the new gamebook
writing crew.
I would love for that to continue with the new fans we have picked up along
the way so that they can have a gateway into the gamebook community. I found
the chance to meet new people and get lots of expert feedback invaluable.
So, without further ado, here are the details for the Lindenbaum
competition:
Entry requirements for the 2021/2022 Lindenbaum competition
All entries must be in English.
All entries must be original works incorporating unique characters and world
settings. This can include real world settings, people and events as long as
they aren't the property of someone.
All entries must be previously unpublished works.
All entrants must state clearly on the first page of their entries that they
are the authors of the work submitted.
All entries must be provided in rich text format (rtf) and sent as an email
attachment to lindenbaumprize@gmail.com.
All character or status sheets provided with entries must be presented in a
simple layout that does not include complex table formats.
All entries must be spell-checked and thoroughly tested prior to submission.
The total length of the entry does not exceed 100 sections and a word count
of 25,000 words.
Illustrations will not be accepted as a part of an entry except in two
specific circumstances.
Exception 1: Maps that are integral to navigation within the gamebook.
Exception 2: Graphics necessary as a part of puzzles or clues integral to
the entry's narrative.
Graphics provided for these purposes must be in either BMP or JPG format and
be included as a part of the RTF entry forwarded.
Graphics purely of an illustrative nature will not be accepted.
The entry may either be a complete stand-alone story or a self-contained
excerpt from a larger gamebook adventure of your own creation.
The entry can be of any genre except erotica.
There is no entry fee.
All rights remain with the author and the author can withdraw their entry at
any time during the course of the competition.
An entrant can submit one entry only.
All participants must have a valid PayPal account at the time of submission.
For reasons given below you must have a valid PayPal account if you wish to
receive a cash prize. Account information is not required by the organisers of
this competition unless you are one of the winning entrants. Only at the time
of winning a prize will you be asked for your PayPal details.
Competition deadlines for 2021/2022
3rd October 2021: Competition guidelines released
1st December 2021: Entry submissions begin
1st February 2022: Entry submissions close.
8th February 2022: Voting begins.*
22nd March 2022: Voting closes.*
31st March 2022: Winners announced.*
* If there are more than 14 entries, these dates will be extended.
Voting
The prize is awarded to the entrant who receives the greatest number of
reader votes. This prize relies on votes provided by readers who have read
enough of the entries to make a considered choice as to the relative merits of
the gamebooks submitted. It is expected by the sponsor of this competition that
votes will be provided on this basis. For 2021/2022 the voting system applies
as follows:
A valid vote must be forwarded by email to lindenbaumprize@gmail.com. A
valid vote must nominate the three gamebooks most favoured by the voter from
the competition entrants. A vote with less than three nominations cannot be
accepted. A vote forwarded with more than three nominations will only have the
first three accounted for in the voting tabulation.
Only one voter email is allowed per reader. All votes will be checked for
duplication of email addresses.
Feedback to the authors may be forwarded to the competition sponsors at
lindenbaumprize@gmail.com. All feedback given will be provided to authors at
the end of competition as a part of the email notification of results.
Prizes
Winning entrant
A cash prize of £100 GBP (Great British Pounds) to be paid within 48 hours
into a PayPal account of the winner's choosing. If you do not have access to a
valid PayPal account the cash prize cannot be paid.
A First Prize certificate memorialising their success in the competition.
Merit awards
Two entries are chosen for Merit awards. These entrants receive:
A cash prize of £30 GBP (Great British Pounds) to be paid within 48 hours
into a PayPal account of the Merit Award winner's choosing.
A Merit Award certificate memorialising their success in the competition.
Commendation awards
If there are 10 or more entries, there will be 3 commendation awards. The
entrants receive:
A Commendation Certificate memorialising their success in the competition.
Gamebook writing help
If you haven't written a gamebook before, you might think that arranging and
randomising the sections might be a problem. However, there are now good
gaembook writing programs out there. One is The Gamebook Authoring Tool, which
has a free version specifically designed to write a 100 section gamebook and
export it to Rich Text Format. You can try it here: AboutThe GameBook Authoring Tool – Crumbly Head Games and Crumbly Head Games are offering a free licence to the top three winners.
