# How to Judge the LM Writing Challenge



## PrinzeCharming (Jul 9, 2016)

*Hello LM Community,
*
I've been expecting you, and _you_, and _you _in the back _pretending _to do something _productive _in the Writing Discussions board. Thank you for joining me today to learn how to judge a monthly LM writing challenge. Our hardworking challenge hosts and coordinators should not search far and wide for volunteers. Seeking volunteers outside our talented pool of commitment driven staff can cause the general public, our valued regular members, to question our own strengths and talents. It may also provoke a sense of obligation. Nobody wants to feel obligated, especially if their time is limited, and their novice judging skills hinder their confidence. We all have limited time to spare to volunteer to make WritingForums the writing community we envision. Allow us to prioritize this time in the areas of concern. I want to address this to all members, including staff. However, it would be great if this were added in this board as a judging resource open and accessible to everyone. You may add anything to help encourage new and former judges to pursue their judging endeavors. 

*Judging Awards 

*


Cran said:


> One group of members whose efforts have often been overlooked, and certainly under-appreciated is that of our LM Challenge judges. It is a solid, demanding, and time-consuming task to assess and comment on every entry in a given challenge; more so to do it five, or ten, or more times. Now we have one small way to acknowledge their efforts.
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*The Stats 
*
Did you know we have _*nearly *_50 members who have received the Star Critter? We have nearly fifty members deemed suitable to provide the best critiques across our diversified writing community. How many are *Mentors*? How many are former *Mentors*? The statistics are intriguing. Did you know we awarded _*less *_than 40 *Star Judge 5 *awards? So, not every *Star Critter* recipient is a *Star Judge 5* judge. That's intriguing. We have more talent to contribute to our writing challenges. Now, here's the alarming concern. I know time is restricted. Let's forget that for a second. Judging monthly challenges is an accumulative effort, not a consecutive one. If you decide to judge five challenges a year, you can judge five challenges a year. You are still making a difference. This is not a race to receive any judging awards. However, among the 15 recipients of the *Star Judge 10*, count how many current *Mentors* shine in purple. Do we need more incentives? *HarperCole *has previously addressed whether or not we should increase more incentives to judging. 




HarperCole said:


> We currently have three of these.
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> Star Judge 5
> Star Judge 10
> ...



In case you're curious as to where you currently stand, check out the Judges Database. It's a great suggestion, Harper. I have also considered it myself. I do want to earn at least 30. However, it's not a matter of what we offer to the judges, but what the judges offer to our community. Awards? No, we have enough. It's in the numbers. It is imperative we have the time to contribute to the judging activities. Judging is very time-consuming, as Cran mentioned, especially between two every month, but it doesn't have to be. I am not here to encourage you to run a monthly challenge yourself. You can find that thread here with pictures. In case you're interested in judging, we do have a thread designated (yet inactive) for all staff judges to note their availability. Visit The Pool - The Judge is IN/OUT. The most effective way to reach out to inquire about your interest is to directly contact a judging coordinator, or host. 

*Literary Maneuvers - Fiction Competitions
*
In case you're interested, check out the The Literary Maneuver Guide. In addition, become comfortable (if not already) with the LM Judging Guide. The LM writing competition, limited to 650 words for a perfect 20 point score, is theme oriented with a simple judging template, including SPaG, Tone, and Voice scales ranging from 1 to 5. The final ten points are dedicated to the effect of the story. In summary, ten points are dedicated to what the writer has offered the judge on paper (or thread). 

The remaining ten points are dedicated to what the judge can take away from the story. In addition, a brief review is imperative for the entrant to understand any key essential elements to their story. What worked? What didn't work? How were the characters? How did the sentence fluency carry the core message? Was there a core message? No judge is required to provide a detailed analysis, but an hones critique to help assist the growth and development of the writer behind the piece. We're not here to hold hands. It is perfectly acceptable to say basic congratulatory sentences, like "Great job!" or "I didn't like this sentence." Be sure to explain your answers with constructive criticism. 

The standard template is shown below: 

*Author 
**“Story" 
*Spelling/Grammar: 
Tone/Voice: 
Effect: 
Overall (sum of scores):

Review (critique):

*"Pre-tiques"
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An introduction prior to the critiques is not necessary, but it does add value to you as a judge. Use this time and space to make any final comments before you begin the critiques. It's okay to show personality. This is what makes the competitions fun. Real people reviewing work from other real people. Seriously, how real (and cool) is that? As the competition unfolds, a great suggestion is to critique as the entries start to accumulate. This ensures you're on track and the scores will be posted promptly. 

You may wait for all the entries, but it can become overwhelming to critique them all. Organize and prioritize your time. Judge one entry a day before the competition closes. For every entry you critiqued, that's one less to worry about. If there are ten entries, and you have already critiqued five while waiting for the competition to close, you only have to judge 1 per day for the next five days. That's not as intimidating as two per day. It adds up, but in the end - you're on track and on time. 

*Example Template Strategy from July LM
*
I am going to use an example from my own template for the LM July competition. First, become friends with the standard template. Copy and paste it into a word processor. I use Novlr. I have a Lifetime membership. 

*Author 
**“Story" 
*Spelling/Grammar: 
Tone/Voice: 
Effect: 
Overall:

Okay, so now what? Copy and paste this (above) again (x 5 or as many as you want). When you copy and paste this sooner, you will already organize your own judging sheet. You will not have to type too much or copy someone's information from a previous critique. Now, fill in the first one to the first entry you read. You don't necessarily have to include, "Author" itself. Backspace. Add the member's name in that space instead. Ditto with "Story". You're ready to go! You should not have scores right now. You have to read the entries first, silly. 

*Critique*

When I start to critique, I go to the, "Reply With Quote" button. I copy the first line. In this case, 



AtleanWordsmith said:


> *Roulette *(569 Words) [Language, Drugs, Violence]



This will also help you figure out the Author's name, the "Story" title, and the reference. The only thing you need to save is code itself. I use the quotes to separate my critique from the quote. The reference number is essential for convenience. It will pop up as a link embedded in an arrow (see above or below). You want to make a set of these quote codes for convenience, especially before the competition closes and the reply options are disabled. 


[spoiler2="See Example Below"] 


AtleanWordsmith said:


> [ /quote]
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> AtleanWordsmith said:
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