Results The Best of the Amateur Writing Section - 2017

[tweezers 1,034]

 

 

 

Hello there, and welcome all to the annual roundup of everything special in the Amateur Writing Section! Another year gone, and another pile of articles, news, members and other general awesomeness all compiled here for your reading pleasure. So without any more waffling from me, let's get to it! 

 

 

The Top Ten Articles of the Year

 

We've gotten loads of articles submitted to the AWS this year, something which pleases us Amateur Writing Overlords Helpers greatly, and some of them really stood out among the rest. So after much deliberation, discussion, and dissection, we present to you, in no particular order, what we consider to be the very best Articles of the year! 

 

Note: Authors of the articles in Top 10 will be awarded 35 000 crystals. Enjoy them as much as we enjoyed your articles!

 

Click on the title of each to read the full article. A preview section is included in the spoiler below each one. 

 

1. Stuck 

by @Hippin_in_Hawaii

 

 

 

“Golf Echo Two calling Golf Echo. Golf Echo Two calling Golf Echo. Over.”

 

“Golf Echo Two, this is Golf Echo Actual. Go ahead. Over.”

 

Fred traded looks of dread with Liza. He hadn’t expected the commander herself to answer. This was going to suck.

 

“Roger, Golf Echo Actual. We are officially ten-seventeen. Map coords bravo bravo seven nine. Over.”

 

There was a lengthy pause. Quite lengthy. Fred and Liza stood beside the tank, their feet buried in mud, avoiding looking at each other. The pause stretched on interminably.

 

“Golf Echo Two, say again. Over.”

 

Fred sighed before keying the mic again. “Golf Echo Actual, we are ten-seventeen at bravo bravo seven nine. Over.”

 

The pause was even longer this time. “We are so going to be in a world of ****,” said Liza. Fred nodded miserably. Behind them, Albert stuck his head out of the driver’s hatch.

 

“Help coming?” asked Albert.

 

“Working on it,” answered Fred.

 

“Golf Echo Two, believe your transmission garbled. Say again. Over.” This time, the voice held an undertone of barely-contained fury, while in the background, other voices could be heard laughing hysterically.

 

 

 

tweezers: The first installment of the Tankiverse fic series, and it is an absolute pleasure to read. Well composed, with natural conversations and a genuinely engaging plot, it was also helped by the impeccable writing. Genuinely some of the best writing I've seen in the Amateur Writing Section. 

 

Flex: I heard many words of acclaim about this series inside the reporter group and upon reading the first part myself I quickly learned where they come from. This fanfic is one of a kind. It's so superbly written that you can easily imagine the small protagonists jumping out of your tank. A⁺ for the amazing plot, sentence structure, characters and overall story flow.

 

Hexed: An absolute masterpiece - there's no other words to describe this in my opinion!

 

2. Niraasha

by @mydoom.exe

 

 

 

Niraasha.

 

 

A foreign word, it meant ‘despair’ in the Hindu tongue, Mataios’s own native language. It was used over the ages, fortified, and often applied in tandem with “Britain”. It had a very long history, and had gained power over the years. In Mataios’s world, it was a signal that guards would be coming soon.

 

Mataios rubbed a grey, discoloured hand through his hair. Actually, grey wasn’t a very descriptive word. Everything was grey. Constant ashes from burning bodies, the stone dust that blanketed every prisoner working in the mines, the constant starvation and mistreatment, and lack of any sort of clean fluid had ensured that every living creature and nonliving item within a three-mile radius was monochrome. Even the sky was grey. Whether it was a higher power weeping over the constant war and bloodshed the world had become, or because human ashes completely blocked the sun, Mataios couldn’t really tell.

 

 

 

tweezers: A somewhat longer piece that what we usually see in the AWS, but nevertheless amazing from beginning to end. An interesting plot is helped by some nice descriptive language as well as characters who develop well within the length of the article itself. Two thumbs up! 

 

Flex: Niraasha is an intriguing prison/work camp story of men who want to escape the inhuman conditions of the environment they are forced to live in. This story is more extensive than majority of other contenders in this category, but I personally think that every single sentence nicely unwraps the plot that is nailed by shocking ending.

 

Hexed: What happens when an intriguing beginning, a perfect length and a nail-biting plot converge at an epic ending? Awesomeness! Reading this piece was quite the moment for me, and I enjoyed every word I read. A big, fat thumbs up from me!

 

3. Hunted

by @pieface101

 

 

 

The student observed the silvery surface of the water fountain. The reflective surface gave him just enough time to observe the Masked Man who walked briskly down the hallway without alerting him to his presence. He was a tall man with a white cloth wrapped around his head to form a mask, like no human could do. He seemed to glide across the floor, a large silver robe covering the mechanical parts underneath. The other students in the hallways paid him no mind as a Disperception Apparatus prevented them from doing so.

 

As soon as the Masked Man turned around the corner, the student burst into action. He followed the Masked Man, secretively pulling out a small silver device out of his pocket and waving it every few steps. Most of the humans who watched him neither understood nor cared what was happening, but a few people snickered or stuck out feet to trip him.

 

The student followed the Masked Man out the door and into the road. If the Masked Man knew he was being followed, he didn't show it.

 

 

 

tweezers: For sheer inventiveness and quality, few articles or series' have been able to match this. Impeccable language, a wonderful, gripping plot and one of the longest chapters I've ever read in the AWS make this a lovely read, the only problem being that it hasn't been updated since May. Pie, if you're reading this, I want more from you! 

 

Flex: The story required me to read it second time and even look for the second chapter to grasp the concept. However, the writing truly is indisputably sensational and the whole mind-boggling futuristic theme has a great potential if it lives to see another chapter that will expand on the story and shed the light on many unanswered questions.

 

Hexed: Even though following this series was quite the task, I personally feel like this one can definitely be a representative of the Amateur Writing Club. Progressive plot, and a great story!

 

4. Short Stories

by @Sr.I3oSS

 

 

 

I picked up the phone. Nothing. Just a message from what looked like a travel agency: “25% off flights to Sp…”. Agitation had me fully digested by now. I had no whereabouts of my brother, just a simple instruction: wait for the message. I had the money ready, the car ready. Patience was said to be its own reward, but to be honest, that was the last thing I wanted to hear. Patience: what did I ever get from being patient? I checked the phone again. Nothing. I searched my pockets for the car keys and went outside. I didn’t want to waste any more time. I headed towards my Ford as thin needles poured down out of the depressing grey sky. My shoes were still soaking wet since yesterday, which was when I went to the police station. They refused to even take a report of what I had to say, let alone help.

 

 

 

tweezers: A nice little collection of four nicely titled short stories, each with their own inspiration. Two are somewhat philosophical ruminations, and the other couple are more typical "story" stories. All of them, however, are excellent. Well done!

 

Flex: Four short stories, all underlined by supreme use of words and clean structuring that nicely presents the message. Each piece differs from the other. Some evoke the sentiments of nostalgia and melancholy while the others provoke deeper thoughts.

 

Hexed: Beautifully written with excellent word usage and a proper example of how a short story should be. Each one of these is just as good as the other, and together, they are one of the most inspiring articles I've seen all year.

 

5. Push Through

by @Logician_UC

 

 

 

Most don't feel it, that empty void. An apathy for everything. You act out that you care, that you're happy, but there is nothing there. It's as if you lost all connection to this world and now are just some a life force trapped inside a body.

You've forgotten how to feel anything, except... this. It isn't sadness exactly, at least not in the normal sense. But it certainly isn't anger, or joy, or bliss. It's... something else entirely. Nobody would believe you even if you told them. They'd think you're just being dramatic or you're tired or trying to get attention.

Why? Why does this happen? You've all but forgotten the sensation of emotions even if you had them just yesterday. So why are they gone? You can feel that they are missing, maybe even what they were like. But... they're just not there anymore. You just want to sense something. Even anger would be better than this void, this hole of anything.

 

 

 

tweezers: A very introspective piece, dealing with a somewhat sensitive subject that definitely doesn't get talked about as much as it should. It allows the reader the chance to probe within their own feelings and sends out a message that a lot of us need to hear every now and then. 

 

Flex: Short, yet powerful. An article that at the start somewhat appears as a depressive look on one's own inability to perceive anything meaningful in life freely turns into a message radiating with words of support and sympathy.

 

Hexed: This was an excellent read, very well written and well thought over. As my colleague said, despite the subject in talk being sensitive and quiet, I feel like this article won the readers and encouraged them to... push through.

 

6. Learning Parkour - The Swift Way

by @SwiftSmoky

 

 

 

Here are a few simple steps that can help you build your learning plan:

• Learn more about parkour - do your research, watch various parkour videos, read articles, just learn more about what different things there are in parkour. Get familiar with different concepts and parkour styles.
  This step will be easy for you because I've done a lot of the research for you, I'll get to it later in this article.
• Define yourself a clear goal - whether it is to be able to make big and impressive jumps, to be able to climb any building you want, to become an OMP master, to know all the parkour tricks, or even to become the best parkourist ever. Just make sure you know exactly what you want.
• Break it down into small goals - Now that you've done your research, you know enough to be able to choose small goals or check-points to build your way to the final goal. For the first goals pick something not too far fetched, you need to start from something you can accomplish quickly and easily. Increase the difficulty gradually, go step by step so you'll always have some progress and will not lose your motivation.
  These check points can be learning new parkour skills and tricks, accomplishing goals like conquering a whole map or reaching higher places, or even getting better parkour equipment.
• Start parkouring! You have a plan, you have useful resources that some of them are made especially to help you learn parkour - use them. And most importantly, have fun!!

 

 

 

tweezers: A much needed guide, and very useful too. The fact that so many guides exist to show off complicated stunts, and yet barely any exist for beginners make this guide even more valuable especially if you can't parkour for toffee. 

 

Flex: If you're a total freshman on the parkour scene, you will certainly find this guide coming from the parkour pioneer himself handy. The whole article is loaded with useful advice that will set you on a road to parkour success.  

 

Hexed: Have any questions about parkour? Facing any kind of difficulties? Well, parkour revolutionist and leader of one of the best parkour clubs of this year brings you a useful and a handy guide to parkour, full of interesting approaches to the very format and some crazy tips and techniques you can use to boost your performance. Quite wonderfully written, I must say!

 

7. The Leaky Mult #1

by @Merovingian and @Illuminati

 

 

 

⚜ Tankileaks: Overdrivegate
by The Merovingian
 
Several leaked documents obtained by TLM, moneying a substantial amount of crystals (thank you Illuminati for providing the crystals! (such a noob buyer, but I love you)), revealed that TO’s tank factory had fitted faulty Overdrives to numerous hulls. All the production lines held in its main factory near Molotov have been impacted during the last six months. The faults, affecting the tanks, range from the Overdrive simply refusing to operate its magic to the explosion of the device thus pulverising in the process the poor and unaware tankers. One of the key documents leaked, is a report of a meeting of TO high executives, which detailed the extent of the problem. Furthermore, the report discloses that TO’s administration knew about the current issue at hand, for a very long time, nevertheless, TO decided to downgrade the risk during a previous assessment.

 

 

 

tweezers: Inspired by the TO Newspapers' own The Dictator series, this is up there with the very best humor pieces ever posted in the AWS. Complete with images, inventive fake news, and witty humor, this is definitely a must read for those who want to laugh their way through an article, for all the right reasons. 

 

Flex: Engaging, comical and masterfully arranged. This article is a compilation of several "news" coming from two excellent writers who simply know how to work with words and humor. The Leaky Mult does not fail to entertain and proves that high class humor and irony have their place even in the AWS. 

 

Hexed: The Leaky Mult, ah, where to begin? Great humor, mastered satire and an excellent structure gives this series a well deserved spot on this list. It literally proves how writing something funny can still be a quality piece of writing!

 

8. Immune

by @Kuhaku

 

 

 

Prologue

My name is Jonathan. And I am writing to explain what has been happening during this plague that has struck our country.

When it first broke out, it was disastrous. It filled the Castle Ebro, killing everyone in it, and within a 20 kilometer radius, as it was quite crowded around the castle. Well, it killed everyone except for a handful, including me.

I was 16, living a farmer’s life. I helped a farmer who was among the kinder ones. But then the plague struck, and many died. The only ones that survived were the ones that were immune to the infestation. I still remember the day in which I escaped the plague.

 

Chapter 1

“Jonathan! If you want me to give you some bread today, then you better put your back into it.” I was helping a farmer pick weeds.

“Yes sir”. In a couple of hours my hands are burning, but then true to his word, he gives me a hearty meal.

“Jonathan, did you hear about the disease that struck the castle?”

“No sir. What happened?”

“Well, then I have some good news for you! The King has a sickness and maybe he’ll die. Then his daughter will rule and put an end to this corrupt government. Can you imagine it, no more paying overly priced taxes?”

 

 

 

tweezers: What started off as just another half put together story in the AWS, this turned into a decently long, well crafted and genuinely engaging story as it progressed. I for one would definitely love to read more of it! 

 

Flex: Solid sci-fi story that consists of twenty chapters. It's interesting to see how the author himself develops and uplifts the standards of his writing with every new chapter.

 

Hexed: When the first chapter of this story was released in the Club, I was genuinely intrigued by the plot and wanted to read more of it. I would definitely love to see and read more of this marvelous story in the future!

 

9. Bumblebee Kit Review

by @Coldplay

 

 

 

Hammer M3 -

 

 

 

This turret is aptly named. Its powerful shots shatter hulls and the extreme force it deals sends light tanks spinning.

Definitely one of the strongest stock M3s in the game. Its rapid reload between shots, massive impact force, high shot damage and surprising size of its effective range all combine to produce a feared turret. It is lethal at close range, only requiring two shots to destroy Light M3 Hulls.

But simply blend this monster of a turret with the relatively low rank of Lieutenant Colonel, where M2 hulls are out in full bloom, your enemies have a real problem on their hands. Its 3 shots are enough to deal with any Light - Medium M2 hull that is unfortunate enough to stray into its path of destruction.

 

 

 

tweezers: An extremely comprehensive and in-depth review of the Bumblebee kit, that covers all the items in it and evaluates its effectiveness in many scenarios, making for an excellent review for those who are considering buying the kit. 

 

Flex: Product Kit analyses are quite a popular topic in AWS. We've seen a couple of them over the months, but this one can lead by example. Coldplay once again showed his writing talent and wrote a review that covers everything from kit components to slightest of details such as camouflage.

 

Hexed: This guide was all about quality - it was comprehensively written, explaining everything there is to know about the subject itself, making it an excellent nominee for the best articles of the year.

 

10. Lukey's 10 000 Post Special

by @lukey0

 

 

 

ell here it is, 10 000 posts. It feels like only yesterday I joined the forum and started playing the game even though it was over 6 years ago. So, I thought I would share some of my best memories with all of you in a totally original topic idea. Enjoy it!

 

 

Wait, how do you do that? 

 

I was introduced to Tanki Online by my best friend in real life all the way back in late February 2011. I immediately fell in love with the game when he showed me. That same day - as soon as I reached my home, I started my own account. I wanted my nickname to be lukey, because that was my real nickname then, and funny enough it has been stuck as 'lukey' till this day. Sadly that name was taken, so I decided to add a 0 to the end of it. You can probably guess why because I'm not telling.   :rolleyes:  After leaving the game to load for ages I finally logged into the lobby. There it was, a Summer Sandbox DM titled "For Newbies"; so I joined it. 

 

After I loaded in, I spawned with my M0 Smoky Wasp. There on my screen I saw this blue box falling from the sky with tanks rushing towards it. I had no idea what it did, nor did I know you could even collect it! Or that it was the life of Tanki. 

 

 

 

tweezers: An interesting look into the career of a veteran player of Tanki Online, this makes for some interesting and enjoyable reading.

 

Flex: Reaching 10k posts without spamming is a feat. Lukey has reached this milestone last year and as a reminder of it, he created this topic that compiles the best from his long journey. Not only he does take us down the memory lane, he also makes us reflect on our own humble beginnings and memorable occasions.

 

Hexed: Nostalgia, memories and success all come together in this article by a veteran player, making it one of the best composed articles of the year.

 

Honourable Mentions

 

Scroll down to read the articles that just missed out on the Top Ten, but were still excellent. Keep at it, you're almost there! 

 

Note: Authors of the honourable mentions will be awarded 25 000 crystals. Enjoy them as much as we enjoyed your articles!

 

The Potion

by @Cortana

 

 

 

“Zynophyll is an antidote for anything from a simple fever to a devastating disease such as the bubonic plague,” the professor addressed to the students in his potions class. “To prepare this remarkable antidote, however, special care has to be taken. This is the first time we preparing this antidote and I do not wish for any casualties. The process of preparing Zynophyll is extremely complicated and challenging, and doesn’t come short of risk. Already countless people have lost their lives, so I request you lot pay attention when I explain the safety procedures, unless you wish to die a painful death.” It was at this moment that the troublemakers stopped gossiping and looked towards him, realized he was dead serious, and tried to pay attention.

 

 

 

tweezers: An interesting, fast paced and quirky story, written using some period-correct language, which makes it even better. Lovely.

 

Flex: It's hard to describe this story by words, perhaps I would say it's oddly interesting with unexpected plot twist at the very end.

 

Hexed: Quite a good story, and definitely one of the better ones I've seen in the Club.

 

Newspaper Contests: An Inside Look

by @M-axis

 

 

 

 

Thank you! Now down to business, in last month's issue, Savage ran a very interesting and unique contest called 'Acting the part', whilst Blackdrakon30 ran an old favourite, 'Caption This.' How was it decided that the both of you would run them? Are you picked randomly, do you volunteer or take turns?

 

BD30: I always liked the "Caption This" contests, so I decided to resurrect it when we were looking for some more concepts. We essentially let each other just pick out contests until we have enough, so I suppose it qualifies as volunteering.

 

Savage: We tend to volunteer for things like that, though there are times when certain Reporters have been press-ganged into creating contests. It takes a lot of hard thinking to come up with an original contest idea nowadays.

 

 

 

tweezers: If you've ever wondered how exactly us Reporters run contest in the TO Newspaper, look no further than this. Comprising of an interview with two writers with experience in running contests, well thought out questions reveal our evil plans what happens behind the scenes.   

 

Flex: Contests always attracted attention, but not many knew how they actually work until the NS brought this topic to the table. M-axis takes one step further and interviews two reporters to get even more insight on running a contest. All in all, the interview questions are nicely compiled and the answers are informing and humorous. You might even learn some top secret info from this topic. See for yourself. ;)

 

Hexed: An insightful article that goes over the work done before, during and after a contest is launched in the Official Newspaper. If you've wondered how the contest organizer manages his/her contest, I suggest you give this a read.

 

Interview with Nives

by @Magenta

 

 

Hello! So this is your first interview in Tanki (not counting the job interview, of course). Excited much? Think you will spill some beans?

 

Nives: Super excited! I was promised a proper grilling, let's see how big talk lives up to real questions  ;)

The beans are in a tight can though, and it has a strange label - NDA  :unsure:

 

 

We all know this, but I must ask you to tell a bit about yourself. Interview necessary evils.  :(

 

Nives: I'm Sergei, I'm a 30 year old straight male and a Community Manager with bad humor. I started working in the games industry almost 5 years ago, and from the first job fell in love with community management - being able to talk with players and learn the game you work on from both sides gave me a tremendous insight into game development and how it is perceived by regular players. Being paid to spam people on the forums is also pretty nice.

 

 

 

tweezers: An interview with our very own Community Manager, it answers some of the most pressing questions that the forumer may have about their new all powerful dictator manager, and throws in some wit for good measure. 

 

Flex: It can be challenging to make an interview worthy of reading, but this particular one shows how to do things right. Overall, this interview is an informative, humorous and keen dialogue between Magenta and CM himself. Nives sure must have worked up a sweat answering all of these.

 

Hexed: What is better than a humorous interview with His Highness, the Dropper, and our beloved, Nives himself? Nothing, right? Great questions, just the ones a reader would expect to read in such an interview, and just the perfect amount of funny in there. Plus, a pun in the title is always great!

 

 

Distinguished Members

 

Every time we publish the Best of Amateur Writing, we add some members of the Amateur Writing Club to the list of the Distinguished Members. These are the writers who've made the biggest impression on us by contributing some epic articles to the Amateur Writing Section. Congratulations, all of you! 

 

@Hippin_in_Hawaii

@kaisdf

@mydoom.exe

@Merovingian

@Magenta

 

 

Amateur Writing Club News

 

Over the last twelve months, the AWC has seen lots of action, some of it good, some of it not so much, but all of it interesting. We gained quite a few new members, all of whom showcased stellar writing ability in the Section. 

 

We've also gained two new Helpers in the last two months, namely @Destrod and @Marc. They've already established themselves as being highly competent and dedicated, so be prepared to see a lot more of them over the rest of the year. 

 

The biggest news this year was, of course, the introduction of the Amateur Writing Tournament, which spanned four weeks and attracted more entries that we've ever seen before. This tournament was open to all forum members, and we found quite a few talented writers who were just waiting to be discovered. The Tournament is now making its second appearance, so make sure to head over there and check out the competition and pitch in with your own entries! 

 

---

 

Well, we've reached the end of this times edition of the Best of The Amateur Writing Section. It's been a great year for the Section, and for Amateur Writing in general, and we hope to see all of you again soon with more of the same. Until then, this is the Amateur Writing Team signing off and wishing you the best of luck! 

[bsarotas 19]

Nice

[Crip 4,735]

Well, that's a pleasant surprise!

 

Congratulations to the other writers whose works made it into the Top 10, and to the new additions to the Distinguished Member list!

[mydoom.exe 5,154]

Congratulations to all who won - here's to an amazing 2018 in writing!

[Mjro7 2,837]

Congratulations   :ph34r:

[Merovingian 656]

Seriously

Edited January 23, 2018 by Merovingian

[You.Have.to.die 519]

Congratulations to all winners and everyone else in the AWC. Without your contribution, AWC wouldn't be standing this strong. For this we thank everyone who is involved.

Edited January 6, 2018 by You.Have.to.die

[kaisdf 3,320]

Finally :lol:

 

I'm still here to prove that high ranks can get into distinguished :P

[Magenta 5,165]

Hippin is an absolutely terrific guy.

[Blackdrakon30 2,943]

I was on a vacation so I didn't provide thoughts on these outstanding works, but I just wanted to cheer you all on and say great job this year! Congratulations to all the people acknowledged in the main post, but I want to recognize all the other writers too. As an Amateur Writing Section Helper, I'm really proud of how well many of you have been writing this year, and thank you for all your contributions. We couldn't have done it without you.

 

Let's all have an awesome New Year!

Edited January 7, 2018 by Blackdrakon30

[LOLKILLERTOTHEDEATH 1,921]

honestly, these writers should have recieved the "best writers of 2017" award. amazing stuff. I hope to find my name here one day.

[Ninja 10,468]

Congrats to everybody!

[lukey0 27,543]

Congratulations to everyone, those who were and weren't mentioned. ;)

[kaisdf 3,320]

Also, only 3 of these pieces were written by people nominated for best writer, let alone by any of the victors...

[Commander_Rose 327]

2016-17 Best years of AWC.

[Hippin_in_Hawaii 639]

Ok, wow... it's mid-January, and I JUST stumbled across this topic. I have GOT to start looking around more!

 

What can I say, but thank you!  I am honored!

[Destrod 2,634]

Ok, wow... it's mid-January, and I JUST stumbled across this topic. I have GOT to start looking around more!

 

What can I say, but thank you!  I am honored!

I thought you were hippin.

#bringbackdadjokes

[r_Breathe2 51]

Gotta admit, Magenta's Paint Invasion and Possibility's My Punishment should've been up there. I mean, Paint Invasion was hilarious, and My Punishment was the best article I have ever read in my short forum life. 

[mydoom.exe 5,154]

short forum life. 

There's loads of stuff in the AWC you're missing out on. ;)

[r_Breathe2 51]

There's loads of stuff in the AWC you're missing out on. ;)

Still, My Punishment was the best thing I have ever read. So beautiful...  :wub:

[You.Have.to.die 519]

So many winners

Edited January 26, 2018 by You.Have.to.die

[tweezers 1,034]

So many winners

'cos so many good articles :P

[Person_Random 4,991]

Bring this back this instant!

[C.O.N.Q.U.E.R.O.R 3,845]

Hopefully Editorials get a chance in this too, as they are written by AWG members 

[Person_Random 4,991]

No, please dont, they are technically news articles.