Approved. -Corrected a few spelling and grammar errors. Using a phone and driving is bad, period. If you really need to do it, pull over. Always remember that it's not just your life that you could end.

They say that when you laugh, the world laughs with you. And that when you cry, you cry alone. They're wrong. The world couldn't care less about whether you laugh or cry. And who's to find fault with them? They've found their happiness. They've found their drug, that something, or someone, that makes them want to wake up in the morning. They've found what keeps them going. Anything other than that is a threat to them. They don't need to be weighed down, so why should they act like they want to be? I'll tell you why. It's because you can't stop someone from hurting just by sending your condolences to them. You can't stop them from feeling the way that they're feeling, like the world just fell out from beneath their feet and that they're falling into the abyss. Saying that you're sorry for them doesn't make the pain just magically go away. All it does is remind them of it. It's both the most amazing feeling, and the most terrible feeling in the world. Pain, pure, unfiltered pain, coursing through you, with nothing to stop it. At first it hits you like a sledgehammer. Physically, and brutally. Then it turns into mental warfare. You've a part of yourself telling you to get down on the ground, curl up and wither, another part of yourself telling you to get on your feet and deal. And then you've got that other part. The part that's telling you that maybe you don't deserve to get up. That you're not worth it. That you should stop. Stop everything. And there's two ways to handle these parts of yourself. You can let them in, and listen to them. Or you can shut them all out. Turn off your feelings. Turn yourself into a hollow shell kept going simply by the need to act as if everything is all right. As if you don't know that with every passing moment, your sanity is slowly being stripped away. And then you realize that being cut off is comforting. You take a hit from something, and it just bounces off. You've created a wall between yourself and having to deal with anything. You've created a barrier to stop yourself from getting hurt. You're from the inside looking out. And then you see it. The real reason that nothing clicks. The real reason that you're nothing like the person you used to be. You've let the part of you telling yourself to deal win. You've dealt with it. But at what cost? You're a monster. I am a monster. What have I done?

Second bottom from the left, top row of the toolbar removes all that. Be warned, it does destroy any previous attempts at making everything look pretty. *cries in multiple rewrites of the Best of AWC articles*

Approved. -Reformatted. -Corrected minor spelling and grammar issues. Good job! Nice and engaging, and not too long either. One thing that I suggest is that you link the previous parts, if any, to make the story a bit clearer. And welcome back! ;)

Approved. -Completely reformatted. Punctuation was atrocious. -Spelling corrections. -Capitalized the names. -Added a title. I'm not sure what you took before writing this, but it can't possibly have been legal.

Salutations and greetings dear readers! Welcome once again to our monthly coverage of all things related to the AWC. As you might expect, we've got the best in articles, the news and more from the past month - so put your feet up, grab your favorite sugary treat, and read on! _________________________________________________________________________________________ Top 5 Articles of the Month We love reading everything that comes into the Amateur Writing Section, and every month we find a few articles that absolutely blow our minds. So here, in no particular order, are the top 5 articles of the month. 1. Train Tracks by @Night-Sisters Tweezers: Talk about a dramatic return! Combines suspense, dialogue and lovely description to create an absolute masterpiece. Antartica: A suspense filled masterpiece in a rather unique return. #BlameTheNS. BD30: It was quite entertaining to see our favorite NS return with a bang and some really edge of the seat action. With a combination of outstanding grammar, dialogue, and plot movement, she crafted a story more than worth the time to read. 2. A Good Thing About Tanki by @PracticeParkourStunt Tweezers: A different type of article, focusing on the social side of Tanki Online. Subtle humour and well put and valid points make for an interesting read. Antartica: A review of the game that is both well written and compiled. Holds a lot of interesting points-of-views to look the game from. BD30: I liked the reflective points of view relating to Tanki Online and the analysis of how people interact within this game. PPS did a great job with keeping this article engaging for all kinds of readers. 3. Hunted: Chapter 3 by @pieface101 Tweezers: It may be very long, but the sheer brilliance of the writing kept me reading all the way to the end. And then wanting more. Very, very well done. Antartica: Long, but I'd have to agree with twee' here - very well written, definitely a well-deserved place in the top five of the month. BD30: Oh gosh, this chapter took forever to proofread. Despite the lengthy and potentially mundane appearance, Pieface does an excellent job in linking together various aspects of the story to make fascinating dialogue and plot movement. 4. Lore: Kestral Volume 2 by Tweezers: A continuation of the series, that pulled me in despite my knowledge of the subject being literally zero. There's definite skill here, so keep at it! Antartica: Another story by a great writer - definitely exceeded expectations as I loved the Anima series too, which unfortunately couldn't be continued. BD30: I very much enjoyed all of these Kestral lore episodes; in how they gave detailed (non-canonical?) background about a fascinating character. It was fun to read and my pleasure to proofread. :ph34r: 5. Push Through by @Logician_UC Tweezers: A piece that obviously came from deep within. Very well written, and very much needed. Antartica: Describing this is hard... A must-read if you have time. BD30: Since my colleagues gave some vague answers.... This was a piece that most definitely did not receive the attention it deserved. It is a heartfelt reflection of emptiness, and honestly one of the most accurate portrayals of depression that I've seen in quite a while. It's a good reminder that despite our pain we can keep living for those who cared about us, and we can stay strong. I highly recommend reading this piece, probably more than any other piece here. _________________________________________________________________________________________ Distinguished Members When we see someone who has mad skills when it comes to banging out articles, we like to recognize them here. Congratulations to @Logician_UC! _________________________________________________________________________________________ Project of the Month : Results! After yet another Project in the AWC, we're very happy to present to you the entries in all their glory. Thank you for entering, and we're looking forward to seeing everyone in the AWC participating next time 'round. 1: Die, O Rabbit (Categorize, Category 3[spy, Villian, Car, Skateboard]) by @Penguin40 Reward: +10 points and 20,000 crystals Entry: Click here to read in the Google Doc, due to the sheer length of it. 2: Terror (Intangible) by @Logician_UC Reward: +8 points and 17,000 crystals Entry: 3. Boring is Bad by Reward: 6 points and 14,000 crystals Entry: Check out the AWC League for the current standings and more. Remember, your name could be up here as well so make sure you enter this months Project! The project is open to members of the Amateur Writing Club. If you are not currently a member, PM with your application. All the relevant details can be found here. Note: The project topic of this month will be posted in a pinned topic in the Amateur Writing Section. _________________________________________________________________________________________ Announcements We're saddened to announce that our AWC Helper and exceptional reporter @Savage has left the team due to certain conflicts of interest within the forum. We wish him well in all that he does, and hope that he will continue to be a member of our Tanki community. In other news, we're happy to welcome back , someone who needs no introduction to those familiar with the Amateur Writing Section and the TO Newspaper. I'm sure we're all looking forward to working with him again, and we wish him the best of luck! Is someone you know an exceptional writer, but doesn't know where to show off their talent? Give them a nudge in the direction of the Amateur Writing Section and we'll take care of the rest! _________________________________________________________________________________________ And so, we come to the end of this months edition of the 'Best of AWC'. We'll be back in the next issue with more of the usual, so make sure you don't miss it. Until then, ta-ta!

I wonder if it hurt. The whole ‘crumbling into ashes’ thing. And what sort of messed up thoughts went through their minds? The last reports we got said that most people chose to end it themselves once it was clear what was going on. Some protested. Some did more than protest. They even managed to do a spot of vandalism on their way out. I just passed a tagged wall, actually. “Ashes to Ashes”, in fancy script. Apt. I’m on the move, in case you’re wondering. I’ve made the momentous decision to be Earth’s saviour, the lone ranger, the chosen one, the hero. Why, you say? Well, here’s my reasoning. Earth ain’t a bad old place. Unlike the old apocalypse scenario movies, Earth isn’t a burning shell with razed cities and broken roads and scorched forests. The Androids made sure of that, since they were around to do stuff like turning off ovens, putting out fires, making sure that motorways were cleared of cars (yeah, they can drive. Pretty cool, huh? Designated driver who never gets tired!). Plus, now that the human population isn’t around to produce anymore nasty gases and things, the only emissions are the ones that I’m making, which means the atmospheres pretty clean too. 2275 says that eventually, the atmospheric balance will get whacked since the Carbon emissions are down so much, though. I’m choosing to ignore that bit of information for now. And 2275. He’s sitting in the passenger seat, sulking (yes, they sulk too). So yes, I’m pretty sure that I’ll be able to find a use for this blue and green pile of dirt floating through space. Wait, so if there’s no one else around, that makes me the inheritor of Earth. And also, the leader of a population of highly intelligent Androids, who are currently just standing around waiting for things to do. Which makes this the perfect time to think up a title for the movie that would've been made about me had any of the producers lived. "The Horribly Underqualified Man that Lived" "Your Saviour is Sarcastic" "Rocket to Rock: The Explosive Finale" "You're full of crap, you know that? For starters, you're gonna have to share the Earth with me as well, so stop with the singular forms." The voice came behind me, delivered lazily by the tousle haired, mostly asleep form named Emma sprawled across the rear seat. Oh, did I not mention her before? Must've slipped my mind...

FINALLY, SOMEONE WHO USES THE WORD BAIRNS!

:wub:

Thanks! Look out for the sequel in the next issue, eh? :P

UPDATE: The Project rewards have been added to the Doc and published elsewhere. Sorry for the delay.

Approved: -Changed "No but you implied that" to "No, but you implied it". Just...just...awesome.

Approved. It's always nice to approve an article that doesn't need to be edited. Good job, and I'll be looking forward to the next chapter :D

Approved. -Minor grammar and spelling edits. Remember, when you include game modes such as XP/ BP, they should be in capitals.

Woot! Another month gone by, another issue of the newspaper hot off the press, and with it this times Best of AWC for your viewing pleasure! We've got the best articles of the last month, the news, the distinguished members, and a very special Project. So settle down, grab your unlovely mug of coffee, and scroll on! Top 5 Articles of the Month As ever, we've had to pick and choose the best of an already very good set of articles that came into the Amateur Writing Section this month, but we did eventually narrow it down to these five. As always, they're not in any particular order, and are all equally well written. 1. Hunted: Chapter One by @pieface101 tweezers: An intriguing, well put together story with a bit of subtle creepiness mixed in. Add in the fact that it was perfectly formatted and written, and you have a winning formula. Lovely. Antartica: A good read, well formatted and equally written. BD30: An excellent story that has a good balance of suspense and intrigue. Overall has excellent grammar and formatting, and I highly recommend reading it! 2. Anima (Reveal + Prologue) by tweezers: Creating an entirely new world and giving it a backstory as well is no easy task, but it's exactly what's been done here. It looks promising, and is definitely something to look out for in the AWS. Antartica: One of my favorites till now. Will definitely be eagerly waiting for the next installment. BD30: I really appreciate the groundwork that I_Am_Unkown here, especially because I've done a lot of fantasy worldbuilding in my own spare time. He did an excellent job breaking down the traits of the various entities you will find in his fantasy story, and has some excellent lore in the prologue part. 3. 10 000 Post Special I My Tanki Memories by @lukey0 tweezers: Celebrating 10, 000 posts in style, lukey0 runs us through his years in Tanki, with a commentary rich in humour and sarcasm. Definitely worth the time it takes to read :P Antartica: How to celebrate 10k posts in style, by none other than lukey0! BD30: Mafioso already beat you to the punch Another excellent reflection of some Tanki experiences. It's an entertaining piece to read and very insightful. Really great job, Lukey0! 4. The First and Second Fall by @Adriel.RB tweezers: An interesting and thought provoking piece, that's based off real life events. The formatting may be a bit left field, but comes together well. All in all, a piece that shows exactly how writing helps to get all those feelings out there. Well done! Antartica: A well-written, quality piece. The fact that its written quite good and that it's based on real life events, I would say it's definitely a winner. BD30: Overall very romantic and artistic. I very much like the way that Adriel chose to format the article with the colors, although the spacing is a little odd. :P A quite good piece that is definitely worth the read. 5. The Kewl Kind of Travel- Chapter One by @ahhegazy tweezers: Tongue in cheek humour, and a very active imagination make this piece what it is. Good fun, quite interesting and all in all... wait for it... kewl. I'll show myself out. Antartica: Kewl. BD30: Very kewl. :ph34r: Ahhegazy does a great job with word choice and concepts throughout the entire chapter of this story, and makes this story worth reading. The image choice for the title was also on-point. Distinguished Members You lot write epic articles, and we recognize your epicness here. Congrats to; @X_Death.By.Me_X Remember, you too can get your name on the list. Keep writing, and we'll see you here next time. Project of the Month This time around, we've decided to let all of you have an in depth look at what we give the AWC members to jump start their imaginations. Click the link here and have a look. The Project grants you crystal rewards, and also places in the AWC League, where you will be able to rank up and compete for places. If you too would like to submit an article for the Project of the Month, but are not currently a member of the AWC, PM with an application, and if we deem you suitable, you can become part of the group. Once you are in the AWC, you can submit your Project. All details of the AWC can be found http://en.tankiforum.com/index.php?showtopic=315145'>here[. Details on joining the AWC can be found here. Announcements We cannot stress enough that plagiarism is absolutely intolerable in the Amateur Writing Section. Those who do plagiarize will be dealt with most severely. Also, advertising your YouTube channels or videos is also strictly prohibited and the person who does so is worthy of being banned. Do you know someone who has epic writing skills, but doesn't know where to showcase them? If you do, give them a shove in the direction of the Amateur Writing Section, and we'll make sure to give them the exposure that they deserve! And so, we come to the end of this times edition of the Best of AWC. We hope you enjoyed reading this as much as we enjoy editing, approving and reading your articles in the AWS. We'll see you again next month, with more of the same. Toodle-oo!

Approved. -Minor punctuation and grammar corrections. Interesting.

When did you send it, and for which project was it?

Here’s a short summary of my situation right now. Everythings dead, the only thing I have to talk to is my ‘Personal Assistance Android’, Robinson unit 2275, and there’s a giant rock hurtling through space with the express purpose of pulverising whatever’s left on Earth. Allow me to be clearer: I’m screwed. I’ll address each of these in order. I think I’ll call them ‘The Death Factors’. Yes. That sounds good. Death Factor 1: The general deadness of everything. It’s like all those apocalypse movies from way back when. Empty streets, empty houses, empty everything. Although minus the bloodthirsty zombies/aliens/robots. This all happened because of the same reason as all those movies though: a bloody virus. It was a scary thing, that virus. It sort of just crept up on you, with no warning at all. Like getting ambushed by a kitten, except less pleasant. Anyway. It spread like wildfire, and attacked everything. Humans, dogs, insects, you name it, it got infected. Except plants, and trees, strangely. And once you were infected, there was no hope. You just dropped dead. Poof. And then came the twist. Your body just sort of decomposed really, really fast. Within 12 hours of getting the virus, you’d be reduced to a pile of ashes fluttering about in a mound of clothes. No cure. And it hit everyone, even the most isolated, well protected ones. I’m immune it seems, like in the movies. I don’t know why, and I honestly can’t be bothered figuring it out. So guess who gets to play the Lone Ranger in his newest adventure, “Save the Earth from the Giant Rock!” More on that later. Death Factor 2: Personal Assistance Android: Robinson- “With you, whenever.” Well, they got the catchphrase right at least. Ever since the boffins poked around with their circuits and computers and made one that passed the Turing Test, us puny humans have had AI helpers to, well, help us with stuff. They’re insanely strong, look like us except for their lack of fashion sense, and all have numbers assigned to them. My ones’ number is 2275. Say hi, 2275. “Hello!” The first Androids were stiff. Their speech instantly gave away the fact that they weren’t really humans. Robinsons, on the other hand, are far more advanced. They talk like humans, walk like humans, and occasionally act like them as well, in that they act like clumsy buffoons. 2275 here falls over on a daily basis, but he’s highly intelligent, and very useful, considering that he keeps me from going off my head. Robinsons also learn from their humans and take on certain personality traits. That’s why 2275 swears a lot more than any self respecting Android should. Imagine, one day he might be just like me. Scary stuff. The world can’t handle this much brilliance. Although it won’t need to for much longer apparently, which brings me neatly on to… Death Factor 3: Giant Space Rock! We’ve known about this meteor for years now, and yet we hadn’t panicked and run around screaming. Why, you ask? Well, that’s because humanity had a PLAN! That’s right, we had a plan. A plan, quite simply, to knock the Giant Space Rock off its path of destruction with a giant rocket launched with the sole purpose of smacking it right in the face. The rocket’s built, primed, and ready to launch. There’s just the small problem of everyone tasked with the responsibility of launching it being, y’know, slowly sifting piles of ash. Luckily, them being the smart cookies that they were, they literally made a big red button marked “Launch” that would activate everything and send it off into space when the virus started spreading and they knew that they were going to be toast, and then broadcasted the location of the launch pad and full instructions everywhere. They even resorted to posters, like the one I have in my hand. It needs to be launched in 3 weeks, by the date printed in red here. I could do it. Or I could just ignore it and let everything get pulverised. It’s not like there’s anyone here to thank me. Decisions, decisions…

Approved. -Spaced the paragraphs to make it readable. Kewl. I want moar! :P

Approved. -Minor grammar corrections. -Capitalized a few I's here and there. -Rephrased a few sentences and replaced a few words. Remember, don't clump your writing together. Go easy on the commas, and seperating speech sentences makes conversations a lot easier to read. Also, if you mention the speaker somewhere and it's obvious enough, you don't need to mention him/her later on in the same paragraph. Overall, a jolly good read. Well done! :D

It's been two whole months since the Best of AWC last graced your screens, but do not despair, for in that time we've amassed quite a collection of quality articles, the best of which will be listed here for your reading pleasure, alongside the usual news, distinguished members, and the results for our latest project. So what are you waiting for? Read on! Top 5 articles The upside of the brief hiatus of the Best of AWC was that we had plenty of time to collect some brilliant articles. As usual, they're not in any particular order, and are all excellent reads. 1.Tanki Combo Psycology... or Whatever by @pieface101 Tweezers: A highly imaginative, engaging and humorous piece, which despite its length manages to keep you reading (and sniggering) until the end. Very well done! 2. Short Stories by @Sr.I3oSS Tweezers: Four extremely well worded, insightful and thought provoking short stories, all nicely formatted and wrapped up with the inclusion of the inspirations for each at the end. I like. :D 3. A Hilarious Interview with AdrielRB, Personia and Neutrino by @X_Death.By.Me_X Tweezers: Lighthearted, funny and with good chemistry between the interviewer and interviewees, this certainly delivers on what the title claims it to be. 4. Containment Breach by @zaintahir Tweezers: A gripping story, delivered in short but sweet installments that you just can't get enough of. The language usage may be a little shaky, but is definitely improving. Keep it up! 5. Crime versus Cruelty: Part 2 by @Penguin40 Tweezers: An interesting writing style, with a very visual impact. A lot of fast paced action and dialogue also make for an exciting read, and the little bit of suspense didn't hurt either. Top job! Project: Adaptabilty - The results! The long awaited outcome, and a huge thank you from all of us AWC Helpers to everyone who participated! 1) +5 points and 16,000 crystals 2. @Penguin40 +4 points and 14,000 crystals Joint 3rd. +3 points and 12,000 crystals @kaisdf And @KillerGnat Check out the League standings here. *Some edits were made to the articles prior to judging. Distinguished members Distinguished writing equals distinguished members. Simple as that. This time around, the members adding their names to that list are: @TTK_229 Congratulations! Remember, there's always room for more, so keep at it and maybe we'll see you here next time around! Announcements Our biggest announcement, of course, is the introduction of the AWC League. Get crystal rewards, rank up, and showcase your best literary efforts! Wanna know more? Of course you do. Head over here to get all the details. The next announcement, unfortunately, is slightly less fun. We cannot stress enough that plagiarism will not be tolerated in the Amateur Writing Section, and that any offenders will be punished. Know anyone who can write wicked guides? Epic stories? Perfect poems? Send them over to us at the Amateur Writing Section, and we'll make sure that they get the exposure they deserve! Oh look, we're at the end already. Thank you for reading this, and also for your continued writing in the Amateur Writing Section. Until next time then, ta-ta, and stay safe.

Approved. -Grammar edits. -Complete restructuring of sentences. -Added a title and changed the colour of the timestamps. Never, ever try and use commas to continue sentences within a paragraph, as it looks completely horrible and makes it nearly impossible to read. It's much better to use fullstops to break up sentences instead. It's an interesting beginning, I'm looking forward to seeing the next chapters. :P

Approved. -A few grammar and spelling corrections. -Some rephrasing. -Underlined the subtitles. It's starting to get quite interesting, this ;)

Approved. -Corrected some grammar errors. -Added/ removed words in places that needed to be fixed. -Underlined the topics. -Punctuation corrections. A quick tip; when you're writing an article, avoid using the same phrase multiple times in close proximity to one another. Also, sometimes the conversations seemed a little fake. A good way to rectify this is to read them back to yourself and see whether it sounds natural.

Approved. -Made the colours in the lists the same, since the changes seemed quite random. -Minor grammar and spelling edits. You might want to lessen off the use of words like "anyways", since it isn't very nice when used a lot and close together. Also, I'd highly recommend bands like the Kings of Leon and the Dire Straights, if you want to, y'know, broaden your horizons and all that.