Competition: [LOREFEST] April 2026

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The Breakdown:

How do you write like tomorrow won't arrive?:

Welcome back to LOREFEST: A Voice-sponsored series of fiction competitions, awarding First Level Crescents and bonus Clusters of Ice. Each month we'll give you a new prompt, usually relating to your characters, their lives, interests, what-if scenarios, or the day-to-day within The Brotherhood.

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The topic for the month of April is When We Were Young. Our characters youths had their measure of embarrassments, traumas, victories, and losses. Sometimes these things haunt us for years to come, sometimes we're given the chance to address them as we get older. However, you've been extended a unique opportunity: travel back in time and either have a conversation with your character's younger self, or, intervene in a formative event in their life.

Which opportunity do you take, and how does it shape their new future? Is the character of today a product of that singular event, or was it just a drop in the bucket that formed who and what they are? Did your character take the advice you gave them, or ignore it altogether and walk right into the same lifestyles?

The Purpose:

How do you write like you need it to survive?:

LOREFEST is a series of prompts, ideas, and expositions to help flesh out characters, express creative ideas, and earn sweet, sweet credits along the way. You'll see a mix of prompts, old and new, some even taking new life from #character-questions, as we seek to dive deep, understand your characters, define their place in The Brotherhood, and most importantly, enjoy the process of writing.

The Rules:

How do you write every second you're alive?:

• Participants must submit entries in .pdf format, or use the submission text field (markdown capable).
  • Any entries written in a GoogleDoc must be exported as a PDF for submission.
  • It is highly recommended to submit in a PDF format.
• Submissions will be graded according to the Fiction Rubric 3.0
• Entries must be a minimum of 500 words. Any entries that are under 500 words will be disqualified and ineligible for participation or placement.
• There is no maximum word cap.
• Your story must be centered on one of your dossier-linked characters. Additional NPCs, including ones listed on the wiki or created/invented to tell your story in this fiction, are allowed and strongly encouraged.
• A snapshot of the primary character’s loadout must be selected and submitted with your entry via the checkbox submission field on the competition page.
• This competition will award up to 4 bonus Clusters of Ice at a rate of 1 per 500 words.