HomeStation Announces the Writing Contest Winners!
by NorseGamer, HSM Editor-in-Chief
HomeStation Magazine’s mission is to be a mature and literate source of polished and professional journalism surrounding PlayStation Home and Sony gaming in general. Which, conceptually, is fantastic. Pulling it off, however, requires some serious work ethic.
It’s one thing to publish anything that walks through the door, regardless of subject material or quality of construction; it’s another matter entirely, however, to rigidly adhere to a high level of quality, minimum word counts, and a new unique story every single day. Particularly if you’re an all-volunteer publication.
What it takes is the right group of people.
At the heart of HomeStation is an ideology: a belief that the beating heart of Home is its society. And thus the human condition, particularly when thrust into the brave new world of virtual reality, is what is most interesting to examine. Further, that such examination can be conducted with civility, intellectual reasoning and respect for disparate points of view. In a world drunk on instant gratification, sound bytes and pundit shouting matches, HSM set out to prove that there is still a desire for journalism which treats you like an educated adult and enhances your day by reading it.
In the world of inflammatory “my way” shock-jock rhetoric, HomeStation is akin to Firing Line: a place where social affairs can be discussed and debated. And in so doing, we demonstrate to all that Home is far, far more than just a roadside curiosity for the bored misfits of the gaming world. Rather, it is a place full of stories: of friendships, of recreation, of adventure, of love, and of self-discovery.
A friend of mine described HSM thus: “It’s Chomsky with Chain Swing.”
The goal of HSM, quite simply, is to stand out from the crowd the same way a Gore Vidal essay manages to distinguish itself: by being simply interesting to read.
The catch, of course, with consistently delivering this level of product is that you’ve got to have some fantastic people who can bring it to life. In this regard, I am personally humbled to serve such a great group of people. If you go back through the pages (and pages) of this website, you’ll find an amazing assortment of stories, many of which are just as compelling to read today as they were when they were first written.
One interesting challenge which has presented itself, however, when we try to solicit new writers: intimidation. HomeStation’s very insistence on such a high level of work — both qualitatively and quantitatively — can make it difficult to find new voices.
“I don’t think my work is good enough,” goes the general sentiment. And I get it: fear of rejection is a powerful fear. It can cripple and paralyze people before they even try something.
And this is why we built our mentorship program. Because HomeStation aims to be inclusionary, not exclusionary. The agreement is simple: if you like the idea of being part of a Sony-positive and Home-positive publication (which regularly indulges in constructive criticism, yes), you’ve got the work ethic, you can conduct yourself like an adult and you respect the editorial process, then we want to help you develop your skills and give you a platform from which to reach a very large audience.
(One of my personal goals with HSM: I hope that someone, years from now, having reached a level of professional success with his or her work, can look back and point to HomeStation as the place where they got their inspiration to succeed. Sort of like the Home journalism equivalent of the Bill Walsh coaching tree.)
This is the primary reason why we developed our writing contests: because we believe, as Steven Levitt does, that human beings respond first and foremost to economic incentive. Offer someone a possible reward for sharing their thoughts about Home, and it might be just enough impetus to get them past that fear of rejection. That doesn’t mean that HomeStation publishes everything that gets submitted to it, but you’d be amazed at the quality of the writing we get, from people who might otherwise never have put fingers to keys.
The HSM team believes that the act of creative expression is its own reward: that giving back to the Home community, and hopefully enriching someone’s experience with Home, is our highest goal. Thus, contests like this do not really produce winners and losers; rather, they simply serve as a means to an end.
That said…man, can they be exciting!
HomeStation put two-hundred dollars in PSN cards up for grabs. We looked for game reviews, public/private space reviews, social issues and interviews, from both our team members and guest contributors. The results were quite astounding. Not only did the contest produce some fantastic traffic numbers — we saw our best numbers, as a site, since the Great PSN Outage half a year ago — but there were some truly remarkable stories published. Thus, we tallied up the reader numbers, and here’s how it ended up:
TEAM WRITERS
- Best PSN/PS3 game review: Estim20 (Strong Bad’s Cool Game For Attractive People)
- Best Home public space or private estate review: Burbie52 (Welcome To the Tycoon’s Penthouse)
- Best Home social issue article: johneboy1970 (To TOS Or Not To TOS)
- Best Home interview (club or individual): Jersquall (Cogs in the Hub)
GUEST CONTRIBUTORS
- Best PSN/PS3 game review: xSPOCKx (The Aural Experience)
- Best Home public space or private estate review: Kassadee Marie (The Tree House Apartment)
- Best Home social issue article: BONZO (A Home Away From Home)
- Best Home interview (club or individual): PixelCub (You’ve Got A Private Message)
Now, if you recall, we also had two Editor’s Choice awards up for grabs. Here’s the catch, though: while the other awards were based solely on visitor numbers, the Editor’s Choice awards were a bit more subjective. Visitor numbers were factored in, absolutely, but we ran into a small problem — we narrowed it down to three top entries, but we only had two prizes to give out!
…So, what the heck. We decided to throw in another prize. Because that’s how we roll.
Ladies and gentlemen, your three Editor’s Choice Awards:
- Gideon (Home Advertising)
- SealWyf (Echo Chronicles: The Uses of Glory)
- Aeternitas33 (Children Should Be Allowed To Dance)
I want to thank all of our team writers and guest contributors for taking part in this contest, and for enriching the HomeStation with your words and thoughts. Long live play — and long live Home.
October 16th, 2011 by NorseGamer | 18 comments
NorseGamer is the product manager for LOOT Entertainment at Sony Pictures, as well as the founder and publisher of HomeStation Magazine. Born and raised in Silicon Valley, he holds a B.A. in English/Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and presently lives in Los Angeles. All opinions expressed in HSM are solely his and do not necessarily reflect the views of Sony DADC.
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WOW Awesome guys, thank you!!
Awesome indeed! I’m humbled that my article drew enough readers to warrent a prize; more so when one considers some of the amazing and interesting writers who are also on the list of PSN card recipients. Thank you very much, both readers and staff. My day has been made, that’s for sure
You guys might be surprised at how many unique visitors read each article on the HSM website.
Here’s a silly example: remember IrishSiren’s April Fools’ Day article about “Lego Mortal Kombat”? That thing’s been read *thousands* of times.
I just ran HSM’s visitor traffic numbers today, and we’ve welcomed more than 40,000 unique visitors to the HomeStation since the beginning of the year. And that’s thanks to the incredible journalism being developed by everyone involved.
Contest winners, please check your e-mail inboxes to confirm that you’ve received your redemption codes for the $20 PSN cards. You’ve earned them.
The true winner, though, is the Home community at large. Because there are some really remarkable stories coming through the HomeStation. It’s a pleasure to serve this team.
Thanks Norse. It’s a pleasure to be on the team
Congratulations to everyone!! HSM is a fun read and a place where I learn a lot. The amazing points of view and observations help me to make better decisions when making things for Home. The quality of writing is top notch. Keep it up and I’ll keep reading. Thanks!
Congrats to all the winners!!! I was blown away buy all of you. I can not begin to tell you how proud I am to work with you, and even more proud to call yall my friends.
I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.
-- Douglas Adams
There are two kinds of writer: those that make you think, and those that make you wonder.
-- Brian Aldiss
And as to experience--well, think how little some good poets have had, or how much some bad ones have.
-- Elizabeth Bishop
I have been successful probably because I have always realized that I knew nothing about writing and have merely tried to tell an interesting story entertainingly.
-- Edgar Rice Burroughs
The reason 99% of all stories written are not bought by editors is very simple. Editors never buy manuscripts that are left on the closet shelf at home.
-- John Campbell
If you would not be forgotten,
as soon as you are dead and rotten,
either write things worth reading,
or do things worth the writing.
-- Benjamin Franklin
Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards.
-- Robert A. Heinlein
OMG thanks guys, and congrats to all the other winners, and thank you Bonzo for my sweet avatar. You rock as an artist and a writer.
I did receive the code and have redeemed it, thank you very much.
Thanks so much for this award. Once again I am humbled by the people who read this publication. If you had told me a year ago that I would be writing for a magazine based upon a virtual reality like Home I would have laughed, yet here we are and I am enjoying the ride we are on immensely.
I also want to thank our editors, without your dedication and strict work ethic, none if us would be here right now. It is great to be able to work with such a talented group of people.
Kudos to all of the winners and all of the people who didn’t too, for you are all winners in my eyes, just for the amount of dedication you show each week to this crazy endeavor of ours.
And to those of you who haven’t joined us, don’t be intimidated by any of this, I had never written anything but poetry and fiction before coming here, you can do this and we are all here to help.
I’d like to thank Norse, Terra, Cubes, MJG74 and Jersquall for keeping this enterprise going. I’d also like to congratulate all the winners, especially those who won in the Guest Contributor categories. We all love to see new voices appear in HSM.
Those gift cards rather beats French toast and bacon cooked by yours truly, now don’t they?
In all honesty though, when reading through the first few entries that came in, I knew we were going to be treated to some really spectacular writing. I am so grateful that those of you who chose to make your voices known did so. You had some very compelling stories to share.
I hope that this contest simply served to strengthen your confidence, and that we will be hearing more from you in the future.
Thank you, and congratulations once again.
Is the French Toast and Bacon still up for grabs?
Congrats to all the winners for all these awesome articles! Loves it ^__^
My best wishes to all who contributed. I enjoy looking through the articles.
Awesome! Thanks so much everyone, Norse, Terra, Co-team-writers, guest-writers, and most importantly: the readers!
I have never been one to bring in the numbers so I really appreciate the recognition. How awesome is it that they just couldn’t decide on the 2 editors choice so they just added a 3rd eh?
Thanks for the “Editor’s Choice” award! The prize has been converted into a new Homeling clubhouse. So much better than selling bootleg bacon brandy…
Thank you and congratulations to the others winners, as well. As I keep saying, I’m honored to be printed in this great magazine. I’m thrilled by my win!
I’m happy for the winners and those who participated including those whose articles may not have been chosen.
I enjoy reading the majority of the articles on this newspaper page.
Congratulations and best to you’se all.