"Storytelling
Contest"
by Zazu
In order to promote the arts, DHZ & Company recently sponsored
a storytelling contest at the Bard's Corner in the Half Pint
Inn of Crossing. Categories included Race Related, Immortal
Tribute to the Gods in the Immortal, General Humor, and Local
History. Five judges rated each story on originality, content,
creativity, and flow. There was a strong turnout of about
34 folks with 20 actually entered in the contest.
The Race Related category was open to stories regarding personal,
traditional, and folk tales about any race in Elanthia. We
heard stories about Prydaen, Sand Elves, Rakash, Dwarves,
and Gor'togs. First place went to Avrachai Westanjalawen as
she retold a folk tale about Fenec the Trickster, "Fenec
and the Pit Viper."
The Immortal catageory was open to stories regarding tributes
to the Gods and how the immortals have influenced the lives
of even the most common Elanthian. Several stories were entered,
and there was a tie for first place. Only one of the winners
wished to be mentioned in this article. Tashya wrote a story
about the Gods as they appear in every day life.
The General Humor category received the most entries. We
were entertained with stories about how someone received his
name, folk tales of forest creatures, funny thief stories,
and some that incorporated song and wordsmithing. Unfortunately,
at this time, we have not received permission to reprint any
of the top stories from this category.
The final category focused on Local History. I have found
it difficult to unearth good tales of local history and folklore.
We had one entry in this category, though several of the preceding
stories may have fallen under this listing as well. After
much deliberation, the judges decided this was a good representation
of local history, though we are not too sure which history
it represents. We decided to classify "The Chronicles
of Straenghert and Gkor'lin: The Bargain" by Asera Ri'sel
as a legend. Our hats are off to Asera for spinning such a
wonderful tale about love and friendship in these hard times.
My heartfelt thanks goes out to everyone who attended. The
response was overwhelming. We expected maybe a dozen folks
total, including judges. Instead, we had over 30 people supporting
our efforts. As a result, there will be more contests in the
future with better prizes and recognition.
Zazu Turning'leaf, founding member of DHZ & Company
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