I was asked to update, so here are some tips for the Thanksgiving contest.

1. Don't write original fiction for the contest.

The reason I'm bringing this up is because quite a few writers submitted original fiction for the Fanfic Frightday contest. Some of the stories were well written, but they were also disqualified because this is a fanfiction contest. This included the Creepy Pasta stories were original Creepy Pasta to the writer rather then fanfic of an already existing Creepy Pasta. While it's true the theme of Thanksgiving is a good theme for original fiction, the point remains that this is a fanfic contest, so you need to be writing for a fandom.

What is a fandom?

A fandom is either a famous real person during the modern time period, or an already existing original fiction piece not published on Wattpad or a similar site. I should also add here that you're not allowed to write fanfic based on another writers fanfic. That means no fanfic for the 1D fanfic series called After.

2. "Keep your content appropriate for all Wattpadders to enjoy."

This is a direct quote from the contest page. If you need to say yes to your story being mature then your story is disqualified. It doesn't matter how good your story actually is either. I bring this up because there were quite a few stories for the last contest which were well written, but were disqualified for containing mature material.

3. Use proper grammar and formatting.

I was surprised when someone asked if they could write their story without any caps as this was part of their style. Breaking the rules for formatting and grammar though isn't part of ones writing style, and while it's true that one can break the rules of grammar and formatting, there are rules to breaking the rules. Removing all caps from the story, or removing end punctuation actually makes things harder for the reader to read. Speaking of which, make sure your story is aligned to the left like this is. What does that mean?

Lines should be alined like this...

... but not like this...

... or like this.

Make sure to use proper paragraphing as well.

Now, what are they looking for?

What they are looking for is a story focused around Thanksgiving, or a family dinner. Crossovers are allowed, but if you choose to do a crossover pick fandoms and characters out carefully. Not only do you only have 3,000 words to work with, but you need to get the most out of the characters and fandoms you do use.

What though is the point of Thanksgiving?

- giving thanks

- spending time with family and friends

- celebrating the harvest

Thus the story you write should place an emphasis on one, or more of these traits. Thanksgiving stories also have a fluffy feeling to them and are hence a part of the fluff genre. Unlike most stories of the fluff genre that focus on romance, these stories focus on family, but it's still possible to focus on a romance. If you choose to write the romance make the pairing believable. I've read a few Fanfic Friday stories for pairings I like, and even writer for, but found myself cringing at how out of character they were.

Last, but not least they are looking for people to look outside of the box.