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 Announcements pertaining to Writing.Com! |
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| Greetings Members, We've added brand new Writing.Com products to "Our Store" and Gift Points are on sale for the next 7 days! :: The World's Best "Job" :: Writers are getting paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches, wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo, Indian Ocean hideaways, Rome, Paris, London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: New Writing.Com Branded Products! :: We've added five (5) cool new Writing.Com products to our store:  Black BriefBag Barrel Mug Playing Cards Clipboard Bic Ballpoint Penhttp://www.Writing.Com/main/store You can learn more about and purchase any of these new branded products from Our Store, linked from the top and bottom of any page. Please remember that your purchase supports Writing.Com, helping us to provide more tools, resources and readers to our community. http://www.Writing.Com/main/store :: Gift Points Are On Sale! :: Gift Points are on sale until September 23rd, 2003 (Tuesday) @ 11:59pm. Pricing during this sale is as follows: 100,000 for $10.00 255,000 for $25.00 (2% Extra, Free!) 520,000 for $50.00 (4% Extra, Free!) 1,060,000 for $100.00 (6% Extra, Free!) 2,700,000 for $250.00 (8% Extra, Free!) 5,500,000 for $500.00 (10% Extra, Free!) http://www.Writing.Com/main/store With our recently automated order processing, Gift Points paid for through PayPal will be instantly credited to your account! And don't forget that we also accept checks and money orders sent via postal mail. Money orders can be purchased at many local convenience stores and the US Post Office. Please remember that your purchase of GPs supports Writing.Com, helping us to provide more tools, resources and readers to our community. Members can purchase GPs from "Our Store": http://www.Writing.Com/main/store :: Extension For Grandfathered Free Accounts :: On May 15th we announced some changes to our Free Membership, including a reduction in items to a maximum of 5. For full details please see: "Important Changes To Our Membership Plans"  While the Grandfather period for pre-existing free memberships has elapsed, we have decided to extend the Grandfather Period. The new grace period will expire November 15th, 2003. :: ** Please Remember To Update Email Addresses! ** :: If you're still using your OLD Stories.Com email address anywhere, this is an early reminder that email service for Stories.Com addresses will end 12/31/03. This will, for the most part, remove a lot of the SPAM being sent to our servers. To ensure yourself a smooth transition, it is important that you update your contact information anywhere you are still using a Stories.Com email address before the service is turned of. (For our newer members: We changed our address from Stories.Com to Writing.Com 1/1/03... this note is only intended for members with accounts started under our Stories.Com domain name.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress  andThe StoryMaster   ![Merit Badge in Visit WdC 7
[Click For More Info]
Awarded for visiting the site every day for a week . This badge can be earned over and over again. Each of these badges adds one (1) Community Recognition!](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/achievements-Visit_WdC_7.gif) 
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| Greetings Members, We're pleased to announce new Merit Badges and more Merit Badge tools! :: The World's Best "Job" :: Today I get paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways... Rome... Paris... London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: New Merit Badges! :: Based on suggestions from our members, we are pleased to introduce the following 10 NEW Merit Badges: Appreciation, Imagery, Inner Beauty, Judging, Newsletters, Success, Philosophy, Campfires, Groups, and Web Pages. Remember: You can gift Merit Badges to another member by accessing the "Shop: Merit Badges" link in the "Gift Point Tools" pull down menu or visit it directly at: http://www.writing.com/main/badges.php :: New Merit Badge WritingML Tag! :: Members who have received one or more Merit Badges can now include them in their items and message forum posts with a new WritingML tag: {badge:######} The "######" should be replaced with the Merit Badge's ID number. This can be found below the badge image when viewing its detail screen. The "badge" WritingML tag also supports random rotation of all publicly viewable Merit Badges that you have received. The following WritingML tag will show a random Badge each time it is loaded: {badge:random} If you wish to display more than one random Badge in any one post or item, you'll need to add a number after the word "random". For example: {badge:random1} {badge:random5} {badge:random10} The "Image Limiting" member preference, which limits the number of images shown in a forum post, also limits the number of Merit Badges per post. The system will show the allowed number of images and badges separately. For example, if you set the limit to 3, you will see up to 3 Images and up to 3 Merit Badges per forum post. Please note: Only the recipient of a Merit Badge can display it. The "badge" WritingML tag will only work within your own Items, including Static Items, Message Forums and posts, etc. The tag will NOT work in email. Additionally, more formats for the "badge" WritingML tag may be added in the future. :: New Public / Private Option Merit Badges! :: More than 1,500 Merit Badges have been handed out since their release a few months ago. Merit Badges are awarded for a variety of reasons, some very personal in nature and others more on the humorous side. To better accommodate our members, Merit Badges can now be marked as "Privately Viewable" by the recipient if he/she wishes. Marking a badge private will keep it for the recipient's viewing only. Merit Badges can be switched from "Publicly Viewable" to "Private Only" or vice versa an unlimited number of times with a quick click from its details screen. :: ** Please Remember To Update Email Addresses! ** :: If you're still using your OLD Stories.Com email address anywhere, this is an early reminder that email service for Stories.Com addresses will end 12/31/03. This will, for the most part, remove a lot of the SPAM being sent to our servers. To ensure yourself a smooth transition, it is important that you update your contact information anywhere you are still using a Stories.Com email address before the service is turned of. (For our newer members: We changed our address from Stories.Com to Writing.Com 1/1/03... this note is only intended for members with accounts started under our Stories.Com domain name.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster ![Merit Badge in Community
[Click For More Info]
This is a test, so thanks for working with me to build the community! *^*Smile*^*](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/genre-Community-210.gif)
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| Greetings Members, We're pleased to announce that the registration for the Writing.Com Convention 2004 is now open! We've chosen a new location, refined the schedule and lowered the price! :: The World's Best "Job" :: Today I get paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways... Rome... Paris... London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: Don't Wait; Register NOW! :: Our first convention was a huge and memorable success! Our second convention was even better! We laughed, we cried. Friends met for the first time and strangers became close friends. We have a fun-filled, creative and inspiring time planned for all who attend the Writing.Com Convention 2004. You won't want to miss this event. ** Don't Wait! Space is Limit! Register NOW! **
Access this convention information at any time via the Convention 2004 link in your "Member Tools" pull down menu. :: Please Remember To Update Email Addresses! :: If you're still using your OLD Stories.Com email address anywhere, this is an early reminder that email service for Stories.Com addresses will end 12/31/03. This will, for the most part, remove a lot of the SPAM being sent to our servers. To ensure yourself a smooth transition, it is important that you update your contact information anywhere you are still using a Stories.Com email address before the service is turned of. (For our newer members: We changed our address from Stories.Com to Writing.Com 1/1/03... this note is only intended for members with accounts started under our Stories.Com domain name.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster
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| Greetings Members, It's time to celebrate Writing.Com's Three Year Birthday! Break out the cake and ice cream and put your party hats on! :: The World's Best "Job" :: Today I get paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways... Rome... Paris... London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: A Good Reason To Party! :: We've finally hit another great milestone; Writing.Com is three years old. This community, its features and members have come a long way. We're proud to say we're still going strong! Help us celebrate this wonderful event all this week; we've outlined some fun birthday activities for you below!  All of the official Writing.Com birthday activities are linked from within '03 Party Central. This will be linked at the top of the "Member Tools" pulldown menu throughout the entire week (September 1st - 7th, 2003).
:: Don't Forget: Costumicons Are Available! :: The current costumicons subscription period will last through noon on September 17th, 2003. You can subscribe to or change your current costumicon from the "My Account" area or directly at: http://www.Writing.com/main/my_account.php?action=ea_form&type=costumicon As usual, you can preview any of the larger portfolio images by clicking on the small image within the costumicons Store. Don't Forget: You can GIFT costumicons to others! A costumicons subscription makes a great gift! Send one to a friend from your "My Gifts" page TODAY! http://www.Writing.Com/main/my_gifts.php#spend :: Extension For Grandfathered Free Accounts :: On May 15th we announced some changes to our Free Membership, including a reduction in items to a maximum of 5. For full details please see: "Important Changes To Our Membership Plans" While the Grandfather period for pre-existing free memberships has elapsed, we have decided to extend the Grandfather Period. The new grace period will expire September 15th, 2003. :: Please Remember To Update Email Addresses! :: If you're still using your OLD Stories.Com email address anywhere, this is an early reminder that email service for Stories.Com addresses will end 12/31/03. This will, for the most part, remove a lot of the SPAM being sent to our servers. To ensure yourself a smooth transition, it is important that you update your contact information anywhere you are still using a Stories.Com email address before the service is turned of. (For our newer members: We changed our address from Stories.Com to Writing.Com 1/1/03... this note is only intended for members with accounts started under our Stories.Com domain name.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster 
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| Greetings Members, As most of you know, the Writing.Com Convention 2003 was held last weekend and was a smashing success! Over 55 Writing.Com members gathered for four unforgettable days of fun, food and creativity. I also even managed to surprise everyone, including SMs, with a little announcement of my own! :: The World's Best "Job" :: Today I get paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways... Rome... Paris... London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: The Convention Wrap Up! :: This year's convention was even better than last with added events, better facilities and a refined schedule. Building on the relationships forged online, attendees met, mingled and made their virtual friendships real. Everyone had an amazing and unforgettable time and the plans for our Convention 2004 are already in the works! To recap this year's events, I'll let some of the attendees speak for themselves:  "Top Ten Highlights of Convention 2003" by Diane  "A Life in the Parallel Dimension" by Marie "My Convention Experience" by Dottie  "Invalid Item" by A Guest Visitor "Convention 2003 ROCKED!" by winklett  "Invalid Item" by A Guest Visitor :: We're Engaged! :: The buzz is all around the site, but we wanted to officially announce that The StoryMistress and I are now engaged! I pulled off a marvelous suprise to close out our Open Mic Night at this year's convention. I can't begin to do justice to the story, so I'll just point you to:
:: Extension For Grandfathered Free Accounts :: On May 15th we announced some changes to our Free Membership, including a reduction in items to a maximum of 5. For full details please see: "Important Changes To Our Membership Plans" While the Grandfather period for pre-existing free memberships has elapsed, we have decided to extend the Grandfather Period. The new grace period will expire September 15th, 2003. :: Please Remember To Update Email Addresses! :: If you're still using your OLD Stories.Com email address anywhere, this is an early reminder that email service for Stories.Com addresses will end 12/31/03. This will, for the most part, remove a lot of the SPAM being sent to our servers. To ensure yourself a smooth transition, it is important that you update your contact information anywhere you are still using a Stories.Com email address before the service is turned of. (For our newer members: We changed our address from Stories.Com to Writing.Com 1/1/03... this note is only intended for members with accounts started under our Stories.Com domain name.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster
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| Greetings Members, We're pleased to announce our latest improvement to Writing.Com: Product Reviews :: Can You Write A Simple Letter? :: If yes, you could be in big demand, earning big money, writing just a few hours a day from anywhere in the world you choose to be. Here's how you can learn the secrets of this little-known, lucrative business: http://www.thewriterslife.com/wc Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: Introducing Product Reviews :: Product Reviews REPLACE the existing Book Review item type. As its name suggests, this new format allows Writing.Com members to review a variety of products including Books, Music, DVDs and Videos! The system is fully expandable and, in time, we will add the ability to review anything sold on Amazon.Com, from toys and games to clothing and MORE! Product Reviews are NOT items. To encourage the use of the system and reduce load on our servers, Product Reviews have their own numerical ID system and WritingML tag: {pr:nnnnnn} There is no limit on the number of product reviews any member, of any membership plan or level, can create and these do not count towards your membership item limit! Please note: We have ported all Book Review items into Product Reviews (excluding those that were set private, had inaccurate ASIN's, or multiple reviews of the same book). We did leave the Book Review items in everyone's portfolio; authors can delete them on their own or leave them to be purged by us in 3 to 6 months. To view your Product Reviews, click the "Product Reviews" link found on your "My Portfolio" page just below your "Table of Contents" link. You can access them directly at: http://www.writing.com/main/product_reviews.php?action=my_prs An example of the {pr:} tag: {pr:107034} yields: [[ Product review #107034 does not exist. ]] To create a new Product Review click the appropriate link from the "Writing" page or at the bottom of your portfolio. The Add a Product Review process starts by first asking for an ASIN - it explains what an ASIN is and how to find it. The system talks to Amazon.Com and gets information about the product, providing an error if there is any problem. This insures that products and product links will always be working and correct, something that was lacking with Book Reviews. After this initial release of our new Product Review format, we will begin working on further enhancement to the system including additional WritingML tags, other product categories and much more! Stay tuned! :: Extension For Grandfathered Free Accounts :: On May 15th we announced some changes to our Free Membership, including a reduction in items to a maximum of 5. For full details please see: "Important Changes To Our Membership Plans" While the Grandfather period for pre-existing free memberships has elapsed, we have decided to extend the Grandfather Period. The new grace period will expire September 15th, 2003. (Please note that this date has been corrected from a previous email.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster |
| Greetings Members, I hope this announcement of some sitewide improvements finds everyone having an enjoyable summer! :: The World's Best "Job" :: Today I get paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways... Rome... Paris... London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: My Groups Makeover :: Your My Groups page has received a great make over! We have increased the amount of information about each group on the page and have reorganized it to be easier on the eyes. New links have been added to make the management of your groups less time consuming. An ordering system allows you to sort your groups for faster access. Keep your most active groups at the top of the listing or group together similair groups; you choose! My Groups is found in your "Member Tools" pull down menu; it can also be accessed directly at: http://www.writing.com/main/my_account.php?action=my_groups :: Sitewide Statistics Expanded :: We have updated our Sitewide Statistics section to include more information about the Writing.Com. At the top, you can now find the number of new members signing up to the site for various time periods. At the bottom of the page, we've added an entire section of sitewide "overall" statistics. In this section you'll find total counts for items, members, posts, entries, chapters and more. We've added a breakdown of our membership levels which show the current number of Free, Basic, Upgraded and Premium accounts. An overview of Writing.Com's Gift Point system is provided and includes the total GPs in circulation, members with GPs and the average GPs per members. For faster loading and to save server resources, this section is updated every few minutes with the last update time listed at the end. Writing.Com Sitewide Statistics are available from your "Member Tools" pull down menu or can be accessed directly at: http://www.writing.com/main/stats.php :: Extension For Grandfathered Free Accounts :: On May 15th we announced some changes to our Free Membership, including a reduction in items to a maximum of 5. For full details please see: "Important Changes To Our Membership Plans" While the Grandfather period for pre-existing free memberships has elapsed, we have decided to extend the Grandfather Peroid an additional 45 days from today. The new grace period will expire September 15th, 2003. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster
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| Greetings Members! Announcing our new automated order processing! :: The World's Best "Job" :: Today I get paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways... Rome... Paris... London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: Automated Order Processing :: No more lines, no more waiting! Our new automated ordering system means: Memberships bought online with PayPal are now automatically processed! Gift Points ordered through PayPal will be instantly credited to you! Orders made within the site using Gift Points are also processed instantly!Don't forget that we also accept checks and money orders sent via postal mail. Money orders can be purchased at many local convenience stores and the US Post Office. We process all snail mailed orders as soon as they are received! :: Our BIGGEST Gift Points Sale EVER is BACK! :: Gift Points are on sale until July 14th, 2003 (Monday) @ 11:59pm. The sale bonuses are a repeat of the largest we've ever given! Pricing during this sale follows: 100,000 for $10.00 255,000 for $25.00 (2% Extra, Free!) 520,000 for $50.00 (4% Extra, Free!) 1,060,000 for $100.00 (6% Extra, Free!) 2,700,000 for $250.00 (8% Extra, Free!) 5,500,000 for $500.00 (10% Extra, Free!) With our new automated order processing, Gift Points paid for through PayPal will be instantly credited to your account! And don't forget that we also accept checks and money orders sent via postal mail. Money orders can be purchased at many local convenience stores and the US Post Office. Don't miss the return of the BIGGEST opportunity to stock up on Gift Points EVER! Please remember that your purchase of GPs supports Writing.Com, helping us to provide more tools, resources and readers to our community. Members can purchase GPs from "Our Store": http://www.Writing.Com/main/store ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster |
| Greetings Members! We're extending the current costumicon subscription period and releasing our Basic Spam Filter. :: The World's Best "Job" :: Today I get paid to write about: white sand Caribbean beaches... wildlife sanctuaries in Borneo... Indian Ocean hideaways... Rome... Paris... London... If you ever dreamed about the romantic life of a travel writer, here's an unusual opportunity to get your first assignment. * * http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing * * Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: Basic Spam Filtering :: Some of you may have noticed that Writing.Com has had a basic spam filter in development for a few weeks. This filter looks for the most common subject lines and "from" email addresses that are ALWAYS spam and removes them. This filter works "on the fly" meaning that it only parses the spam as it displays your email listing to you. By default, the basic spam filter is "On" but can be turned off at any time by visiting your "My Account" then "Change Preferences" page. We are still developing this filter and will work to hone its skills to further reduce the amount of spam members may receive in email. At present, we expect the filter to catch and remove between 15% and 50% of the incoming spam. This is dependent on the type of spam you are receiving. Since the day we setup the filter in its test phase around one month ago, it has purged over 150,000 pieces of spam email from the mailboxes of our members. Please note: One of the best ways to reduce the amount of spam you receive is to be very careful not to open and view spam messages. Try your best to delete them directly from the email listing page. Spamming companies include hidden images and HTML that tell them the second you read one of their spam emails. Once they know you've read it, they know your email address is active and working and they send you even more spam! We also recommend that you not accept or read ecards from off-site mailings as the ecard sites keep lists of active email accounts that have used their service. :: Costumicons Extended! :: To help our members have a Happy 4th of July, we've decided to extend the current costumicon subscription period until July 7th! There's no additional cost to those who have already purchased their subscription... and the price is still low for those who haven't grabbed one yet! Subscribe to or change your current costumicon from the "My Account" area or directly at: http://www.Writing.com/main/my_account.php?action=ea_form&type=costumicon As usual, you can preview any of the larger portfolio images by clicking on the small image within the costumicons Store. Don't Forget: You can GIFT costumicons to others! A costumicons subscription makes a great gift! Send one to a friend from your "My Gifts" page TODAY! http://www.Writing.Com/main/my_gifts.php#spend :: Convention 2003 Coming Soon! :: UPDATE: The late registration deadline is June 30th, 2003. Find out more about this all inclusivie, absolutely amazing 4 day / 3 night event... Convention Dates: August 15th - 18th, 2003
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com/writing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster |
| Greetings Members! Since the recent weather has been so blegh we decided to open the Summer costumicons just a little ahead of schedule! :: Can You Write A Simple Letter? :: If yes, you could be in big demand, earning big money, writing just a few hours a day from anywhere in the world you choose to be. Here's how you can learn the secrets of this little-known, lucrative business: << http://www.thewriterslife.com/wc >> Please support our Sponsor and visit their site today! :: Summer 2003 costumicon Subscriptions :: costumicons are once again available for purchase! This subscription will last through noon on June 30th, 2003. Subscribe to or change your current costumicon from the "My Account" area or directly at: http://www.Writing.com/main/my_account.php?action=ea_form&type=costumicon As usual, you can preview any of the larger portfolio images by clicking on the small image within the costumicons Store. Don't Forget: You can GIFT costumicons to others! A costumicons subscription makes a great gift! Send one to a friend from your "My Gifts" page TODAY! http://www.Writing.Com/main/my_gifts.php#spend :: Convention 2003 Coming Soon! :: UPDATE: Scholarship now open to all members! The regular registration deadline is May 31st, 2003. Find out more about this all inclusivie, absolutely amazing 4 day / 3 night event... Convention Dates: August 15th - 18th, 2003 Space Remaining: About 12 spots left!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And don't forget to visit our sponsor: http://www.thewriterslife.com/wc ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your continued support of Writing.Com! ~~ The StoryMistress andThe StoryMaster |
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I am thrilled to have been chosen for Third Place!
Congratulations reviewers! Well done! 
Congratulations winners!!
