Brainstorm & Plan

Planning your entry is your first step and there's a lot that goes into it. Lack of planning is what leads to foundational problems with any kind of entry.

Start with the big guiding questions. What is the subject area that interests you most? Or if you have a general topic already, how do you plan to approach it? That will determine the subject area.

Read the criteria for the subject areas.

Read the criteria for each level of achievement.

This information will not only guide your work but help you anticipate what nobles will consider when reviewing your entry.

What Already Exists

As you narrow down on what you want to do:

1. Research and read what recognized works are relevant to you topic

(Important: The library of recognized works on the Dark Ages website has not been updated since 2004/2005 and thus is woefully outdated for research.

Use our library section or Aisling Spark's for an up to date collection of recognized works.)

2. Learn from the established lore in-game (i.e - speaking to mundanes, doing quests, etc).

After checking on things do you find your idea is still original?

Write For Your Specific Subject and Topic

Consider general criteria applicable to all entries (originality, invoking the theme, cultural enrichment/building on our knowledge, effort) and then criteria for your specific subject.

Reach Out! Ask!

Do not hesitate to reach out to Nobles or Chancellors for help or discussing ideas.

Entrants sometimes make the mistake of reaching out for feedback after they've already entered the Contest Hall to submit their work. Even worse, many submit their first entry without doing any research or reaching out to anyone knowledgeable for advice.

Be Passionate

Let your passion guide you, not the material rewards! That's the honest truth as we nobles all know it.

When you submit something you had fun working on, you're hooked.