b2mem | B2MeM 2014: Seasons of Middle-earth Review Challenge Guidelines

As part of this year's Back to Middle-earth Month challenge, we are encouraging our readers to show their love to our writers and artists by leaving comments on the stories, poems, and art they enjoy! To encourage reviewing, part of B2MeM 2014 will include a review challenge.

Below, you will find 15 different review challenges to complete throughout the month. You can do one or do them all! If you don't want to complete any of the specific challenges, the comments you do leave on B2MeM 2014 pieces still count toward the grand prize. At the end of the month, add up all the comments you leave on B2MeM 2014 stories, poems, and art and collect your grand prize.

Guidelines

Any comment left on any piece of writing or art created for B2MeM 2014 counts toward the challenge. Comments on compilation and non-compilation B2MeM 2014 pieces count. (For challenges #12 and #13, you may review pieces created for past B2MeM events.)

A comment cannot count for more than one review challenge. The exception is the grand prize: All comments you leave on B2MeM 2014 writing and art will count toward your total for the grand prize.

Some B2MeM 2014 pieces may be posted on sites other than the b2mem community. You are welcome to leave comments on any site where B2MeM 2014 writing and art are shared.

As always, we are operating on the honor system as far as prizes claimed for the review challenge. However, if you'd like to report your review, brag about your accomplishments, or squee more over the piece you just commented on, you can leave a comment to the thread below for the challenge you completed.

Once the month is over, we will put together the review challenge stamps you earned into a single graphic if you want us to do so. Comment here when you complete a challenge, or contact us at the end of the month with the challenges you have completed.

Review Challenges

This year, in the spirit of using comments to send encouragement and love to our writers and artists, we are offering Tolkien-themed postage stamps for completing the various review challenges below! You can use the HTML code beside each stamp to display your prize wherever HTML is acceptable, or right-click to save the image to your computer and share it on the image host of your choice. At the end of the month, we will put together all of the stamps you earn onto a collector's page for you to display.

Challenge	Stamp	HTML
1. Review an author or artist who is new to you. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp1.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
2. Review a genre or medium you do not normally read/view. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp2.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
3. Review a piece of writing or art from a time period you do not normally read/view. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp3.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
4. Review something featuring a character or group (e.g., Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits) you do not normally read/view. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp4.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
5. Review something that was recommended to you. (Find recommendations on the weekly roundup posts.) [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp5.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
6. Write a review that is 100 words or more. (The word count should not include quotes from the piece.) [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp6.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
7. Review a story in your favorite genre or artwork in your favorite medium. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp7.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
8. Review something set in your favorite time period. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp8.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
9. Review something set in your favorite location on Arda. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp9.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
10. Review a piece that you think handled canon in an unusual or thought-provoking way. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp10.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
11. Review a piece that demonstrated excellent characterization. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp11.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
12. Review a piece with three or fewer first-level comments. (Comment replies do not count! You may comment on any B2MeM piece for this challenge, even if it was written for an event prior to 2014.) [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp12.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
13. Review a piece created for a past B2MeM event (2008-2013). [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp13.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
14. Leave a review in the form of one of your favorite characters writing a letter/note to one of the characters in the fanwork. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp14.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />
15. Review a work that evokes a strong personal feeling or connection for you or that you cannot stop thinking about. [Report your review!]		<img src="http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/images/b2mem2014/stamp15.jpg" alt="B2MeM 2014 Review Challenge" />

Grand Prizes for Reviewing

Once the month of March is over, you can collect your grand prize based on the total number of comments that you leave on B2MeM 2014 pieces. Remember that the reviews you write for the challenges above also count toward your total for the grand prize. Banners and icons for the grand prize will be posted to the community at the end of the month. The grand prizes will be as follows:

60+ reviews: Silmaril
50-59 reviews: mithril
40-49 reviews: platinum
30-39 reviews: gold
20-29 reviews: silver
10-19 reviews: bronze

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

I followed up the Goldberry character tag, for reasons, and found
"Petrichor" by Lyra:
http://b2mem.livejournal.com/225140.html
I left a comment there.

I was the first to comment on Summer Games, by linndechir:
http://b2mem.livejournal.com/254334.html

I don't think I had encountered Broadbeam before.
I left a comment on "Good Things":
http://b2mem.livejournal.com/252695.html

I don't normally view and comment on gowns or cosplay--although I guess my last comment on a gown might have also been on one of Lyra's!
"Erulaitalë Gown" by Lyra:
http://b2mem.livejournal.com/251935.html

This one, about one of my favourite characters, to boot:

http://b2mem.livejournal.com/255484.html#comments

I adore the Old Forest and its magic - not my sole favourite location (though one of them, and especially so in the Third Age) and Himring wrote such a fantastic testament to Goldberry that fell in line so well with my thoughts about it that I'd like to enter this review here:

http://b2mem.livejournal.com/255484.html?thread=3433468#t3433468

Flight, by Linda Hoyland - it's such a plausible fic and reads so naturally for young Aragorn just setting out in his position.

http://b2mem.livejournal.com/255758.html?thread=3431950#t3431950

I love cosplay, but I don't often comment on them because it's one of the things I don't feel I can contribute a lot to, considering I'm more likely to end up tangled in a pile of yarn than produce a piece of clothing myself. I did comment on Lyra's Erulaitalë Gown, though.

http://b2mem.livejournal.com/251935.html?thread=3434271#t3434271

ROTFL! Outstanding!

*g* Thanks. I, um, may have written a longer version. But it is very silly, so I'm still deciding if I should post it anywhere other than in my journal under f-lock. :)

I have not been part of the silliness so far, but I vote for posting it! :D B2MeM is about silliness sometimes, after all!

~~You could post it as a B2MEM fic~~.

You know you want to!

Edited 2014-03-09 22:20 (UTC)

I don't think I can post it to the comm as a B2MeM fic because it doesn't answer to any of the prompts. But not being able to resist when people encouraged me was how I got into this in the first place, so perhaps I should either unlock it or post it somewhere else.

If I do, do you want credit for inspiring this travesty? ;) No offense if you don't. I just want to be conscientious.

*chuckles* If you want to give me credit, go ahead!

LotR-era TA is my favourite time period in canon, and this one was just post-RotK, which is my favourite time period within that. :)

http://b2mem.livejournal.com/257031.html#comments

Edited 2014-03-11 04:00 (UTC)

Rather unexpectedly, I ended up liking this piece:

http://b2mem.livejournal.com/257302.html?view=3467286#t3467286

I commented on Fair Game by Ljusastjarnan, which had only one comment at the time. I know the pairing between brothers will not be everyone's cuppa, but the imagery in the piece is lovely, and the content is not graphic. I definitely recommend it.

I'd never reviewed

ilye_elf before. I did it today (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/257967.html?thread=3483567#t3483567) :) Thank you!

Reviewed (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/251935.html?thread=3313183#t3313183)

oloriel's gown :)

Reviewed (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/252695.html?thread=3335959#t3335959) a story about dwarves :)

Edited 2014-03-13 15:27 (UTC)

The First Age, obviously, but I have a thing for fics set during the War of Wrath, and Ilye's Dying on the Vine (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/257967.html?thread=3491759#t3491759) hit home with a lot of the reasons for that.

Reviewed (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/257582.html?thread=3474990#t3474990) "Teacher's Pet" by

tanis2014

Reviewed (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/253489.html?thread=3365937#t3365937) "Ruins and Silence" by Astris.

Reviewed (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/254200.html?thread=3381496#t3381496) "A Summer Dream" by Jenn Calaelen.

You should post it on MPTT, they have a section for parodies and crossovers. I posted a zany Harry Potter\LOTR crossover there.

Page 4 of 10

B2MeM 2014: Seasons of Middle-earth Review Challenge Guidelines

Guidelines

Review Challenges

Grand Prizes for Reviewing

Re: 13. Review a piece created for a past B2MeM event (2008-2013).

Re: 12. Review a piece with three or fewer first-level comments.

Re: 1. Review an author or artist who is new to you.

Re: 2. Review a genre or medium you do not normally read/view.

Re: 10. Review a piece that you think handled canon in an unusual or thought-provoking way.

Re: 9. Review something set in your favorite location on Arda.

Re: 11. Review a piece that demonstrated excellent characterization.

Re: 2. Review a genre or medium you do not normally read/view.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

Re: 8. Review something set in your favorite time period.

Re: 12. Review a piece with three or fewer first-level comments.

Re: 12. Review a piece with three or fewer first-level comments.

Re: 1. Review an author or artist who is new to you.

Re: 2. Review a genre or medium you do not normally read/view.

Re: 4. Review something featuring a character or group you do not normally read/view.

Re: 8. Review something set in your favorite time period.

Re: 11. Review a piece that demonstrated excellent characterization.

Re: 10. Review a piece that you think handled canon in an unusual or thought-provoking way.

Re: 3. Review a piece of writing or art from a time period you do not normally read/view.

no subject