Change in Challenge Submission Rules: As of April 4, 2019

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Change in Challenge Submission Rules: As of April 4, 2019

Post by itsjoanne »

"I could write a fantasy piece with a lion and a witch and no mention of God, and yet be firmly Christian" C.S. Lewis

About a year ago, we made a change to the Challenge submission rules after some had expressed concerns about the direction of the entries. The concern was that the entries were gradually drifting further away from FaithWriters' mission to improve Christian writers and put out good Christian writing. We agreed and made the change that has been effect for the last year. This made some happy, and some not so happy.

Recently, we have talked to several members who approached us with knowledge of the change. We discovered that it was not necessarily the submission guidelines that they viewed as an issue. Their concern was that the guideline that entries come from a Christian worldview was not always being upheld, especially for winning entries. All agreed, from both sides of this matter, that they want to put forth writing that honors God.

Therefore, we have decided to adjust the guidelines a bit back toward our original position, while asking the judges to pay closer attention to the worldview issue. We have asked the judges to keep in mind our desire to promote Christian authors and Christian writing. We believe it is important that especially those entries selected as winners in the Challenge should not only offer great writing, but also be from a Christian worldview. Our goal in doing this is to continue to produce great articles from a Christian worldview while encouraging more members to start entering again. FaithWriters is obviously a Christian writers' website, and we trust that our members as a whole desire to honor God with their writing. In my opinion, members are writing for God and not FaithWriters.

The new submission guidelines are somewhere in the middle of where they were from the beginning of the Challenge and where they have been this last year. These new guidelines will commence in the second quarter of this year, which starts April 4, 2019. We appreciate your support.

The guidelines will state:

Entries may be in any style or genre, and they do not need to be overtly Christian in message. However, they must, at minimum, come from a Christian worldview/outlook. The entry may be directed to readers in general, the Christian reader, or may be evangelistic in nature. Entries can also be simply clean, fun and humorous from a Christian point of view, Christian Soup for the Soul style, provided they fit the topic. In the case of fiction, the Christian worldview/outlook may be subtle or allegorical, but it should still offer a fairly clear Christian viewpoint. While it is not required, adding a scripture verse is always encouraged to clarify the message. Entries that are clearly outside of a Christian worldview will remain on the list, but will be not eligible for judging. Entries with offensive language or content, that are overly violent or sensual, and/or are deemed inappropriate for Christian readers, will be removed, even if these elements are used in the portrayal of a non-Christian character.

Go HERE for a definition of a Christian worldview.

Thank you to all of those members who helped in this matter.

We are the body of Christ, not perfect in the flesh, but always loving each other and working together.
Blessings, Michael
Joanne Sher
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