Katie: When I started to write this blog post, I sat staring at an entirely blank Word document for a long time. How should I begin to express how gratified and impressed I am by the submissions we received for the When Love Was New contest? Would it be trite to begin with something witty? Should I just immediately begin to gush over the calibre and quality of stories the contest garnered?

I have to admit when the contest opened I was wracked with nerves. Ever throw a party and obsess till the last possible minute that no one will show up? If so you’ll understand the level of self-doubt I had. It turns out I needn’t have worried, because we ended up with thirty stories submitted by wonderful, thoughtful authors (I have to keep reminding myself not to refer to all our authors as women, as we received a collaboration that included a male author). The stories spanned a wide variety of premises: tales of gentle, sweetly blossoming love; heartbreaking epiphanies when the object of affection seemed out of reach; fantastic worlds where the impossible was plausible; the impact of an imprint; and the rewards and challenges of loving someone with special needs.

We were also impressed with the imaginative pairings covered throughout the contest. From canon to non-canon to slash, the authors explored diverse avenues to illustrate the effect love has in a life. As a result of this contest I’ve read pairings I would otherwise have clicked past, and what’s more, I enjoyed the hell out of them.

I am thrilled and humbled by the authors who “showed up for the party”, from well-known, respected authors, to those who published their first fanfic ever. To everyone who sent us a story, thank you so much for supporting the contest. We are grateful for every submission. Thank you to the readers who read and reviewed the submissions and supported the authors in their pursuits.

The quality of the stories submitted blew us away. The judging was broken down into two categories: “Ability to convey the love realization through thoughts, words and actions”, weighted from 0-5; and “Overall plot and characterizations”, also from 0-5; for a total of ten possible points. Shannon, statistician extraordinaire, provided us some stats once the judging was completed. Eight of us judged the stories; 12 out of the 30 stories received an average rating of 8/10 or higher. A total of 41 “perfect scores” were given, between the eight judges. Speaking for myself, in the comments section of my judging spreadsheet, there are at least five entries containing the comment “This is my new favourite,” or “No, this is my new favourite.” Thank goodness it wasn’t all up to me to choose – it would have been impossible!

A huge, huge thanks to the women who agreed to volunteer their time as judges: Diane, RedVelvetHeaven, Betsy, DA, and Bethie. We asked you to judge because we have come to respect your opinions and insights. This involved a significant time commitment, and you totally came through for us. Thank you so much.

Shannon’s real-life job as a statistician made her uniquely qualified to create a fabulous spreadsheet for each judge/host as well as one for validating the submissions. Working her particular brand of magic, she kept things organized and made score calculation much easier. The banners that are featured in this post and the ones that will be created for the winners, are the creations of Val, whose work graces so many avatars and banners throughout the fandom that it has become instantly recognizable for her amazing use of light and colour.

Our original intention was to give one “Best Overall” award, along with one “Best Canon-Pairing” and one “Best Non-Canon Pairing” awards. The result of having so many highly-rated stories was that we could not award only one story the “Best Overall” award – we had a tie for the highest score, and so we have two stories taking the title of “Best Overall”. All things considered, I wish all the dilemmas in my life resulted from such a happy situation as this. Each of us has also chosen a story to receive an Honourable Mention from among those who did not come in the top four.

Shannon: Katie used a lot of my statistical geekiness already, but I thought I would add that the one thing that most pleasantly surprised me is that out of 30 entries, only 17 featured Edward paired with Bella. I love that authors are reaching further than this main pairing. I know as readers we often want to stick with what we know and like, but this contest drives home the point that a good story is good no matter WHO is paired. There were several entries featuring pairings I’d never normally click on in a dive, but that I absolutely loved and look forward to what else these authors will write.

I must also note that when deciding on judges, we had two main criteria: they needed to be open to all pairings and they needed to be impartial. I can’t say enough how amazed I was with both the speed and the fairness of our judges. In the end when all of the scores were combined we realized we picked quite a diverse group of women. Therefore, be assured of one thing, the winners of this contest pleased a wide variety of tastes and opinions. They will not disappoint. Thank you to the judges for the time and effort you gave to this contest.

The last point I would like to bring up is that when trying to find something different for this contest, we decided to restrict the use of lemons. To be honest with you, I wasn’t sure how this was going to turn out, what type of entries we were going to get. I think this contest drives home the point home that to have a great story, you don’t need a lemon. In fact I would hold several of our entries up among the very best one shots I’ve read and the steamiest any of them got was either a casual mention of sexual activity or some hot dry humping friction. This contest sets a strong example showing stories are not fantastic because they have lemons, they are fantastic because they are well written. My point being, don’t be afraid to click on a T or K+ rating, because some of my favorites in this contest were in those categories. You may be thrilled with what you find, which is a story that will engage you emotionally and speak to your heart. After all, isn’t that why so many of us love Twilight? It spoke to our most basic desire of wanting to love and be loved.

Thank you to all of the authors who entered, I truly look forward to the stories you produce in the future. I love that many of you reached beyond what your normally write and how some of you took risks with pairings and/or unhappily ever afters. I have been introduced to many authors I had not read before as well as pairings I never would have clicked on. It has been my honor to read your work.

~*~

So, without further delay, it is our pleasure to announce the winners of When Love Was New:

Summary: Working as a grounds keeper at a posh lakeside resort, Jacob is used to being unseen by the elite. But when Jasper arrives, Jacob is now an object of interest and soon discovers he has the power to strip him of all pretenses. Will their hearts survive?

Katie: It is a tremendous pleasure for me, as a slash writer, to be able to say that this wonderfully-written slash piece is winning in an “overall” category. I’ve more or less accepted that, when all other things are equal, slash fics simply don’t win out over canon pairings. I am happy to be proven wrong. I admire the bravery that collaborating authors PolkaDotMama and nat3200 showed in their choices when writing this fic. They seem almost to have made a conscious effort to avoid the obvious or predictable, yet remained well within the realm of enjoyable and plausible. They crafted a story that is lush with detail, vividly describing the elements such that I could clearly visualize them in my mind’s eye; and I thank them especially for the visual of Jasper’s red underpants.

Betsy: This story starts out with Jacob, a simple guy from the reservation who works in a ritzy resort and is incredibly lonely. Then he meets Jasper, a rich and sexy guest. Their relationship evolves as they let go of stereotypes and just enjoy each other. Neither of them expected their feelings to run so deep. The authors do a fantastic job of making us understand why these two need each other and what each of them brings to the relationship that the other needs. It’s tender and sweet and heart-wrenching.

Red: This was one of my absolute favorite reads of this contest. It was so unexpectedly beautiful. I never wanted it to end. This was such a natural progression of feelings, although unexpected by Jacob or Jasper. The realization of their love was so painfully beautiful and heart wrenching at the same time. The different worlds they each came from were always bound to keep them apart, but this author created hope and makes you yearn for them to find a way. I plan to find these writers and commence with a begging campaign for more from these two.

Shannon: I’ll admit when I first saw this pairing, I bristled. Jasper and Jacob? Really? What I found as I read on was a very beautifully written and heartwrenching story of two men from the opposite sides of the tracks who find something in each other they have been missing for so long. I loved the details and emotions the authors gave for the story, you truly felt like you were there. The characterizations were strong and the story was endearing. I also love that these authors took a risk, not only with the pairing (which is unusual even in slash), but with the ending as well. This is a risk that obviously paid off because our judges were unilaterally in love with this story. I am glad to have found these two authors and look forward to what they will do next, both individually as well as together.

Summary: Then he raised one eyebrow, shook his head, and sighed sympathetically, “Cockblocker Swan strikes again.”

Katie: Another collaboration, this time between EZRocksAngel and Angstgoddess003. Edward suffers from an unrequited crush; that is to say, he suffers as a result of the crush Bella has on him. Her overreaching attentiveness often embarrasses and distresses him, despite his many attempts to show her he’s not interested. How they go from this, to a very satisfying ending, is a journey you should not miss.

Betsy: Edward works with Bella and is put off with her infatuation of him and her constant advances. As his character grows with his irritation, her character grows with her strength. Edward begins to see Bella in a different light and the transformation is highly entertaining. What I loved most about this were the early descriptions of his feelings toward her. I think all of us can identify with one side or the other and the authors do a great job of portraying how each of them felt and what drove them.

Red: I love, love, loved this story! At first I was troubled by Edward’s honest and completely understandable annoyance of Bella and her long time crush on him. Although he was never really mean to her, he definitely let it be known he was not interested. I felt so bad for Bella at first, but as the summer went on…and she grew a back bone, you could not help but be proud of her. Edward’s realization seemed very natural and Bella’s initial reaction was perfect! I will never look at the Statue of Liberty the same again! *snicker* This was an amazingly well told story of old expectations and realizations.

Shannon: Another fantastic story. I love how this story started out with Edward being completely annoyed with Bella, and quite frankly we can all understand why. I think each of us have been in one of these two situations – madly in love with the boy you think you can never have or annoyed from the attention of someone we have no interest in. The stories of “Cockblocker Swan” will make you giggle, but you can feel for the poor girl’s plight. I loved how you saw Bella grow throughout the summer, but in the end it was Edward who grew the most. He finally understood one of the most difficult lessons to learn – that sometimes the people we love don’t come in the prettiest packages and can be annoying at times, but if we take the time to truly get to know someone, we maybe very pleasantly surprised at who we see staring back at us. I also very much enjoyed the first pairing from these authors and hope that it wont be the last. I could see each of their contributions to the fic showed the strengths of both authors and how well their two styles could combine.

Summary: Seth’s world is peaceful until his childhood hero and idol Edward Masen returns to town after being gone for 10 years, throwing Seth’s world off balance and spinning in a new direction.

Katie: How fitting that the first slash author many of us read in the Twific fandom, has won the award for Best Non-Canon. Manyafandom’s offering is a unique Edward/Seth pairing, which I particularly appreciate because Seth is one of my favourite peripherals in the Twilight series. As a youngster, Seth had a bit of a hero-worship thing going on for the older Edward. After a decade or so away, Edward returns. They’re both adults now and, from a place of more equal footing, real friendship blossoms.

Betsy: I was literally on the edge of my seat in anticipation of these two characters realizing their feelings for each other. They were so endearing and adorable and I yearned for their happiness. The author did a great job sucking me into the plot and keeping me there until the very end. I couldn’t stop reading.

Red: Before this story I had never read a pairing like this and was not sure how it would play out for me. Manyafandom did an amazing job with these two and I feel she captured so much of the canon camaraderie between them too. She did an incredible job of evolving and unfolding their feelings. Kudos to her for taking such a non-canon, unexpected couple and totally making it work without it seeming forced or contrived.

Shannon: Seth is my favorite Twilight “B-lister”. I think in the canon he was fun and open-hearted. He had such a strong and lovable character. I absolutely love what manyafandom did with him in this fic. She aged him into adulthood, but in the process she kept his charm and charisma. It was this fantastic characterization that made me fall madly in love with this fic. All of the moments between Edward and Seth you are looking to see if Edward feels any small bit of the spark that Seth does. Every caress of the hand, every wayward glance, or flimsy excuse for getting back together made your heart leap a bit hoping that Seth was going to find his mate in the end. I have read virtually everything that manyafandom has ever written and I have to say this is easily my favorite. In her author’s note, she also stated that she will be continuing this story, for how long, I don’t know, but I look forward to seeing more from these two wonderful men.

Summary: Bella realizes, when she’s seventeen, that she’s in love with her best friend.

Katie: This was the very first entry we received for the contest, and Ooohlalaaa certainly set the bar high. When writing this post I went back to refresh my memory on the finer points and ended up rereading the entire thing. The story begins, not at seventeen, but at seven; and the first person narration by the young Bella reflects her tender age and understanding. As the story progresses and events in their lives shape their relationship, the narration matures with Bella.

Betsy: This is an endearing progression through the lives of Edward and Bella, who have been friends since they were children. The use of age appropriate language is excellent and we truly see how each character grows in themselves and with each other. Throughout the story, they are presented with different challenges and feelings as they mature. Very sweet.

Red: This story is an amazingly well done journey through Bella and Edward’s childhood up through high school. As friends/neighbors their lives are intertwined, but it’s not contrived or forced, it’s a very natural friendship that evolves as they grow up. Oohlalaaah does a beautiful job of showing their age progression as well as their emotional progression. It is honestly some of the very best writing I have ever read from oohlalaaah. You will laugh, cry, scream, squee, and possibly want to slap someone…but ultimately you just want to jump up and down and cheer these two on! In my opinion, this was the most beautifully written entry in the contest.

Shannon: As Katie had said, this was our very first entry, and while reading it I remember thinking “wow, if any other entries we get are even half this good, we are in for a great ride”. It was immensely difficult not to immediately leave a review that showed my fangirl love (it is coming, I promise). I loved how ooohlalaaa followed these two over time and you watched how their loved changed over the years. I also think oohlalaah did an outstanding job with changing Bella’s inner voice as she aged – I think that takes quite a bit of thought and effort from an author to do. I’ve also added this fic to my list of “things you have to read when starting out in Twilight fanfiction” because I think as a gateway fic it is a perfect blend of great writing, strong characterizations and good plot.

~*~

We each chose one story that we really, really wanted to win an award, to receive special mention; and for some of us, it turned out to be the same story someone else wanted. What can we say? Great minds, and all that. That isn’t to say that there weren’t fics that we all loved that we didn’t mention, but this was each of our “first pick that didn’t win”. Believe us when we say that there were many fics that we wished we could mention, but in the end we just had each judge pick one. The Fictionators blog will be highlighting some of the other fics that we loved in the weeks to come, so stay tuned!

Katie: What stood out for me when reading this was how natural it seemed; nothing was forced, nothing was contrived. The events that led to the natural decision to room together, their banter, the gentle teasing that comes with having gotten to know someone well over many years, it all seemed very authentic. And very natural that Bella would have a bit of a freak-out moment when her platonic BFF starts to lean in for a kiss. It was also abundantly clear to me that the author has been through a winter weather-related power outage – it was, unfortunately, very relatable for me. LOL All in all, just a really lovely canon-pairing story; one of my favourites from the contest.

Betsy: This is a very endearing story about two friends who discover they have feelings for each other while stuck together during a storm. The characters are loveable and struggle with their feelings as they make the transition from friends to lovers. They gradually notice things about the other that lures them in. Very well written and left me wanting more.

Red: This absolutely adorable story truly defined this contest for me. I am really just a wimp at the core and ultimately I’m just a big a romantic sap. This story is pure fluffy goodness and made my day when I read it! Edward and Bella are lifelong best friends that, due to a snow storm that basically shuts down the city, are forced to completely focus on and rely on each other for entertainment and warmth. The close proximity as well as the lack of distractions causes them to begin to see each other in a new light. This transformation of their feelings as well as their final realizations of love came so naturally. It was not forced, simplified, or overdone…it was perfect. I hope everyone takes a moment to read this lovely story.

Bethie: This story once again proves why you should never stop a story if you run into a premise that makes you go, “Wha?” The story begins with normal teenage boy Edward, who has been monitoring a nighttime visitor to the swingset in his backyard. He watches her from afar, until one night she changes her pattern, and he fears something is wrong. When he approaches his visitor, he realizes who it is. It is Bella Swan, who happens to be mentally challenged (My only issue with this story is the author’s use of the word “retard”). Edward helps Bella home, and begins a friendship with her. Turns out that Bella had raucous early teenage years that resulted in a car crash that left her brain damaged and a case of Dementia.

This is a lovely story about befriending and eventually coming to love someone who most people wouldn’t take the time to even notice. It warmed my heart to see Edward forsake some “normal” teenage activities to accept Bella for who she is now, and choose to be a friend to her despite social standards of a teenage world. He was even able, in one of her lucid moments during a meadow picnic, to give Bella her first kiss. Alas, she does suffer from an illness that does finally claim her mind. Edward is left unrecognized by his friend that he realizes he has come to love.

Diane: I’m a sap for fundamentals so this story had me from the first paragraph. The author opens with a lovely quote about the quiet miracle of finding love in someone you’ve known your entire life, a sly reminder of the canon elements in Claire and Quil’s relationship. She follows this with a textbook introductory paragraph: broad statements narrowing to a topic sentence that made me want to know more. In one paragraph, sunnyzim made her submission relevant and engaging to me, despite my tendency to avoid this pairing altogether.

The author counters many of the objections to imprinting stories by her thoughtful characterizations. Although Destiny is discussed throughout as a driving force that will ultimately see these two together, Claire retains her self-will through Quil’s refusal to reveal his imprinting. He insists that he wants Claire to choose, not feel compelled, to be with him. Quil is portrayed here as Claire’s constant, her most loyal friend and staunchest supporter, yet always maintaining an arm’s distance to keep their friendship pure. Claire is given the leeway to develop into an educated woman before she becomes aware of her feelings for Quil, and vice versa.

I loved the storyteller narrative. It felt as though the author and I were discussing a mutual friend or relative over coffee. Overall, I thought this was a well-crafted, well-rounded story that convinced me to revisit my reluctance to read certain types of fic.

Shannon: I’d be lying if I said that the Quil/Claire relationship in the books didn’t skeeve me out a bit. Well, a lot. I’m a parent after all and the idea of some teenage boy hanging out with my 2 year old sets off every red flag warning signal in my head. However, I have to say that this author took something that I once questioned S. Meyer’s sanity over and showed me HOW it could possibly work and be an absolutely beautiful story of love. This is perhaps one of the highest compliments I can give an author, because if they can break through something I found objectionable and make me love it, it speaks to their impressive writing ability.

I loved how Quil gave Claire the time and space she needed to come to whatever conclusion about their relationship she wanted. I knew as a reader that his love was deep and never ending, but Claire had to learn that on her own. Quil was written so well that my heart ached for him letting his soul mate find her own path, being there to support her through dating other men, and letting her spread her wings in order to attend college. This fic taught me a very valuable lesson, don’t judge a story by its character pairing or subject matter, because you have no idea what you are missing on by summarily dismissing everything you think you wont like. I highly encourage you to read this fic and enjoy the journey.

Val: “One year, six months and twenty-two days ago…”

Honestly, I am not sure what it was about this story that just grabbed my heartstrings in its sweet, sugary grasp and would not go. I love the repetitive nature of the first paragraph, repeating the extact time that had passed since Edward had met Bella is just one example of his utter devotion to her-to know the extact date when they first laid eyes on each other.

The author manages to give a wonderful, and complete, backstory in just a few paragraphs, something I very much admire. Her use of Alice was perfect, not only in relation to Edward, but to Bella and Jasper as well. I have found some stories can write Alice a wee bit annoying, but here, she was likable, relatable and encouraging in Edward’s and Bella’s possible relationship. The pace at which Edward and Bella develop their friendship is perfect, not too fast, but not too slow. Edward is an overworked doctor who stops by his sister’s and Bella’s bakery at odd hours and begins to bond with Bella over cupcakes and cookies. For hours, they sit and talk about everything; fears, childhoods, friends, careers, and family. For Edward, this bond grows over time, and he eventually finds himself falling in love with Bella, and while he realizes it, he is unsure what exactly to do about it.

Deciding he didn’t want to waste a chance at love, Edward devises a plan to let Bella know his feelings…but will she return them?

This story was sweet, loving, well written, and the end was just perfect. One week, and three days ago, I read this story and fell in love…

DA: This story has so many of the elements that I like. Not the least of which are a witty, lightly sarcastic Edward and a cocky, confident Jasper. The author conveys the first stirrings of love perfectly as self-assured Edward gets thrown off balance by Jasper being so much deeper and more interesting than he had assumed. And to his increasing pleasure and fascination, finds that inside a perfect body lies an even more perfect man. Edward’s decision to get to know a guy before jumping into bed with him serves him well as he discovers all the little things that make Jasper exactly right for him. I love seeing Edward discombobulated!

And at the last moment, once Edward realizes that he may have finally found his soul mate, I thought it was very touching how Jasper responded to his proposition in almost a whisper, as if it was too much to hope for. I’m a sucker for blooming romance.

I truly enjoyed reading this. That may have, in part, been because I’d just read several difficult stories where new love wasn’t a joy but instead brought pain and misery. So I may have been feeling a little emo. The lighthearted, flirtatious nature of this story brought me out of my sulky emo funk, a difficult accomplishment on any day!

~*~

As previously mentioned, the authors of the four winning stories will each receive a custom-made banner for any one of their fics, of their choosing; made by the lovely and talented Val. As the prize for overall winner was also to include a 5,000-word oneshot written by Katie, this will be awarded to each of the stories (note, I say each of the stories, not each of the authors, LOL; both of the overall winners were collaborations!), using prompts provided by the winning authors. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU.

Lastly, many thanks to The Fictionators for allowing us this forum in which to announce the winners!

Much love,
Shannon, Val and Katie