Welcome back to The Monthly Gemstone Awards -- but, this time, short story edition! 

Hold up. Stop right there. Before you roll your eyes and exit this story just because you have no intention of writing something new while you have a big ongoing project, think about it. Think about it really hard. 

Writing short stories is really underrated. When you write a short story, you get the chance to structure a story -- beginning, middle, end. You get to make a reader fall in love with your characters in only a few words. You get to come up with twists that will have your readers on the edges of their seats. 

Best of all, it's practice. You get to write and receive feedback for a completed piece without spending months (or years) planning it.

It's quick, it's fast, but it also takes skill. Better yet, with these awards, you are almost guaranteed feedback; you may be told your grammar/punctuation is lacking. You may be told that you tell more often than you show, or that your setting isn't established very clearly. 

And that sort of advice is something that you can carry with you into your longer projects. 

Now, before we jump into the train-wreck that is the tag-fest, a few quick things:

First of all, rather than being annual or bi-annual, we are aiming to make this monthly. That means that, overall, the awards will be rather quick, but we will still do our very best to ensure that it is fair.

Secondly, you will not be entering stories you have already written. There will be prompts provided each month, and you must write something for that prompt. 

Thirdly, there will be a deadline for entries. There is no cut-off number. There might be a total of 2 entries, or there might be a total of 100 entries. As long as your story makes it before the cut-off, it will be accepted.

Of course, more will be explained in later chapters.

For now, we want you to know that these awards should be enjoyable and constructive. We hope you have a great time!

These awards are hosted by ray_of_sunshine9  - so if you have any questions, I'm happy to hear them! I also run this account, so you can send any questions or concerns to this account or my private account.

And, finally, a MASSIVE shout-out to the fabulous LateNightDelights for making this beautiful cover! 

Now, for the first time ever, I am doing a tag fest. Why didn't I do it before? 

Simple: tag fests give me the heebie-jeebies. I have no idea why. Just... every time I see a tag fest, a small part of me shrivels up and I just cannot explain or justify it. 

That being said, a few people suggested a tag fest, and I always listen to what my beautiful participants have to say. However, to make it less heebie-jeebie-esque for me, I'm going to turn it into a game!

Basically, I'm going to list a bunch of little tag-prompts. Tag the first person you think about! At the bottom, there will be a part where you tag as many people as possible -- and, at the end of the year, we'll see which incredible person has tagged the most people.

Remember, do not get offended if you are tagged in anything. This is all for fun and games. Take it with a smile, and if you have any concerns, don't hesitate to contact me. I also recommend in-line comments/tags, so the person knows what you have tagged them in. 

Without any further ado, let the tag fest begin! 

- Tag the person who is most likely to forget their own birthday!

- Tag the person who you think is terrible at saving money!

- Tag the person who is most likely to join a circus!

- Tag a person who you think has read the most books!

- Tag a person who would love to live in a zoo! 

- Tag a person who would laugh at the most inappropriate time!

- Tag a person who never cries!

- Tag a person who will probably change the world! 

- Tag the kindest person you know!

- Tag the person who is most likely to be a millionaire! (Or writes stories about millionaires!) 

- Tag someone from a country you would love to visit!

- Tag someone whose books you would buy in bookstores!

- Tag someone who should be a stand-up comedian! 

- Tag someone who would not survive a zombie apocalypse!

- Tag someone who would survive a zombie apocalypse!

- Tag someone who wrote about a zombie apocalypse!

- Tag your favourite fantasy author!

- Tag your favourite romance author!

- Tag your favourite mystery/thriller author! 

- Tag your favourite historical fiction author! 

- Tag your favourite fanfiction author!

- Tag your favourite readers/fans!

- Tag your favourite reviewer!

- Tag your favourite editor!

- Tag your favourite graphic designer!

- Tag someone who always tags you in stories! 

- Tag your favourite people on Wattpad! 

- And, finally, tag someone who writes phenomenal short stories! 

- Tag as many people as possible now! (Current record: imtheoddgirl who has tagged 26 people)