Number 2 is a question I’ve had myself. I did some sample calculations a few days ago, using visual inspection to approximate values for the new reward curve and the median payout from these two graphs:

SBI party at my place!

!!! Poor kids. But suddenly the photo of the tarp made sense. Very well foreshadowed - I had a bad feeling starting back with them coming in through a side entrance.

It's funny to have lived long enough to see people using computers to lock and unlock their homes.

This makes me want to start giving more dramatic descriptions of time. Instead of telling someone to meet at 8 for drinks, they should wait for me at dusk, after the fireflies appear but before the

What a sweet, perfectly told story of that moment and a great use of all the sights and sounds of a fun fair as metaphor. As soon as we got a description of Carl's freckles I knew John was in looove and

I love this one. It has such a fantastic slow burn reveal of the full picture and a great use of humor.

I'm glad Giselle got the push she needed to fight back. An exciting story!

This left me wanting more! I want to visit the complex octopus buildings. Loved the contrast of getting her point of view of us land-dwelling bipeds.

At first I worried about the exposition-heaviness but after a couple of paragraphs I got into the rhythm and ended up really appreciating the dry, matter-of-fact trashonaut's voice introducing this

Your story is filled with such great details, like the soil as currency and the interactions between the shopkeeper and the boys. They give a good picture of life in this alternate (I hope) future outside

Maybe it's fitting since you claim not to be a poet, but I really like this as someone who has a limited appreciation for poetry. It does a great job of painting a picture of the ocean as a lifeless desert.

Innnteresting. I really like this voting/rewards model and am eager to see how it plays out. Almost makes me wish I was more interested in video in general.

Oh no, I won and it was the week I missed voting on a favorite story. Sorry to be so rubbish but thank you! I'll try and put those SBI to good use. Certainly not put their power towards world domination...

Thanks so much. That's someplace where the word limit really helped keep things simple but mysterious enough.

Thank you. You always write the most beautiful takes on everyone's stories. They're one of the real prizes of participating :)

Thanks. I did some of the contests a while back but took along break. They're incredibly fun though, so I hope to keep up with it.

Thank you! I rarely play around with time in stories but I should do it more. A lot of the participants in FtS are very inspiring that way.

That's funny, it made me think of the Dubliners too at one point - I think the combo of snow falling and a reminder that we're all going to die someday will invariably do that. It was a great story start

Thanks so much to you!