News

Email Problems

I wanted to keep all authors in the loop regarding a problem the mods are having when sending emails after a rejection or validation.

We have discovered that although we are filling out the email forms and submitting them to the authors, they are not all making it to their destination. In order to attempt to fix the problem, we are - beginning tomorrow March 4th - going to be keeping track of rejection letters we send out. This way if an email does not make it to an author, we can pull up the document with what we had stated in the message and communicate it to those questioning our rejections.

As far as validated chapters, all I can recommend is to keep an eye on your account and watch from there.

Please remember to contact the moderator in charge of each category when you have issues with rejections. The names and categories are listed on the staff page to your left.

We thank you in advance for your continued patience and welcome any questions in the space below.

Admin

As the queue grows larger, the number of staff members must grow as well! We're looking for new additions to our mod family!



For the next two weeks, we will receive any and all applications to fill several open moderator positions. Before applying, please be aware that being a moderator at Mugglenet Fan Fiction requires a lot of time and a lot of dedication. Please do not apply if you do not feel that you are able to handle the job.



As a moderator, you would be required to fulfill the following duties:

- Moderate a certain number of stories every week.

- Participate in important decision-making discussions regarding the site.

- Participate in periodic moderator meetings via AOL Instant Messenger.

- Answer any questions Mugglenet Fan Fiction members may have.

- Tend to the Beta Forums.



There are several characteristics we look for in our moderators, such as:

- Leadership

- Motivation to help others

- Courtesy toward others

- Respect



We also only hire moderators who display strong reading and writing skills. All applicants must have an AOL Instant Messenger screenname as well as a Livejournal as these are the two tools moderators use to communicate to one other. Applicants should also have or should be willing to create an account at the Beta Forums. All applicants must be at least 13 years of age.



Please fill out the following form when applying:




Screenname/Name:

How long have you been part of MNFF?

Stories on MNFF:

Strengths:

Weaknesses:

Qualifications: (Beta work, PI accreditation, real life qualifications)

Possible Problems: (Anything you see that may hinder your ability to mod. Please be honest)

Why you want to mod:

Names of people who will be recommending you:



You will also be required to include three recommendations. At least one of these recommendations must be from another member of Mugglenet Fan Fiction. Remember that the best recommendations are ones that are objective and highlight both strengths and weaknesses. Many members are willing to give constructive recommendations, including some moderators. Please though, respect the availability of mods and members when asking for recommendations.





Applications and recommendations should be sent to mnffstaff2@hotmail.com, NOT the staff email. ALL recommendations should be sent directly to this email, not through the applicant. Please be sure that the recommendations are clearly marked, with the subject line reading 'Mod Recommendation for (username).' Once your complete application has been received (including the necessary recommendations), you will receive a confirmation email. Applications will be open until December 25th. Good luck!

Through the Keyhole – A Charity Anthology from the authors of Mugglenet Fanfiction

Harry Potter has always inspired charity work, whether that is through the HPA, charity events or JK Rowling herself.

This year, Mugglenet Fanfiction has been working on a very special project. We asked our authors to write their own original stories and poems to create an anthology that we’ve called “Through the Keyhole.” This anthology is now on sale and can be bought as both a paperback and a download through Lulu.com.

We wrote the book to support a charity by the name of Room to Read. This charity builds schools and libraries in countries around the world where education was previously inaccessible. They have already distributed over seven million books and helped over four million children learn to read.

Obviously, the ability to read and write is what has brought Mugglenet Fanfiction together as a community and we couldn’t think of a better charity to support.

Each sale of the book will give around £3 (just under $5) to Room to Read. This is the total profit from each book sale as the rest of the price goes on production costs.

We hope that you’ll all join us in thanking the authors whose work has been published in helping us raise money for this fantastic charity, and hope you enjoy the work yourself.

Take a look by following the link: click me!

The 2010 Quicksilver Quills Results

Happy Halloween to everyone on MNFF! We hope you're having a good day, and that this news might make it even better. I am here to announce the winners of this year's QSQ awards. The decisions were made by teams of judges who read all the nominations and picked the stories they considered to be the highest quality. We've provided comments to give you an idea of why each fic/person won. Winners will receive award banners within the next few days.



The Winners




Best Beta Reader: Natalie/hestiajones



The care and attention to detail that Natalie clearly puts into her beta work really made her stand out among the other candidates. Not only did she correct errors, but she also took the time to explain the rule behind the mistake the author had made, so that they could actually learn from their mistakes and better understand where they went wrong. It is clear from her work that Natalie treats beta reading as an opportunity to improve writing in general, which is an amazing quality to have in a beta reader.



Best General: Fred and George's Busy Day by Northumbrian



Neil wrote this amazing piece with fabulous characterisation of our favourite Weasleys and gave an identity to some of those whose stories we didn't know, all melding together in a fantastic and very believable fiction. The story also gave us a good look at life in the DA underground. It has touching moments merged with Weasley wit and some stunning originality. It has action, drama, intrigue, and... romance? All in all, this fic is sparkling.



Best Dark/Angsty:Distantly by psijupiter



It is impossible to shake off that dark, tragic feeling that Psi wrote so well, no matter how many times you read the story. This is so different from any other Andromeda fics and it is just a stand out example of what makes a great D/A read. It is beautifully written with soft, poetic prose. The characterisation of the Andromeda is fantastic and the bleak reality of her life feels authentic. The dark quality to it is undeniable, but it's handled in a way that's incredibly poignant and touching. This is a definite gem of a fic.



Best Canon Romance:


- One-shot: What Would You Do? by ron lover



I loved this fic - it was an excellent example of canon romance and there was a good mix of fluff and tension. I loved the setting – these few months are the happiest of the Potters’ lives and that really comes across, even with the tension present. There were so many little touches that made this fic – Harry and his love of red hair, the ways he takes after James- they’re all believable and fit beautifully into canon. All the characters – major and minor, were well done. This story was just a great read.



- Chaptered: Trickster by Willow Rosenberg



This was a very fun read. I've never been so entranced in a story. It hit every mark that could be expected and more. The way Lily and James were characterized is phenomenal. I was completely engrossed in their relationship; giggling when they were getting on well, sighing/annoyed when they were annoyed. The supporting characters were wonderfully entertaining and amusing and there were several plots running alongside the romance.



Best Artist: Dinny/Evora



Dinny's art is incredible. Each of her characters actually is a character, and always recognisable. The level of detail when she draws scenes is astounding. She always takes the light source into account and shows a clear understanding of how light works. Although she mostly draws with pencil, her work always looks clean and polished, and never like she just sketched something and left it at that. Dinny is still somewhat new in Dean's Corner, but she has already impressed a lot of people with her absolutely fantastic talent and dedication.



Best Marauder: Veils by Equinox Chick



Petunia is so often portrayed as such a horrible person because of what little we know from pre-Harry days and then we only see her through Harry's eyes. The little bits of sisterly bonding and love are not overplayed and hints at the close relationship the sisters had when they were younger. A bit of humour runs through the story and you know something is going to happen, but you just aren't sure what. It is a well-written story from beginning to end and leaves you with another prospective on Petunia. Characterisation is what made this fic truly sparkle. Not once do you feel like a character didn't sit right or sound right. From the relative nonentity of the bride's and groom's parents to the ones we know, such as the 'happy' couple, Marge, and the wedding crashers.



Best Same Sex Pairing: The Dance We Do by Equinox Chick



This story featured a femmeslash pairing that was not only freshly original with Bella/Amelia, but stayed in character, had the right amount of sexual tension, and stayed realistic to canon. It was engaging, and overall the simple complexity of Bella and Amelia's relationship throughout the story was rather clever.



Best Non-Canon Romance:

- One-shot: Waking by the opaleye.



This story is compelling, interesting and believable. I loved everything about this fic. The writing was powerful and really drew the reader in. I think perhaps the thing I liked most about this was that the relationship felt real and natural. It was excellently written and I liked the structure. The emotions felt so raw and so real. It’s the perfect non-canon romance in all respects.



- Chaptered: Lavender, blue - A Gryffindor true by Equinox Chick



The fic was wonderfully written and engaging throughout. The most powerful element in this story for me was the way it wove seamlessly into the canon events in book seven. Everyone's characterization is top notch, and the story not only has the believable, non-canon romance, it has the full plot and full appearance of the other characters as well. All the minor characters were well-characterised and I felt they were given as much attention as the main ones. Definitely worthy of a QSQ



Best Historical: A Prize Above Rubies by Equinox Chick



When reading it, I got the atmosphere of the story immediately – and yet the characters didn’t take a back seat to the setting as so often happens in Historical stories. There was a plot, and there were subtleties of familial ties that were established throughout the story, but the feel of the times was brought about so wonderfully through the narration and dialogue! I think Rubies serves as an example of how to write a historical story and make it seem authentic without laboring to set up the entire atmosphere at the beginning of the story.



Best Next Generation: Our Little Secret by Kerichi



It has a strong plot with a steady flow. I like how it gets straight into the action from the very beginning. What I like the most about this story is the characterisation - each character is his or her own. There is just enough of their parents in them to make you happy, but they are their own people. It's an original concept of getting the two together, and I like that the fic is not just focused on the romance. Rose and Scorpius' relationship develops quite well. It's quick enough to keep the story moving, but paced enough to make it seem natural.



Best Reviewer: Amanda/Ahattab33



Amanda is a really great reviewer, very enthusiastic, and always makes authors feel good about what they've written. She has a great way of stating concrit clearly without being harsh or sugar-coating - she just gives her honest opinion in a polite way. She covers fics in a lot of depth, going into several elements and really explaining what, and why she enjoyed. Her reviews have a great tone and any author would squee with joy to at receiving one.



Best Post Hogwarts: Memento Mori by Liandrin



This was truly a unique little one-shot. I particularly loved the dialogue, and even more so the subtle way the author interweaves character through the description of what they are doing while they are talking. The writing was just beautiful, but not flowery, and that can be a hard line to walk. The biggest strength was the characterization. Draco's characterization is just the highlight of this piece--wow! He was the proud and somewhat arrogant Draco we know, with that twinge of conscience and need to do what is right. I finished the story and really wanted to read more of it.



Best Other Character: Mark Moon in Moon by Northumbrian



Mark Moon is a wonderful character. He's well rounded, brilliantly described and by unlocking his and Lavender's past we get a cracking story. The description of Mark by the other OC Janey Scott is very well done. His character is well developed as well as interesting. He doesn't play a 'background' role in a story in which he should be the focus. The story is great and he fits right into it and the HP world. The choice to go from a one-shot to a full story was a good one in this case as it gave us a more complete picture of Mark.



Best Poetry: The Clarion Call by hestiajones



This poem was a clear winner. The connection to HP was very strong without being overbearing and taking away from the lyrical nature of the poetry. It shows the very real choice of not submitting to Voldemort's terror tactics. Natalie's work here is simply wonderful. There's just something special about this poem.



Best Humour: Aberforth Dumbledore: A Love that Dare not Bleat its Name by Equinox Chick



This story is not only amusing in the way in which it was written, but it gives a plausible explanation for Aberforth's goat incident. It had a sweet, storybookish style that was pleasing and seemed true to the age of the narrator. It stayed true to canon without sacrificing the characterization of those involved.



Best Alternative Universe:

- One-shot: The End of Fear by MagEd



This was a pretty perfect example of an AU fic - it totally recreated the world five times, and even though it included some common AU cliches, they honestly didn't feel cliche because the way they were written. Harry and Ginny always came across as themselves, even in the completely different AU situations. The scenarios were all believable and all the mentions of other characters fitted in well.



- Chaptered:
Accursed Miracle by MorganRay



The concept of this story, that someone can be brought back and their soul placed into a souless body has possibility. It pulls you in and the characterization is good. Even changing the one major canon fact, the dead stay dead, is acceptable as this is the major reason for it being AU. In an AU sense, we felt it was a really great example of the category. There were little details given about the world that really made it feel real and believable.

The 2010 Quicksilver Quills

Hello!



Today sees the opening of nominations for the 2010 Quicksilver Quill awards - an annual event held to celebrate the best work of our members.



To find out more, and nominate stories, please head over to the beta forum here (click me). You will need to register an account to nominate but registration is quick and easy so don't let that stop you.



We have made a few changes to the rules this year, so make sure you read them carefully before nominating. The QSQs are a great way to reward the hard-working people and excellent writers on the site and the more nominations we get the better so please head over there and nominate.



Thank you!

New Moderators

We've sifted through the applications and decided on our final four new moderators. Congratulations to Karaley Dargen, ProfPosky, Viv and jenny b! They'll make fantastic additions to the team, so look out for their names in your validation letters soon!
Thank you to everyone who applied. If you didn't make it through this time, don't worry. MNFF hires periodically so just get involved around the site and apply next time!

Now Hiring Moderators

As the queue grows larger, the number of staff members must grow as well! We're looking for new additions to our mod family! We are also looking for site coders.

For the next two weeks, we will receive any and all applications to fill several open moderator positions. Before applying, please be aware that being a moderator at Mugglenet Fan Fiction requires a lot of time and a lot of dedication. Please do not apply if you do not feel that you are able to handle the job.

As a moderator, you would be required to fulfill the following duties:
- Moderate a certain number of stories every week.
- Participate in important decision-making discussions regarding the site.
- Participate in periodic moderator meetings via AOL Instant Messenger.
- Answer any questions Mugglenet Fan Fiction members may have.
- Tend to the Beta Forums.

There are several characteristics we look for in our moderators, such as:
- Leadership
- Motivation to help others
- Courtesy toward others
- Respect

We also only hire moderators who display strong reading and writing skills. All applicants must have an AOL Instant Messenger screenname as well as a Livejournal as these are the two tools moderators use to communicate to one other. Applicants should also have or should be willing to create an account at the Beta Forums. All applicants must be at least 13 years of age.

Please fill out the following form when applying:

Screenname/Name:
How long have you been part of MNFF?
Stories on MNFF:
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Qualifications: (Beta work, PI accreditation, real life qualifications)
Possible Problems: (Anything you see that may hinder your ability to mod. Please be honest)
Why you want to mod:
Names of people who will be recommending you:

You will also be required to include three recommendations. At least one of these recommendations must be from another member of Mugglenet Fan Fiction. Remember that the best recommendations are ones that are objective and highlight both strengths and weaknesses. Many members are willing to give constructive recommendations, including some moderators. Please though, respect the availability of mods and members when asking for recommendations.

Site coders should submit the following form:

Screenname/Name:
How long have you been part of MNFF?
What coding languages do you know?
Qualifications: (Names of other sites you coded for, classes taken, etc)
Possible Problems (Please be honest):
Names of people who will be recommending you:
Site coder applicants are also required to send two recommendations and are recommended to send any/all samples of their work.

Applications and recommendations should be sent to [email]mnffstaff2@hotmail.com[/email], NOT the staff email. ALL recommendations should be sent directly to this email, not through the applicant. Please be sure that the recommendations are clearly marked, with the subject line reading 'Mod Recommendation for (username).' Or in the case of Site coders: ‘Coder Recommendation for (username). Once your complete application has been received (including the necessary recommendations), you will receive a confirmation email. Applications will be open until May 9th. Good luck!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please note the following:

Applications for moderators will be closing in a few hours.

However, we are extending the deadline to get your recommendations in for 72 hours. So, recommendations must be received by Wednesday, May 12th.

Thank you to all who applied. If you don't have your recommendations in, please get them in asap.


Applications and recommendations are now closed. Watch for an announcement soon of the new moderators. Thank you for your responses.

MNFF Technical Issues

Hello everyone,

I'd just like to apologise for the sheer amount of technical issues that are appearing all over the site. I know that they are very frustrating and confusing and that they continue to appear despite being reported to us several times.

We are still looking for a permanent coder to join our staff so if you or anyone you know has experience with various coding languages and database systems and would be willing to volunteer for our site, please get in touch to mnffstaff@hotmail.com .

Until a proper coder is found, we ask for your patience as we try to discover the cause of our problems and fix them.

To achieve this end, we will be updating the database to the latest version of eFiction in two weeks time. This shouldn't be disruptive as it is only a minor update but as usual we ask you to make sure you have saved all of your work to your own computers in case anything ever goes wrong.

Thank you for your continued loyalty and patience and I'm so sorry that these issues go on.

Poetry on MNFF

Our poetry category is a small but creative section of the archive here at MNFF. We're currently giving it a bit of a face lift, so if you like reading poetry, writing poetry or feel like you would like to get involved but aren't quite sure how to them please drop by the beta forums and say hello in Poetry Anyone?. There are some new challenges coming down the line and the opportunity to get involved with Room to Read so if you want to know more come and join us. Please drop me an email via my user id if you have any questions.

The Site Returns and with a New Category!

Welcome back everyone!

We're very sorry about the recent downtime. I hope you found our updates via facebook and twitter useful. Please note that these will be our main modes of contact if the site is down, so even if you don't have your own accounts on facebook or twitter - feel free to bookmark the pages as you can view our updates without having to respond.

We are now back for the foreseeable future though and will try to bring you news of any further downtime before it actually happens next time.

With the return of the site we bring you news of a new category. Thanks to the suggestions on the Beta Forums and the mods pointing out that there are two kinds of Post-Hogwarts fictions, we have split this category and created a new Next-Generation category. In future please submit any fictions that are about the generation after the second war (So from Teddy Lupin onwards) to this category. If you have one of these fictions in Post-Hogwarts at the moment, please do move it over. We hope you'll find this new category to your advantage and thank you all for the suggestion.

MNFF Supports the YouTube Project For Awesome

Once a year in the week before Christmas, fans of the American author John Green and his brother Hank (known as the VlogBrothers on YouTube) get together to take over youtube for a day.

This day is known as the “Project 4 Awesome” and youtubers are invited to make a short video advertising a worthy cause.

The exciting news is that MNFF is currently planning its own charity project which we will be announcing in the new year! The charity we would like to support is called Room to Read. What Room to Read does is build libraries and give books to countries with poor access to education. They work with local communities, translating literature into native languages, building schools and generally providing education to as many children as they can.

They currently work in Nepal, Vietnam, Cambodia, India, Sri Lanka, Laos, South Africa, Zambia and Bangladesh, with plans to move further into Asia, Africa and South America in the new year.

Here at MNFF we believe in the power of literature and the right to an education for every child. We hope you agree with this sentiment and will look forward to our exciting project in 2010!

As part of the Project for Awesome, we have created this video to raise awareness of ourselves and the charity. Thank you to Molly, OliveOil_Med, for being so wonderful and putting it together for us. All we ask right now is that you watch the video, rate it using the stars in the bottom left corner, maybe send it to a few friends or leave a comment for other people to read. If you want to, you can go to the Room to Read website and donate to the cause right away. If you don't have the money to donate, sit tight! You'll like what we've got planned! This project is designed to spread the word about charities that deserve the recognition. We believe Room to Read does. Please watch our video now.

Thank you for your time.

Happy Birthday MNFF

Well look at that... we were all happily writing away and we forgot that the 14th was a very special day for MNFF.

Our site was created back on the 14th November 2004! It seems ages ago now, I can hardly believe that we're five years old! I guess that I can't believe I've seen all five of those birthdays both as an author and moderator as well but that's another issue. :)

We've had so many wonderful stories over these five years, and while the series may be over, your continued love for the fictions will keep our fandom alive. We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to all of you amazing authors who make this site possible!

Here's to many more years to come!

QSQ Results!

Happy Halloween, everybody! We hope you're having a great day, regardless of whether you're doing anything special.

And, here is one thing to make this day even better. The results of the 2009 QSQ awards are in and I am pleased to be able to announce them now. We had another strong batch of nominations this year and the committees worked hard to read and evaluate the stories, before coming to some tough decisions. You will notice that we have provided feedback on the winners this year, so you can get an idea of the types of things the judges were saying about the stories. Where there no comments at the moment - don't worry - they'll come!

And so, without further babble from me, the list of winners for the 2009 QSQ Awards is:


Best General Story

One-Shot Winner: The Love of Family by Seren

"The Love of Family is emotional and engaging. This story flows beautifully and is one of those fictions that you have to read over and over again to get everything out of it. This is truly a great piece of writing."

Chaptered Winner: The Letter by Cassandra Cross

"The Letter is one of those stories that starts off interesting, and ends the same way. The plot is engaging, and the characterizations are spot-on. The OCs of the story actually add to it, and the villain is both reasonable and entertaining."



Best Dark/Angsty Story

Winner: Poppy Seeds by fg_weasley

-This story was incredible. I adored Nikki’s description and her insight into the minds of both Lily and Sirius. The emotion was raw and painful and I felt like I was really in the minds of the characters. Their pain was your pain. This piece was simply beautifully written.

Runner-up: A Certain Slant of Light by Hatusu

--I read every single letter, took note of every single punctuation mark. It’s heartbreaking and believable.
--The story flows effortlessly and I was completely drawn into the world the author created.



Best Humor Story

Winner: Bare Bottomed Longbottom by leesmiley



Best Romance - Canon Story

One-shot Winner: It Must Be Love by jenny b

-It's the type of story that makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside...I really just loved this sweet and fluffy collage of various pairings; each was well-characterised, each was unique and each was well-written... What could be a better example of Canon romance than a fic that is filled with almost every canon relationship there is?

One-shot Runner-up: A Good Shag by DragonDi

-The romance was subtle but there all throughout the fic, and realistic too...The characterisation was particularly strong, including for the more minor characters in the plot such as Sirius and Kingsley...I just loved the humour, the originality and the characterisation.



Chaptered Winner: Someone to Watch Over Me by MagEd

- I really enjoyed the read and found it attention-grabbing...the plot line is very strong and original...The romance was well-done and the story also had a really interesting plot that kept the reader gripped. It was good however, that the relationship remained prominent throughout.

Chaptered Runner-up: A Different View On Love by helz_belz

-The main feature of the plot is not something I have seen used before in fanfiction, and it was a really interesting idea...The romance was strong and the relationship developed naturally and in a believable manner.



Best Romance - Non-canon Story

Winner: Dearest Friends by aethershine

---If you ever wondered where Harry got the steel to do what he had to do, this story helps you see the importance of friendship.
--makes you love Harry and Hermione more, individually, not necessarily as a couple.
--a great missing moment story.



Best Romance - Other Character Story

Winner: My Troubled Tyrant by Belledeg for Tom Riddle/Keedie Dante

Runner-up: Things Aren't Always Black and White by padfootsgirl1981 for Sirius Black / Kirsty White



Best Alternate Universe Story

Winner: Astra Inclinant, Non Necessitant by Hermione_Rocks (chaptered)

---It's really interesting to see what remains true to canon and what changes when Harry is a Squib. That, of course, is the entire point of AU, and I think it's well played out in this story.
-- I do like the idea of Harry being a Squib and thought the author explained his very different life very successfully. I particularly liked the way she portrayed the Dursleys as loosening up on Harry once he'd got past the age of eleven. He didn't have as much of a hard life.



Best Poetry

Winner: I Am Alive by the opaleye

---I keep imagining a speech choir, one half sussurating the first-person lines, the other half thundering the third-person lines. The halves reverse in the last lines, emphasizing Harry's imminent victory and the defeat of Voldy. The lines are so resonant in your mind and feelings that you know just how it should be read.
-The repetition feels like a beating heart...

Runner-up: Hero by Just Tink

--I love the contrast between the first and last lines: "scrabbling" and "hero". That is so Pettigrew.
-It feels just like thoughts - chaotic, half-complete - but more importantly it feels like Peter's thoughts, who is a character I have such a hard time understanding. The interpretation of his 'heroism' is a solid and novel one.



Best Marauders' Era Story

Winner: Lions of Gryffindor by Equinox Chick

--In this story, the characterization of the Marauders is wonderful. Equinox Chick has taken what little we know about the Marauders and created believable characters.
--There is humour in this story and it is so realistic that this story could be canon.

Runner-up: Growing Pains by starscribe



Best Post-Hogwarts Story

Winner: A Little More Time by Pallas

-This is a mind-blowing, edge-of-your-seat thrill ride of a story filled with twists, turns, and dozens of dreaded but very exciting cliffhangers...Time travel is always tricky, but Pallas has pulled off Teddy's mission to rescue his parents in a very believable, well-explained, and entertaining way...the characterization is vivid and very in character



Best Same-Sex Pairing Story

Winner: Rebel Stars by Mistletoe

- The writing flows well and the characters are very in character...I like that the story doesn't make an issue of it being a same-sex pairing...it's very well written, and there are several lines that are definite gems



Best History/Mystery Story

One-Shot Winner: The Writer by Sainyn Swiftfoot

-A truly gorgeous piece. The way the story was written drew me in from the very beginning and I could feel myself becoming more and more entwined with the narrative from the get-go. I think one of the main advantages of this story is that it manages to make Beedle’s story itself a fairytale-like one.

Chaptered Winner: Recolitus Optimus by megan_lupin

--This was by far the most mysterious fic I have read, and Sirius' character was nicely portayed.
--The greatness of Recolitus Optimus lies in the historical data the author made up to give the story its mysterious plot. The many different details that are hidden in this two-shot are just extraordinary, and the prophecy is just mind-blowing.



Best Beta Reader

Winner: Amortentia x/Nitwit Blubber Oddment Tweak x

-After reading the recommendation from her beta'ee and looking at her beta thread, I wanted to request her as a beta reader there on the spot! She seems like an excellent beta to work with, very personable and careful with her work.



Best Artist

Winner: Magik 13

"Magik's portfolio shows a wide range of talent and subjects, all related the Harry Potter world and fandom. There's a little something for everybody in Magik's Dean's Corner thread. While I'm not usually a big fan of anime style, Magik's drawings still manage to seem realistic and are just very endearing. Magik also branches out from the anime style occasionally, proving that she knows her stuff."



Best Male Other Character

Winner: Dieter Heydrich in Für das Größere Wohl by Tim the Enchanter

"For the most part the author is allowing us to discover his character through the actions and dialog, and that is great." "Sometimes, characters can get lost in such big plot ideas, but Dieter shines through the background information and world the author has created."



Best Female Other Character

Winner: Alexandra Quick in Alexandra Quick and the Thorn Circle and Alexandra Quick and the Lands Below by Inverarity

"Alexandra is a very believable character. She has flaws, but also many admirable qualities. Her personality and actions seem real and she can absolutely stand on her own outside of HP fanfic. There are very few references to Voldemort of Harry. The most familiar elements are the spells, Quidditch and house elves. This is her own series and Alexandra is more than able to keep a reader's interest. Her background is believeable and you are able to relate to her. She doesn't have a picture perfect life, but she doesn't have a tragic past either. She is a regular girl who happens to be able to do magic. She's brave and stubborn and loyal. She doesn't think things through and she brings much of her trouble on herself."

Runner up: Marissa in Marissa and the Wizards by JCCollier



Best Reviewer

Winner: kumydabookworm

Wow/OMG. That's how I felt reading all of her reviews. They're very direct, super polite, and absolutely solid. She can go into super detail OR give a very succinct review, and no matter the length, they're stellar reviews. She'll pinpoint an aspect, either good or bad, and say exactly why it was so - as a writer, not merely a reader - and it's feedback that should help the writer to either do the same thing again in the future or improve to get there.



Best Bannermaker

Winner: whomovedmyquil

--Each aspect of the banner is flawlessly chosen and comes together to make a masterpiece. If you looked up the definition of synthesis in the dictionary, this is what you would see next to it.
--The text, no matter if simple or fancy, always fits in location and colour, expressing in mere words what the graphic conveys in pictures.

Runner-up: MissBean

--The composition draws you in. Each banner that she produces is a unique work of art, designed to entice the viewer into the scene the banner portrays.
--The way Sara combines different colours with each other, but also grey with colours, is awe-inspiring, and the light effects really draw in the eye and leave you staring at the graphics' brilliance.



And one more thing - you may remember that we held a competition to find the banner to award to the winners this year and I can now reveal that the winner was Minnabird who blew us away with her entry! All the award winners will be receiving a personalised version of Minna's banner in the next few days, but if you would like a sneak preview, you can click here to view an example!

MerMuggles Wanted!

Do you have the perfect face for radio?



Do you love reading fanfiction?



Can you operate recording apparatus?



If you can answer yes to all these questions, and would like to be part of the Mermuggle team (our castle under the Black Lake is wonderful) then please audition for us, for we need more Mermuggles.



It's simple. All you do is read one page from a Harry Potter book and send it to us at this address. We shall deliberate amongst ourselves in our Mermish tongue and then, if you are chosen, we shall welcome you with open fins.



mermuggles@hotmail.com



EDIT: Please make sure you include your username in the covering email, so we can get back to you with a yay or nay.
Also, it would help us if you told us which passage you're reading (which page) and the edition (UK Paperback, US hardback - you get my drift)




EDIT2: Please make sure you submit files in either .WAV or .MP3 format. If you are using Audacity, once you have finished recording, go to the 'file' menu and select either export as a .WAV or export as a .MP3. Choose where you want to save it and voila! That's the file you send to us




DEADLINE: HALLOWEEN (31st October 2009)



The only qualifications necessary are enthusiasm and being able to work as a team member. (Oh, and being able to read would help!)



If you have any questions, please head over to the Black Lake area of the beta boards.

QSQ Reminder

This is just a reminder to everyone that the QSQ nominations close in just a couple of days (see post below for more details). Some of the categories are short of nominations and there is still time to make sure your favourite story and author gets the recognition they deserve. You need a registered account on our beta boards to nominate but registration is quick and easy and gives to access to all the other wonderful asepects of our boards as well as the QSQ sub-forums (found within Fiction Junction or here)



Happy Nominating!

Announcing the 2009 Quicksilver Quill Awards!

The time has come to open nominations for the fourth annual Quicksilver Quill awards!


For those of you that don’t know, the Quicksillver Quills are a way for us to honour the very best work done by our authors, as well as betas, artists, bannermakers and reviewers, all of whom deserve recognition for the work they put in to MNFF.


There are once again eighteen categories in this years awards, and further information and nomination threads can be found at the beta boards here. Please note you must be a registered member of the forums to nominate but registration is simple and only takes a couple of minutes. We want as many people to nominate as possible to ensure we get the best pick of the stories on Mugglenet.


The categories are as follows:


Best General Story

Best Dark/Angsty Story

Best Humor Story

Best Romance - Canon Story

Best Romance - Non-canon Story

Best Romance - Canon Character/Original Character Story

Best Alternate Universe Story

Best Poetry

Best Marauders' Era Story

Best Post-Hogwarts Story

Best Same-Sex Pairing Story

Best History/Mystery Story

Best Beta Reader

Best Artist

Best Male Other Character

Best Female Other Character

Best Reviewer

Best Bannermaker


Nominations have opened today and will remain open until the 4th September. Winners will be announced on 31st October 2009.


Thank you, and happy nominating!

It's Here! Sharpen Your Quill

It’s Here!

Ladies and Gentlemen, it is finally time to let you all in on the secret! I am very proud to be announcing the release of Mugglenet Fanfiction’s very first book!

Sharpen Your Quill – A Guide to Creative Writing

Some of you may remember that we asked you to fill out a survey last year, saying what you would want from a book designed to help you in your writing exploits. After a year of planning, writing and editing, I’ve managed to create a friendly but concise guide that should hopefully give you everything you need on the basics of writing fiction and poetry. It is a beginner’s guide, but the information is great for revision for our more experienced authors as well. Who knows, maybe in the future we’ll create an advanced guide to supplement it :D

I’ve been very lucky to have the opportunity of writing the book as part of my education, as a sort of mini dissertation or thesis, so I’d like to personally thank you all for giving me the chance to do it. I think I’m now the first person to get an official qualification in Mugglenet Fanfiction!

But yes, as many of you know we have been holding our own Triwizard Tournament since Easter in the lead up to this release. This was no mere site challenge! As promised, the winner will receive a special prize. That prize, along with House Points on our Beta Boards, is a free copy of the book! So congratulations go to our first ever Triwizard Champion…

Sainyn Swiftfoot/BB!

You’ve been an excellent competitor in this competition and I really hope you enjoy your copy of the book!

The rest of the results will be posted in the Hogsmeade forum so run on over there if you took part and to congratulate our winners.

Second and third place will also receive house points, so congratulations Equinox Chick/Carole and Tim the Enchanter/Tim!

Now that the competition is over, it’s time to launch Sharpen Your Quill properly to you all! The book is an 85 page reference guide, packed full of information on plot, character and writing in general. We’ve published using an online Self-Publishing company, Lulu.com, in the hopes of making it available to as many of you as possible. You can also take a look at the first few pages on Lulu.com so why not head on over and check it out?

It can be bought via Lulu itself, or on Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk. The archives won't let me post the links unfortunately, I'm not quite sure why, but they can be found over on the Beta Boards Here! It may be available on others soon, but hopefully these three should be able to ship to most places globally. If you’re having difficulty getting hold of a copy, please email me at ‘Rosie [at] fanfiction [dot] Mugglenet [dot] com’ and we’ll try and sort something out for you!

If you do buy a copy, please let us know what you think either by leaving a review at the site you bought it from, or by going to our Beta Forums and leaving a post in the new forum “Sharpen Your Quill” located within the Hogsmeade forum. Or you can, of course, drop us an email at the address above.

We hope you enjoy the book!

Join the MNFF Easter Egg Hunt

Four days ago, over on the Beta Forums, a strange new forum opened and Hogsmeade became the place for everyone to visit.
Within this new forum lies the rules for the MNFF Easter Egg Hunt
We're three days in but there's still time to join! Follow the clues and find the members with hidden messages in their signatures! If you work out the whole message... well... let's just say there's a very special prize.

It's Coming!! Very Soon!

The (not so quick) Quick Silver Quill Awards

Once upon a time… quite a long time ago really… we asked you all to nominate your favourite fictions for the 2008 Quicksilver Quill awards. We are extremely sorry for the long delay in getting these announced but the time is finally here!
Each person nominated has contributed so much to the site, and these Quicksilver Quill awards recognize the top MuggleNet members in each category. Please give your congratulations, a round of applause, and perhaps a kind review to each of the winners and runner-ups. Winners and runner-ups, please check your inbox for your award! Email me Rosie [at] fanfiction [dot] mugglenet [dot] com' if you did not receive your award or need a correction made.

Please note that some of these links link to stories rated 6th-7th Years and Professors while others lead to our beta forums which may or may not be accessible to one without an account there.

Unfortunately, the archives are refusing to let me post them! *sigh* I swear these things are cursed! The full list of winners is now available over on the Beta Forums.
Please visit Here to find out who our lucky authors are.

April Fool!

You guessed it, MNFF has once again pulled off their annual birthday celebration for messers Fred and George Weasley.

We hope you enjoyed your 24 hours of Twilight and aren't too upset with us.

The Twitternet category will remain up for a while for people to show off the works they came up with on this day. Authors may remove their work at any time.

Stay tuned this month for a bucket load of exciting events on MUGGLENET FANFICTION.

Oh... and it's coming, you know!

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