Below is a copy of the score sheet that judges will use for the 5th Annual Stroke of Midnight.
Please address any questions or comments to som5@passionateink.org

(23 scored areas, 115 points total possible)
Score each item with a 1 to 5 score, with 5 being the highest.

OPENING/SETTING
1) Does the story start in an interesting place–not too late or too soon–at a point of change?
2) Is there a sense of impending action?
3) How well has the writer established the setting (time and place)?

CHARACTERIZATION–HEROINE and HERO
4) Are the heroine / hero multi-dimensional?
5) Are she / he someone the reader can root for?
6) Do the heroine and hero characters remain consistent–do not fluctuate without reason? Do she / he display believable emotion?

SEXUAL TENSION
7 ) Is the attraction between the hero and heroine believable?
8 ) Is the sexual tension present or implicit?
9 ) If there are any sex scenes, are they integral to the plot?

CONFLICT, MOTIVATION AND PLOT
10) Are there realistic internal and / or external obstacles between the hero and heroine and their goals?
11) Do the hero and heroine have good, believable reasons for pursuing their goals?
12) Is the plot well developed and believable?

DIALOGUE
13) Is the dialogue natural for the characters/time period/setting or location and not
stilted or overly narrative?
14) Does each character have a distinct voice? Are the characters recognizable
without tags?
15) Does the dialogue move the story forward by defining character or providing new
information?

WRITING TECHNIQUE
16) Do Sentence structure and length vary?
17) Is the entry free from typos and errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation?
18) Is the story paced to hold the reader’s interest, not too fast or too slow? Is every
scene essential to the story?
19) Does the writer’s use of point of view provide a smooth and clear understanding
of the story (POV changes are not jolting)?
20) Is the backstory integrated smoothly and evenly?
21) Does the writer “show” rather than “tell”?
22) Does the writer employ vivid language, strong verbs and the five senses?

GENERAL ELEMENTS
23) After completing the selection, how much did you want to read more of the story?

COMMENTS : (No points for this, but it is helpful to entrants if you can summarize what you felt were specific strengths and weaknesses.)
What are one or two aspects of the writing that seemed especially strong?

What are one or two aspects of the writing that you feel could use improvement?