Summer Sleuths - Story Competition (closed 31/08)

01.  The Rusalka of Castle Strekov

02.  Amanda Jones and the Book of Kells 

03.  The Magician Of The Moors: An Amanda Jones Mystery

04.  Amanda Jones European adventure

05.  Amanda Jones in Monte Carlo

06.  Amanda Jones and the Long Lost Van Gogh ~II

07.  Amanda Jones and the Decoy Trap ~III

08.  Amanda Jones meets Monsieur La Mort

09.  Amanda Jones in Summer Begins

10.  Summer Sleuths - Treasure of the Flying Dutchman I

11.  The Mystery of the Stolen Shoelaces

12.  Amanda Jones and the Bouillon Castle

13.  The Amber Room Mystery: Chapter 1

14.  The Amber Room Mystery: Chapter 2

15.  Amanda Jones: Summer Sleuths - One Hot Summer

16.  Amanda Jones and The Dark Widow of Wicklow

17.  Amanda Jones and the Summer Kaland

18.  Amanda Jones and the Unversal Soldiers PT 1

19.  Amanda Jones and The Castle of Obsession

20.  The Summer Sleuths and the Magyar Menace

1. Stories must be 500-5000 words in length.
2. Stories must be either posted on your own dA page as a deviation, with a link in the comments below here, or (if you really want to remain anonymous) sent to me by means of a note, and I will publish them.  Please do not post stories here in the comments, only links to them.
3. The story must feature all three Summer Sleuth characters with their outfits/appearance as above.  No superheroine or cheerleader versions!
4. The story can be written from any protagonist's viewpoint: Hannah's, Amanda's, Kat's or a combination.
5. The setting for the story is Europe during the Summer holidays.
6. The theme of the story must be 'glamorous misadventures' with an emphasis on knockout or sleepy peril.
7. Please read the background and tips below before writing.
8. All characters are portrayed as of legal age and therefore stories *can* feature reasonably explicit or deadly scenes within the bounds of good taste.  If you want my definition of what that is, review the 400+ deviations in the gallery and pitch it at that level.  Please, don't submit anything involving rape or hard/gory snuff... this is not the place.
9. Golden rule is that Amanda cannot die or suffer permanent harm or incapacity.  She has a lot more stories after this!
10. The best scenes from your stories MAY appear as illustrations over the coming weeks. Authors will be credited.
11. The competition will be closed after ten submissions received or 16th August, whichever comes first.  I will update the title here to say 'Competition Closed'.
12. After closing, all stories will be also judged by a panel, and the winner will get a free commission from me.
13. The judging will be done on a points basis with the following criteria:

• Fit with the characters' back stories
• Quality of interaction between the characters
• Research and bringing the location to life
• Build up to the scenes of peril
• Peril scenes themselves
• Aftermath of the peril scenes

Background and Tips

Key to getting this story right is to understand the character of Amanda Jones.  There is plenty of material in my Gallery to help you do this.  This story features a previously unexplored period in Amanda's life.  Normally she is portrayed as 20-21 years of age: a student at Harvard University.  She also had a brief career as a teen detective, while at boarding school, when she was 16-17 years of age.  During the Summer Sleuth Stories, Amanda is 18 years old and in between school and university. She is backpacking through Europe and has met the other two girls in a youth hostel.  They are now travelling together.

Amanda has a nose for trouble and an insatiable curiosity.  She acts as de facto leader of the trio and is likely to rush into investigating anything that seems out of place.  The other two may struggle to keep up.  Hannah is slightly older and more skeptical and seeks to protect Amanda.  Kat is terribly impressed by Amanda and believes that Amanda will keep her safe.  Try to think what strengths and weaknesses each of the girls brings to the team.

In keeping with the Amandaverse(?) it is a good idea to think about giving your stories a historical or crime theme.  Try to be more inventive than simply a run in with 'white slavers' (yawn) or some goofy teenagers that fall in love with the girls. Think about what sort of locations - real of invented - you can bring in such as old castles, museums, crypts, hotels, concert halls, monasteries... the sort of place that Amanda might visit.

If you really can't think up an idea to get you going, see the excellent suggestions from TH56ma3LZ  below.

In the end, you can either have the girls triumphantly solving a mystery and outwitting the bad guys, or failing miserably as you prefer(!)  But remember the golden rule - try to fit what you're doing into Amanda's life and remember that obviously she must survive with no permanent harm.  Please take (fairly) good care of her!


Suggested Storylines by TH56ma3LZ 

In Europe:

• Girls are disappearing mysteriously from a backpacker's hostel in The Dordogne. Amanda checks in...
  
• At a Berlin nightspot a magician hypnotises the audience who awake to find their valuables gone. Amanda goes under his spell...
  
• Togas are in a twist when a Rome museum she is visiting has a priceless Imperial artefact stolen. Amanda gets gladiatorial...
  
• In London kidnappers target a famous model who just so happens to be the spitting image of... Amanda awakes with a sore head... 
  
• A train ride to Trieste and a mysterious countess spell danger: Amanda books her ticket...
  
• A castle in Bavaria is reputedly haunted. Or is this a front to hide something illegal? Amanda joins a tour...
  
• In Paris a suave jewel thief is all the news with his audacious crimes. Amanda sparkles as usual...
  
• A hi-tech Brussels office, a billionaire magnate and strange weather patterns add up to all kinds of trouble: Amanda is gassed in an elevator...
  
• Strange lights are reported in The Pyrenees. UFO's or something much more down to earth? Amanda scales the heights...
  
• A teenage computer whizz knows a little bit too much and is pursued across Italy by agents of a foreign power. Amanda gets all geeky...
  
• A trip to Munich results in a confrontation with an old adversary: Amanda combats Dr Schnell once more...
  
• A crazed English collector of rare silent movies proves to be a difficult opponent: Amanda is tied to the tracks...
  
• The owner of an English country manor is secretly the head of a coven of devil worshippers: Amanda is tied to the stake...
  
• In Istanbul an old school friend is in serious danger: Amanda does some belly-dancing...
  
• A British privatised railway company has punctual trains, cheap fares and no over-crowded carriages: Amanda just knows something is wrong here...
  

HAVE FUN EVERYONE!  

Hopefully in 4-6 weeks we will have a great set of stories and pictures to remember this glorious summer.

#SummerSleuths