text: # Happy Saturday, serialists! Welcome to Serial Saturday! \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ ***New here?*** If you’re brand new to and thinking about participating in Serial Saturday, welcome! Feel free to dip your toes in by writing for this challenge or any others we have listed on the handy dandy ! We appreciate all contributions made to this thread, and all submissions are of course welcomed, whether it addresses a previous challenge or the current one. We hope you enjoy your time in the community! Take a look at our inaugural Serial Saturday post for some helpful tips. You don’t need to catch up by writing for each of the previous assignments, feel free to jump right in wherever fits for you, with whatever assignment or theme fits for you, and post it on the current thread with a link to whichever previously posted challenge you chose to start with. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ # This week it’s all about: The Point of No Return. This brief is going to be pretty... well... brief, because this beat is possibly one of the most direct turning points in a story. If your story is all about personal conflict, here’s when a vital character says something they can never take back, or. Folks, going into this next few portions of your story, consider it your “Second Act”. This is where all the stuff you see in the movie trailer takes place. You gave your characters some tools in the first act that they get to use (and probably fail) in the next couple of weeks. Your main character may see true colors come out in the In the last challenge they might have received information that changed how they look at the world around them-- in this installment we see This is the part where they double down on their commitment to staying the course, and where they confirm the people who are with or That isn’t to say there won’t be betrayals In this installment your characters are going to be faced with their options being narrowed to one path: forward. Imagine at this point that your characters are trapped in the desert, parched, searching for the weapon to defeat the Dark Lord. A stranger comes riding through on a white horse, offers your character a ride, and it’s that precise moment your character refuses the stranger, because finding the weapon is more important than slaking their own thirst. The Point of No Return doesn’t have to be a life and death situation. Sometimes it’s your protagonist facing the choice of standing up for what they believe in, Things to think about for this assignment: What consequences come from your main character Does your character/s have a plan? Will it be enough? **\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*** **You have until \*next\* Saturday, 9/19, to submit and comment on everyone else's stories here. Make sure to check back on this thread periodically to lay some sweet, sweet crit down on those who don't have any yet!** \*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\* # Top picks from last week’s assignment, The Event That Changes Everything: **Fan favorite with the most votes:** /u/Xactar, with the most votes by a fair margin. This week the **Smoking Hot Challenge Sash** goes to an author that nailed the spirit of the assignment: aaaaaaand it shouldn’t surprise anyone here, but /u/Xactar, It’s not often that someone can land both a fan favorite and the Challenge Sash, but Xacktar really brought it home this week. Well deserved, Xacktar! And honorable mentions: /u/litcityblues, for And /u/lynx_elia, . \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ **The Rules:** * In the comments below submit a story that is between **500 - 750** words in your own original universe. * Submissions are limited to ***one*** serial submission from each author per week. * **Each author should comment on at least 2 other stories** during the course of the week. * That comment must include ***at least one*** **detail** about what the author has done well. * Authors who successfully finish a serial lasting longer than 8 installments will be featured with a modpost recognizing their completion and a flair banner on the sub. * Authors are eligible for this highlight post only if they have followed the 2 feedback comments per thread rule. *Yes, we will check*. * While content rules are more lax here at /r/ShortStories, we’re going to roll with the loose guidelines of "vaguely ***family friendly***" being the rule of thumb for now. If you’re ever unsure if your story would cross the line, feel free to modmail! \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Reminders: * Make sure your post on this thread also includes links to your previous installments if you have a currently in-progress serial. Those links must be direct links to the previous installment on the preceding Serial Saturday post or to your own subreddit/profile. * Authors that complete a serial with 8 or more installments get a fancy banner and modpost to highlight their stories. * Saturdays we will be hosting a Serials Campfire on the main voice lounge. Join us to read your story aloud, hear other stories, and share your own thoughts on serial writing! We start on Saturdays at 9AM CST. **Don’t worry about being late, just join!** There’s a *Super Serial* role on the Discord server, so make sure you grab that so you’re notified of all Serial Saturday related news! **Join the** **to chat with prompters, authors, and readers!** Previous constraint: The Event That Changes Everything Have you seen the ? No? Oh boy! Here's the current cycle's challenge schedule.