High Noon - Over the East Coast!

High Noon - Over the East Coast!

The whole world thinks it revolves around an imaginary line in London, Greenwich to be exact. That line pompously calls itself Universal Time Coordinated. It wants to tell us that it is the time that matters and we should all organize our lives around it.

Ha! The only time that really counts is Writing.Com time. Some call it EST for Easter Time Zone or EDT for Eastern Daylight Time. No. Nopedy, nope, nope. They have it wrong. The time is clearly called Writing.Com time.

We know this for certain because Writing.Com noon is the moment when the Writers' Cramp is judged and a new prompt given to the adoring masses. Writing.Com noon makes or breaks the day for writers all around the world. They sit under the mid-day sun of the US East Coast and wait with bated breath to find out if they will take away the prize. Win or lose yesterday, a new prompt is given to try again today.

What makes Writing.Com noon so special? And why is it the one measure to measure them all? It is in the middle of the Writing.Com world, of course. Running an online empire requires around-the-clock access to all time zones. Writing.Com noon time makes it possible for users even clearly across the globe, exactly 12 hours away to have a set time in the day when to expect the new prompt. Or collect yesterday's prize. Or both!

Not only participants, the judges too are spread across the globe and different time zones. Their access to the site at whatever their equivalent time to Writing.Com noon is, is instrumental in keeping the Writers' Cramp running smoothly on the rails of time.

The Writers' Cramp has heard many suggestions on how to make it better. Maybe at least give a star-rating to each entry so that an entrant can know their piece was truly seen? Maybe increase prizes? Maybe have a merit badge to give each day instead of gift points? There are so many options. In the end, some things don't need to change. They are good the way they are.

Writers' Cramp judges who don't feel the pressure to leave a star-rating are free to decide the daily winner without anyone coming after and complaining, "I got 5 stars. Why didn't I win?"

The one thing that should change is letting two entries share the first prize. Either, there should be two first prizes. One for short stories and one for poetry, or the judge should be limited to one first prize. It is the first prize after all. Not a consolation or participation trophy. Whether this will become a rule is up to the Writers' Cramp judges panel, but it would be more of a win for the one winner than a diluted, "Hey, you won. But someone else won too." First should be first. Didn't win first, and therefore nothing, should also be a thing.

502 words

The Writer's Cramp is 20!! ▼

"The Writer's Cramp"  January 26 prompt:
Why - do you think - during all these years, the judging time is set at Noon WDC time? And what might we change to make the Writer's Cramp better?