1st Place Judges' Selection: Forgiven by socact

Right about now, I'm considering myself to be the luckiest of the four very lucky judges of the For the Love of Jasper Contest. Why am I the luckiest? Because I have the distinct honor of getting to write a little something about the winning entry in the Judges' Selection Round.

All of the judging for this contest was done anonymously, so even as I write this, I have no idea who crafted this amazing piece or even what the title of it is. I know it only as "Entry FLJ_020." Reading the entries without knowing who the authors were was amazingly freeing. I was able to just be affected by a story without having any preconceived ideas of what it would be like.

This particular entry affected me like no other. The author does a fantastic job of establishing an emotional connection to the characters, right from the very beginning. There isn't a great deal of exposition on the characters' histories, and yet I feel like I know them, and their connection to one another is absolutely believable. Because the connection is so well-established, what happens to the characters in the story has a tremendous emotional impact.

The author also masterfully invokes emotional responses without being overwrought. "She kept calling his name, in a language of love and regret and utter despair." That's the line that set off my tears the very first time I read this entry. And this, later in the story, so powerfully conveys the bittersweet nature of memory to a survivor: "I just ran the same route I remembered from the Forks Elementary school bus, which had stopped at my house first, then Edward’s, then Bella’s. I ran past each of them, witnesses to so many childhoods gone by. At least we had that. We would always have that."

We judged the entries on several different criteria, and this one scored high in both the technical aspects and the artistic aspects. It's incredibly well-written, with lovely language, and it hits all the right emotional notes. It features Jasper prominently and appealingly. The other characters are used well, helping us to understand Jasper without being mere accessories. It's also well-suited to be a one-shot, with a distinct beginning, middle and end, and a satisfying emotional resolution.

I couldn't be more delighted that Entry FLJ_020 is the winner of our Judges' Selection Round. I read about 70 stories for this contest, and this one stood out as exceptional from the very beginning. Congratulations and thank you to the author.

- Legna989

Link to story: Forgiven by socact

1st Place Open Voting: Fractured by DefinatelyStaying

 

It was no surprise when DefinatelyStaying (DS) submitted a Jasper/Edward entry for the contest. Few fandom authors create such a complex and hot Jasper/Edward pairing as she consistently does.

What was surprising was her nature of her story: “Fractured” is very much a departure from her usual genre. However, while different, it is still done with her usual flair and knack for constructing an interesting Jasper and Edward.

We meet Edward first. He’s just awoken, nude and hung-over, with no memory of the previous night. As he puts it, “order is paramount in my life,” and he starts his day’s routine to help combat the uneasiness he feels at having no recollection of the last twelve or so hours. As he showers and gets dressed, he finds more and more things that aren’t as they should be – his cell phone is out of place, his shoes are missing.... All of this leads to a panicky and paranoid Edward.

Jasper strolls into the picture next and it’s clear almost immediately that he’s not our usual Jasper. This Jasper is jaded and tired and, we discover, a prostitute. We witness his interaction with a client and learn a lot about him during that short amount of time. He does what he does for money, gets no joy from it, but is resigned to the fact that, “this is my fucking life.” He mentions that some of the other guys have plans, but seems disinclined to make any of his own – his resignation overrules any desire he might have to find a different way to live.

It is clear that neither of our guys is in a good place in his life. What isn’t clear is the nature of their relationship to one another. How will their lives intersect? Will Edward, a doctor with a loving girlfriend, seek out Jasper’s services?

This is the mystery of “Fractured.” We are pulled deeper and deeper as we find out that Edward’s sexual relationship with Bella is non-existent; that Alice, Bella’s best friend, doesn’t trust Edward; that Alice finally feels the need to follow her friend’s boyfriend one night to figure out what the hell is going on with him.

It is clear why this entry was popular with voters; the subject is one rarely seen in the fandom and it was well executed and smartly told. DS has woven a suspenseful tale that had me as anxious as Edward to solve the mystery behind his discomfort and confusion, and to find out how Jasper will enter his life. The characters are real – their plights painful – from start to finish.

We thank and congratulate DS for taking a chance by stepping outside of her norm and submitting this captivating entry for the contest.

- ElleCC

Link to story: Fractured by DefinatelyStaying

2nd Place Judges' Selection: You Know What You Are by shalu

"You Know What You Are" is a very intriguing alternate universe in which Alice is human, but the Cullens and Jasper are still vampires. Even more interesting is that Jasper had found the Cullens on his own, many years before this story takes place, but, without Alice, was unable to maintain their vegetarian lifestyle, and was eventually ousted, necessarily, from the Cullen coven. shalu shows the profound impact that Carlisle's ultimate disappointment had on Jasper. It seems to have been a last straw of sorts, and when the story begins, we find Jasper at Volterra.

Shalu has managed to paint a very vivid rewriting of the canon history. By doing so, she aptly shows just how pivotal Alice is to Jasper's humanity. We're always told this, and always believe it faithfully, but now we can actually see what Jasper might have been like on his own all those years. Alice's eventual introduction into this story is nothing short of captivating. Without giving too much away, I'll just quote canon and say, "Never bet against Alice." The characterization in this story is so in depth, that it almost has the feel of a multi-chapter story. We're given so much with just Jasper's internal dialog alone, that the story is skillfully weaved in lush paragraphs, particular imagery, and an especially unique and emotionally resonant inner voice.

It's some pretty angsty shit, negl, but honestly, it just kind of makes me want to hump his vampy jock.

- AngstGoddess003

Link to story: You Know What You Are by shalu

2nd Place Open Voting: Unspoken by staceygirl aka jackbauer

 

Staceygirl's entry, “Unspoken,” landed in Elle's queue for validation first. We alternated (as best we could) validating ALL the entries that came in before shipping them off in anonymous gdocs to the judges. Often we'd read stories from each other’s queue, particularly if a pairing or summary caught our interest. Stacey's was Bella/Jasper so I knew I was going to have to read it, but before I got to it, Elle informed me that it made her sob like a baby (on her birthday, no less). I hate it when people make me sad (even when I love it), so I put off reading it for a while. Finally, I had one of those days where I really wanted to have my heart ripped out, and so I dove in.

Elle was right, it is sad as hell. But on top of that, it's also funny, sweet, cute, and touching. It's a story of missed opportunities, of bad timing, of "what could have been." As hard as it is to stomach that kind of emotional stuff sometimes, it's also the stuff that sticks with you the most, long after you've read it.

This is the story of Bella and Jasper, who meet in college and form a deep and meaningful friendship over long lines and very embarrassing cafeteria experience. It's the story of what happens when you hide your feelings, due to insecurity or uncertainty, and what impact that decision has on your whole life. It's a story about choices and the ambiguous line between what makes any choice the right or wrong one. It's like a Choose Your Own Adventure in which a wrong choice at the first fork in the story just leads the main character down a path from bad to worse. It's not all doom and gloom though; there is something to be learned from it all, and it will certainly leave you thinking long after you've read it.

The subject matter will hit close to home for some, but whether you have a similar story or not, there is no way you'll be able to read this and not empathize - not with the very real, very engaging way Stacey has written it. She's not wordy or manipulative. You never feel like she wants you to cry, but the character development is so rich and thorough that you find yourself naturally invested in the characters and their emotions. It's the kind of story that has you giggling, screaming at the screen, pulling your hair out and eventually weeping and just wanting to pull both Bella and Jasper to your bosom for a good hard snuggle. This story is most definitely worthy of every one of its votes. I thank Stacey for writing it, and I encourage you to check it out, if you haven't already.

Just don't forget the box of Kleenex.

- LaViePastiche

Link to story: Unspoken by staceygirl aka jackbauer