📢✅ Breaking News: The Action/Adventure Winners Have Been Selected!

Attention everyone! Prepare yourself for the announcement of our winners 🌟 We've finally arrived at the moment you've all been waiting for – the winning authors of The Fabulous Writer Awards have been chosen!

"Drumroll, please! 🥁🥁🥁

The winners of the Action/Adventure of the Fabulous Writer Awards are here to claim their rightful place in the spotlight. These incredible and talented writers have amazed us all with their stories and their unique ability to transport us to different worlds.

And a very special thanks to the judge Loopy_Lu for judging all the fabulous books.

The book that secured third place is...

When the City Grew Silent by kth_disneyfanatic

Cover: 5/10

Your cover isn’t terrible, but could definitely do with some tweaking. I like how you have the city in the background, but I don’t think the warm, serene colours contrast with the dark theme you’re building up in the novel. Also, I’d recommend using a more bold and clear font, as you really want your title to stand out (especially since it’s so damn good). 

Title: 10/10

I love your title! It invokes so much mystery and dread that it really sparked my interest. When I first read the titles of all the entries, yours was the one that intrigued me the most and made me want to read first. It clearly links to the events taking place in the novel, being mentioned from the prologue onwards. Absolutely astounding effort on your part!

Writing style: 9/10

Your writing style is fantastic! You’re really good at slowly building tension and dread in your scenes, and it really peaked my interest throughout the novel. I like how you incorporated Chinese culture into your writing, it makes you look confident as you aren’t scared to explore unique writing styles. Also, the way you use subtle dramatic irony with Donald Trump’s name is very comedic and clever! Your ‘Disney Challenge’ is a great idea as it will make your readers more invested in your novel, however, it does take away from the professionalism in your writing, and may put off publishers. The only reason I’m not giving you a 10/10 is because I haven’t yet seen if your writing style will improve over time.

Storyline: 7/10

Your plot is pretty strong. You build up mystery right from the beginning and use rhetorical questions throughout the novel to make the reader question what’s going on. This is a novel that could have a really strong plot if expanded upon. Just put out more chapters and this score could easily surpass a measly 7/10!

Grammar: 10/10

I didn’t spot any spelling, punctuation and structural errors in your writing, so there’s no need to give you anything less than a perfect score. Well done!

Characters: 8/10

You’ve got some very strong characters on your hands! Kaitlyn is a very emotional character who strives for hope in dark times, and I find that trait very admirable. Nana clearly influences her as she is also similar to Kailyn, in that she also strives for hope in dark times. The way you create sympathy for your characters is impressive, and my interest peaked throughout your novel. What I will say though is that you need to expand on Hamish. At the most, he’s the classic annoying cheeky boy character who is emotionally charged at all times, and at the least, he’s a bland and boring character. You should explore his personality and beliefs in the same way as Kaitlyn and Nana, that could easily boost your score to a 10/10!

Enjoyment: 9/10

You’re really good at building tension! Just by looking at the amount of books you’ve published, I can tell that you’re experienced with building an atmosphere of dread and mystery. It kept my interest peaked and my mouse scrolling through the paragraphs, desperate to soak up this juicy writing style!

Overall: 8/10

Total: 66/80

My Feedback:

You clearly know what you’re doing, so I’d recommend just getting out more chapters. I wanted to read more, but I simply couldn’t! Put out more chapters with the same quality, and I could see your novel becoming a huge success!

The book that secured second place is...

is...

The Chronicles Of Onyx (Book 1) by Raven_DarkHeart

Cover: 8/10

I’m a big fan of the art and the overall theme of the cover. It gives off a sinister vibe that is perfect for an action/adventure novel, and the colours clearly match the sandy theme in the novel. However, there’s one major issue with your cover. Your novel name is small and doesn’t stand out at all. You have the large text ‘Dawn of a hero’ plastered in the middle, and whilst it is a great tagline, it isn’t the name of your novel. This is an absolute ‘Do not!’ when it comes to creating a good cover. You want your title to stand out, as it is quite literally the label of your entire novel. If I were you, I would swap the positions of your title and your tagline so that the title clearly stands out.

Title: 7/10

Your title isn’t horrible by any means, but it isn’t very imaginative and it could use some work. As I’ve said before on one of the previous entries, the word ‘Chronicle’ is very overused in the genre and whilst it is technically completely OK to use, a little creativity could go a long way. I like how you include the name of your protagonist in the title though, it’s not something I see very often and it works here. To be honest, I’d consider your tagline ‘Dawn of a hero’ to be a much better fitting title for your novel.

Writing style: 10/10

Your hooks are incredible! Perfect! DI MOLTO! I honestly can’t begin to express how good the flow is. After reading only the first paragraph in the prologue I knew I’d be in for a great ride, and how right I was! I love your use of rhetorical questions; they’re always either never used or overused, but you found the perfect balance and used that to intrigue me throughout! Just by scanning your comment section I could tell other people felt the same about your ability to effortlessly hook the reader and keep them on edge. I don’t need to say any more about why your hooks are so good! To anyone else reading, you can go over to her prologue and see for yourself! Everyone take notes. THIS is what writing is all about! :D

Storyline: 8/10

I love the backstory that you set up at the beginning; it was dramatic and kept me on the edge of my seat. You’re setting up an interesting plot, and just by reading your novel I can tell that you have it all planned out and that you know exactly what direction you want it to go. This score could easily increase if I were to read on into Onyx’s journey as a character.

Grammar: 8/10

I didn’t spot any spelling mistakes within your novel, which is great, However, it was the structure and punctuation that let my score drop from a potential 10/10. There are some small changes I would make, such as the paragraph structure - there were some parts that could have been separated - and I’d replace the dashes you like to use with a semicolon or probably even just a comma. I’ll also give you a little tip, I noticed that you always put a dialogue tag every single time someone speaks. It isn’t necessary (I’m a victim of this too, as a writer) and it always slows down your writing when you're thinking of another word for said. Sometimes, it’s better to not have a dialogue tag in a casual conversation.

Characters: 8/10

You’ve used the classic strong female lead trope very effectively! In the prologue alone you justify her tough, strong persona, and I can only hope that you expand on this by giving her some emotional moments when her fierce persona crumbles. Rok is another great character, very kind-hearted and arguably the most likeable character. Demeter has some serious potential! I could definitely see her becoming a ‘Jack Horner’ villain (Evil for the sake of being evil - very comedic but is still a genuine threat) and that would easily make her a great and memorable villain! I’m only giving you an 8/10 because I haven’t yet seen how you expand your characters.

Enjoyment: 10/10

I still can’t get over how amazing your writing style is! Your hooks easily kept me on edge and desperate to find out more. This is a novel that I would seriously consider reading in my spare time! I will definitely be sharing this with other aspiring authors so that they can learn from you. Even if this novel doesn’t get 1st place, it’s definitely the one I enjoyed reading the most!

Overall: 8/10

Total: 67/80

My Feedback:

You’ve completely nailed the style, so I’d recommend tending to your characters. They have serious potential (especially Demeter) and could easily become well-written, complex characters if you expand on their personalities and inner thoughts. (Also, on a completely unrelated note, I love your blurb! Unfortunately, I’m not judging blurbs in this competition. But if I was, you’d easily get a guaranteed 10/10. It’s the perfect length, and like your novel, the hooks really shine!)

The book that secured first place is...

Is...

The Incandescent by IredescentRose

Cover: 9/10

There’s hardly anything wrong with the cover! The colours are aesthetically pleasing and contrast with the fantasy theme in the novel, including the rose that is brought up quite a few times. The text is reasonably visible, although the red text is quite difficult to see, especially when it’s minimised on a Wattpad library, where people will discover your novel. However, I like how you remembered to include your name. I know it sounds a bit daft, but sometimes people forget to put the authors name on the cover, so good job on your part.

Title: 9/10

I really like your title. It’s unique enough to make me want to find out more, but not too wild. It clearly contrasts with the plot of the novel, as it is related to the Iredescent. It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely up there!

Writing style: 9/10

I cannot begin to express how great your flow is! “IT’S A GOOD CUP OF SOUP!” As my friend would say. I LOVE how you just get straight to introducing the characters instead of yapping about some complex mysterious fantasy bullshit that would usually make me put down a book, which is even better considering your characters are by far the best part about this novel. You consistently remind the reader of ‘the big question’ which kept me wanting to find out more about exactly why Killian killed his wife. You also manage to build a world build without it being unnecessarily complicated, which was a breath of fresh air after one of the other entries. Another thing I thought was great was the comedy! It flowed like a damn river the way you inserted it into the dialogue. I found Ireyna’s “Glam it” especially funny. However, there was one common theme I saw that stops this from being a guaranteed 10/10. Your descriptions of the environment are way too long, sometimes going on for paragraph after paragraph. Although I love the way you describe the surroundings, it just goes on for too long and takes away from the actual plot. You’d be better off just keeping things brief, but brilliant. Your style is definitely a “good cup of soup”.

Storyline: 8/10

Your plot is strong, but not absolutely perfect. I feel like if I read on, I would understand where the story is going more vividly. The way you insert the backstories of the characters feels very natural and doesn’t feel completely sudden. I feel like your novel could REALLY benefit from a strong main villain, maybe a jilted ex lover of Killian’s wife who strives to murder him for what happened to her, but that’s just an idea. I feel like you’re trying to set up a main villain with the Inktraitor, but I’m unaware of where the story is going at the moment. Nevertheless, I’m intrigued and may read the later chapters so I can digest all the plot.

Grammar: 10/10

There is literally nothing wrong with grammar. I didn’t even come across one spelling mistake! I’ve never seen that before! You’ve also used italics correctly by portraying what each character is thinking. Fantastic effort!

Characters: 9/10

To get a 9 for characters is phenomenal, especially since I judge characters very harshly! There’s so many great things I could say about your characters! Firstly, the way you describe them makes them easy to picture. And not only that, but you give each character distinctive personality traits to the point where you could give me a quote and I could tell you who said it! I thought Killian was by far your strongest character. I love how you included little things about him such as how he loves the rain, it really adds to his character and it’s something that you do with all your characters - including small details that make them feel realistic, even in a fantasy world with fairies and people with wings. Mara is a strong female lead who reflects on her troubled past and has a personal connection to her Father, which is something I enjoyed learning about. There are a few small nitpicks though that stop this from being a 10. Drave is the classic clingy younger brother character, and definitely needs some expanding - not a lot, but some. Erasmo is generally OK, and is clearly supposed to be the classic cute pet character that follows the protagonists. However, you mentioned that his species is from another one of your novels? That is a BIG ‘Do not’ in writing. If The Incandescent is supposed to be a sequel/prequel of that novel then it’s fine. But remember, do not use assets from other novels that aren’t connected to the plot! Ireyna is another strong character who is obviously Killian’s love interest, but I feel like smooching the man that you were earlier disgusted at for his literal MURDEROUS activities on the same day is a bit far fetched. Aside from these nitpicks, your characters are fantastic!

Enjoyment: 8/10

I’ll admit, I was a lot mor
hooked on Killian’s side-plot than the main plot with Mara and Drave. But I still found great enjoyment in both! This is a novel I’d definitely recommend to people who perhaps want to read a great action/adventure fantasy novel or want to explore the genre!

Overall: 9/10

Total: 71/80

My Feedback:

Honestly, there’s not much to say. You clearly know what you’re doing and don’t need other people to tell you how you can improve. Just keep putting out chapters regularly and eventually you should gain a lot of traction! 

🌟🌟🌟

Now, it's time to announce the books that secured the fourth and fifth place in this award. Don't be discouraged because your books didn't win. Your book is great, you just need to make some improvements.

The book that secured fourth place is...

The Avallon Chronicle by LORAINEJD

Cover: 10/10 

The cover clearly contrasts with the overall dark and sinister theme of the novel. You use a blue theme that I think is supposed to represent Varelor’s glooming presence and blue ice powers, though I may be wrong. The text is clearly visible, and also includes a great subtitle. I’m unaware of who the two front characters are, probably because I haven’t been introduced to them yet. I’m assuming that the woman is Cithara? But I won’t make assumptions. I like how Alvierus appears to be in the background, it demonstrates how he is always watching. I can’t give this cover less than a perfect score because there is simply nothing wrong with it. Great job from your friend Layla!

Title: 7/10

The title is a great representation of the theme in the novel. You are describing past and current events, which is the standard definition of a chronicle, so it works great with what is happening in the story. It’s quite literally the chronicle of Avallon, as you are describing the events. I would mark it higher, but I think that the title could use a little more creativity. Whilst the title does reflect your story very well, it sounds a little bit generic for a fantasy novel, especially since the word ‘chronicle’ is quite common in high fantasy titles. Try to make your title more ambitious so that it can catch attention easier.

Writing Style: 7/10

I love your descriptions! The way you passionately describe the surroundings creates so many visuals in my head. I scanned through your comments and saw similar opinions stating how your descriptions are beautiful, and I definitely agree. I also like how you start your chapters with quotations. They reflect the events that are taking place and make your writing unique. What I will say though, is that you have a tendency to repeat yourself, especially in the dialogue. Also, the language you use has a very clear target audience. You use complex language (or as others may call it ‘big words’) throughout your writing, and although that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and is quite common in high fantasy writing, your audience will be very divided. They’ll either be on edge of their seats, clinging out to every ‘big word’, or they’ll grow exhausted trying to understand what’s actually going on because they don’t understand the language. Personally, I found the language confusing sometimes, though it wasn’t a major issue that made me want to put the book down. But what I’m trying to say is that there is a small audience for your type of complex writing. I’m not saying to ‘dumb down’ your writing by any means, just remind yourself of who your target audience is. If it’s adults, by all means keep writing like this. If it’s teenagers, I’d consider changing it slightly. Furthermore, I would recommend working on your ‘Show, Not Tell’ technique. For example, in Chapter 4, you perfectly show that Livian is a determined character who is brave enough to face Varelor, but then you explicitly point out his determined resolve straight after, ruining your ‘Show’ technique. This can be easily fixed, so don’t worry too much about it. 

Storyline: 6/10

I like what you’re setting up. You’re building up an intense conflict that kept me intrigued whilst I was reading the chapters. I found it strange that you didn’t introduce Cithara, who I’m guessing is the protagonist, early on, but I can see why you’d choose to introduce the rise of Varelor first. I understand that I’ve only read the first four chapters, and that you have written over 70 chapters, so it’s hard for me to properly critique the storyline. However, the conflict that you’re building up between Varelor and Livian seems to be promising, so I’ll go with my gut feeling. I feel like the main reason I’m giving you a 6/10 is because sometimes it can be hard to understand the plot when it’s written in such a complex way. I often had to read sentences more than once in order to understand the actual plot at hand, as it felt like the plot was hidden under the ‘big words’. You also use some common fantasy tropes such as the Wise Old Mentor and the Good Vs Bad trope, but you execute them pretty well, especially the Wise Old Mentor, which I’ll talk more about soon.

Grammar: 9/10

The grammar would easily get a 10/10 if it wasn’t for the tiny mistakes I saw here and there. Nothing major, just slight spelling mistakes that I can tell were on accident. Also, I’ve noticed you start each chapter by making the first word bold. I would personally change this, as bold is used in writing to emphasise something, not to introduce a chapter. Even I have made mistakes in my own writing when using bold, so you’re not the only one. I would recommend using a drop cap instead (which is when you make the first letter of the first word really big) as it’s more professional and just looks aesthetically pleasing.

Character: 7/10

I wish I could give you a higher score, but I just haven’t seen enough to justify a higher score as you’re introducing all your characters slowly. What I will say though is that the characters that you’ve introduced so far are very decent. Varelor is a strong character that deserves the screen time that he gets. I love when he walks over the lake, it freezes under his feet, representing his cold character! I also like to believe that you gave Varelor ice magic to contrast with his cold, brittle personality. Even if you didn’t do that on purpose, it’s an amazing touch. Alvierus is also a very strong character! You’ve taken the typical Wise Old Mentor trope and added a dark twist to it. You SHOW that despite Alvierus not having the most power, he still has the most authority. I would give this a higher score, but I feel as if there aren’t enough characters introduced yet for me to justify giving an 8/10 or higher. 

Enjoyment: 7/10

I’ll be honest, this type of high fantasy writing isn’t usually my cup of tea. However, I still enjoyed reading, and I was genuinely intrigued at the conflict you were building up. I especially enjoyed the dialogue (Varelor is a badass) and the interactions between the characters you’ve introduced.

Overall: 7/10

Total: 60/80

My Feedback:

Just keep doing what you’re doing, and reflect on the advice that I’ve given to you. I’m aware that your book is already complete, but you can take my advice and apply it to whatever your current or next project may be. You have serious potential in the fantasy/action-adventure genre, so don’t give up, even if it means re-writing your work hundreds of times!

The book that secured fifth place is...

A Youngblood World by rinaXhazurina

Cover: 8/10

Your cover gives off the dark and eerie vibes that are included in your novel, so great job on your behalf. Your text is clearly visible, and I like how you include your characters in the cover (I’m guessing the girl is supposed to be Cazzie, she looks  endangered, just like in the novel). Your cover is great overall, but there isn’t really anything about it that makes it AMAZING. I don’t know if it’s the dark shade of colours that makes it appear less interesting, but it’s a cover I’d probably walk past in a book shop.

Title: 5/10

When I first saw your title I was completely shocked! My own novel is called ‘Young Blood’ and I thought to myself “What a crazy coincidence that I get to judge a book with an identical title!”. However, I don’t think your title really suits the novel. I read your character physique chapter, and it appears Elan is supposed to be where they are all living? I’m not too sure. It’s a great title, don't get me wrong (and I’m not just saying that because it has ‘Young Blood’ in it), but from what I’ve read, it doesn’t seem to fit at all. I could be proved wrong in your future chapters, but from what I’ve read, it just doesn’t fit.

Writing style: 8/10

You’re a very talented writer! I love the way you experiment with sentence lengths by having lots of short sentences, it creates some really interesting hooks. Your imagery is also great, and it was something I noticed other people mentioning in your comment section. The only reason I’m not marking it up at a near perfect score is because of your fight scenes; you use complex language that works wonders in the calmer scenes when there isn’t any action, but you also use it in your fight scenes, which loses the excitement, and to put it brutally, makes it quite boring to read. The best bit of advice I can give for writing fast-paced action scenes is to make your writing simple and to the point; after all, it’s fast-paced action, so if the reader is skimming through the short sentences, it’ll feel really exciting and could easily boost this score to a 10/10. You’re really good at writing more relaxed scenes though, the scene when Zakuro and Kayne were playing chess was a favourite of mine!

Storyline: 7/10

I feel like a broken record saying this because of the other entries, but I like what you’re setting up. It seems like your novel is going towards a rescue mission plot, and it’s a trope that works wonders in the right hands. It has potential, but I haven’t read enough to justify a higher score.

Grammar: 9/10

I love your paragraph structure! And again, the sentence lengths are perfectly varied and it makes your writing so much more interesting. I would definitely give this a 10/10 if it wasn’t for the tiny spelling mistakes that I noticed every now and then.

Characters: 8/10

Any scene where all of your characters are in the same room is so enjoyable to read! Their traits are all distinguishable from each other and provide so much comedic and emotional potential. Zakuro and Kayne are very interesting characters who could easily grow to become complex and well-written. Ryeld and Hiro need a little bit of expanding before this score can become near perfect.

Enjoyment: 7/10

Your prologue was absolutely amazing, and it really hooked me! I feel like you let your star quality slip with the fight scenes, I often found myself skimming through them rather than actually taking them in. But whenever there’s a serene scene without action, your star quality shines through!

Overall: 7/10

Total: 59/80

My Feedback:

I’d recommend rewriting your action scenes before doing anything else; simple and concise writing will REALLY benefit your novel. Then, you can figure out how you want to expand on Hiro and Ryeld (Remember to explore little details such as their interests, hobbies and beliefs). You have serious potential, as shown in your prologue, so don’t give up on your writing and keep finding new ways to improve!

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE WINNERS!!!