I think primarily that in a contest of this nature, especially one in which there are so many other entries there are a few keys to getting on one of the judges’ lists.

• Brevity. Explain your item and what it does in a couple of paragraphs. Walls of text with complex entries are a sure way to turn off the judges to looking at your entries.
• Uniqueness. Have an entry that is unique and can be described simply and is easy to drop into the rules.
• Catchy. It needs a catchy name or description. Something that helps explain what it is without needing to read it.
• Rules. Write it with the designated rules in mind. Writing it for a close but not quite rule set can show and can make it clunky.

I know that two of my entries were walls of text and all of them did not get written with the target rule set from the start. I did read through all of the various S&W rules before I converted to that rule set, but it greatly hampered the effectiveness of my presentation.

The wall of text is an issue I often have in my blog posts. I get to writing and the ideas related to it just keep flowing. I have the blessing/curse of being able to see connections most others don’t, and it takes a lot of text to explain the connections.

The good news is that I cam up with some unique items that I can use in my game. Whether players find them is another thing.