Missed it by *that* much…

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NYC Midnight Flash Fiction 2019 - Round 3 is over and my story "The Last Harvest" did well.  It garnered an honorable mention, but fell a few spots short of the top 3 that go on to the 4th and final round.  Overall I was very, very happy with my performance in this year's Flash Fiction comp.  I got second and fifth place finishes in rounds 1 and 2 respectively, then an HM in round 3.  Not bad for only my second year of this particular competition.

I read some of the other stories from my group that were published in the forums and I knew I was up against some stiff competition.  Round 3 has over 3000 entrants pared down to something like 600, so you know they've boiled down the pool to some of the best.  For me to get honorable mention (only the top 3 and 5 HMs were listed) out of my heat of 25 makes me very proud.

Then an odd thing happened today.  I received an email from the NYC Midnight competition organizer.  I won't share it here, but there was a link to this page:

http://www.nycmidnight.com/Competitions/FFC/2ndRound2019_Ch3results_amendedgroups.htm

Apparently there was an issue with one of the judges (which is a little more detailed in the email) and they adjusted the scores based on removing that particular judge's ratings.  I moved up to the first HM, just below the cut.  So close.  So, so, so close.

I would have loved to have competed in another round, but I have to say that I'm quite impressed with how NYC Midnight is handling the situation.  They seem to be very public about it, acknowledge that it is an unfortunate situation and are doing what seems right and fair to me.  Allowing a couple of participants to move on as well as allowing the originally announced top 3 to advance to round 4.  Above all, they are owning the issue and personally apologizing for it.  The world needs more of this kind of integrity!

I even took the time to respond to the email they sent, and thank them for how they are handling the situation.  I intimated to them that, while unfortunate, I don't hold any grudge for the fact that it affected my judging.  In fact, given how they are handling it, I am even more compelled to continue to participate.

I truly do enjoy this competition - both as a writer and as a competitive person - so I'm glad that they have carried themselves with grace in admitting their fault.