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Subject: The Quiz and Crossword Contracts

Posted by: WesleyCrusher
Date: May 01 19

Sometimes a throwaway joke can inspire an idea. When explaining to a newer author how to best deal with challenge requirements in the edit process I mentioned, jokingly, that they had only become an issue since we had tasks like "Write a Fill the Blank quiz in a subcategory of Sci/Tech that you have exactly one quiz ranked worse than 50,000 in, featuring the name of a deceased actor from Bhutan in the title, using all 26 letters in the alphabet in each question and writing the info in limerick form". Then, about 20 minutes later, I was struck by the realization that, if this task were posted in the Lounge, someone would probably actually do it, sooner or later.

And that means we can make a game out of it, right?

So let's get creative - both in setting tasks and in solving them. Here are the current ten tasks:

Contract #312 - 22 points: Write a classic style quiz or photo quiz in the History category on the history of any one country that does not already have a history quiz on FT. (by BigTriviaDawg)
Contract #318 - 16 points: Write a quiz for the Sub-Sets Challenge. (by Kyleisalive)
Contract #320 - 14 points: Write a photo quiz about coronations. At least one question must be FITB, and one question 50/50. (by Reedy)
Contract #325 - 9 points: Write a quiz about Adrien Brody. (by VBookWorm)
Contract #328 - 6 points: Write a quiz about a Russian television series of your choice. (by VBookWorm)
Contract #329 - 5 points: Write a classification quiz where the categories are all related to ducks but are not in the animal or science categories. (by Ilona_Ritter)
Contract #330 - 4 points: Write a 15-question quiz with exactly six words in the title, without using the letter 'e' in the title. At least three questions must be FITB, and two T/F-Y/N questions. (by Reedy)
Contract #331 - 3 points: Create a crossword on the history of any country with no more than 20% fillers. (by Sam388)
Contract #332 - 2 points: Write a quiz containing the word 'Pizza' in its title that is exactly 15 questions long and is neither in Food (Hobbies), Sci/Tech, nor World. The quiz can be either a Photo Quiz or a Photo-Match Quiz. (by Ilona_Ritter)
Contract #333 - 1 point: Using COVID-19 as an example, write a quiz about epidemics that changed the course of history. (by 1nn1)


Once you have picked a task and written, please submit it with the entire contract stipulation (including the number) in the note to the editor.

Wait for the quiz to go online, then report it here to claim the contract. If it's good, you'll receive the task's point value for the leaderboard AND you get to set up a new contract, entirely of your choosing. Come up with an evilly convoluted challenge, set up an easy one in the hopes of it being snatched quickly or just use the opportunity to make someone write a quiz about THAT ONE topic you always wanted to play but never got the chance as all nineteen online entries about it are yours... anything goes as long as it is possible. ("Write a match quiz in which every answer is a pangram" would not work - answers that long would not be accepted in the format). You must provide a new contract stipulation in the same post as your claim or the claim is invalid.

Every time a new contract goes up, all others increase in value by one point. Thus, there will always be ten options and after the starting phase in which scores are a bit on the low side, there will be always be a task (the oldest one) worth at least 10, and possibly considerably more if no one has taken it for a while. Thus, the longer a contract sits there (and thus the harder it presumably is to fill), the more lucrative it will become. And at some point, even writing that Sci/Tech quiz named after a dead Bhutanese actor will sound like a really enticing proposition...

You can finish any unfinished quizzes/crosswords to fill a contract, no need to make a new template, as long as the template was never submitted by the time the contract went up. You can't claim your own contracts of course, although authors whose contracts go all too high in value are encouraged to prove that it CAN be done.

There is no reserving in this game - you need to be the first to claim a contract, by actually fulfilling it with a quiz that meets the requirement. There's also no double-dipping - if you submit a quiz, you fill one and only one contract with it (if it qualifies for more than one, you must indicate which one you want - it'll probably be the higher score).

Yes this counts for Pangalactic and while it is probably not the best idea to advertise what you are working on (someone else might feel encouraged to steal it from under your nose), bluffing and other tactics are perfectly legit in this game. The only thing we don't want to see is collusion - so don't post a contract specifically tailored to your best buddy.

As some authors may wish to request clarifications for a contract by personal message (to not immediately alert anyone to the fact they're working on), we ask that anyone who answers such a clarification request post the answer to the thread as well while preserving anonymity, so that everyone is on the same page regarding a specific task.

Also, importantly, please remember the editors are under no obligation to check your entry for compliance with the task. You will find that most are willing to send it back for fixes if they find an obvious, easily fixed, mismatch, but there are no guarantees. If your entry only almost qualifies and goes online, well, you have a good quiz online and a second opportunity to work on the contract, possibly even for a higher score.

And now have fun!

LEADERBOARD

bernie73 - 683 points
1nn1 - 411 points
RedHook13 - 257 points
leith90 - 236 points
Kankurette - 205 points
psnz - 183 points
reedy - 151 points
ramonesrule - 140 points
LadyNym - 107 points
zorba_scank - 78 points
Kyleisalive - 77 points
windrush - 68 points
Ilona_Ritter - 51 points
rossian - 48 points
Pollucci19 - 44 points
Lpez - 43 points
AcrylicInk - 38 points
fifiona81 - 35 points
Gracious1 - 34 points
VegemiteKid - 34 points
spanishliz - 33 points
WesleyCrusher - 26 points
CmdrK - 25 points
Saleo - 23 point
moonraker2 - 22 points
Rowena8482 - 21 points
Apathy100 - 20 points
BigTriviaDawg - 20 points
VBookWorm - 16 points
Sam388 - 9 points
Angikar - 4 points
Godwit - 4 points
Ceetee - 1 point

COMPLETED CONTRACTS
(For earlier contracts, please click here.)

Contract #301 - 1 point: Write a TRIC quiz (X, Y or Z, it doesn't matter) in a category you don't usually write in. - Bernie73
Contract #302 - 5 points: Write a quiz of any size or format in any category you like other than Celebrities. - Lpez
Contract #303 - 1 point: Create a symmetrical medium or large literature crossword focussing on a group or genre of authors, such as science fiction or the Lakes poets, or the Bloomsbury Group. The choice is up to you. No 2 letter words or IATA codes. - Psnz
Contract #304 - 5 points: Identify two words or phrases which meet these criteria: (a) 15-17 characters in length; (b) the same length; (c) connected in some significant way. Insert these words or phrases as the first and last lines of a puzzle and construct a symmetric crossword between them. No two-letter words or IATA codes, please. - Windrush
Contract #305 - 6 points: Write a 10 question, all multiple choice quiz on either Australian flora or fauna, then create a medium symmetric crossword on Australian flora and fauna. No two letter answers in the CW. Both Quiz and CW should have the same title. - Bernie73
Contract #306 - 8 points: Write a quiz with a title that contains the name of a country that starts and ends with the same letter. The quiz cannot go in the Geography category. - Ilona_Ritter
Contract #307 - 23 points: Write a classification quiz in the Entertainment category where all answer choices end with a vowel. - Reedy
Contract #308 - 21 points: Write a quiz with "Tom Hanks" in the title in any category except for Celebrities, Movies, People, or Television. - Ilona_Ritter
Contract #309 - 10 points: Write a large Religion crossword with at least 6 clues being 10 letters or longer, and at least 4 words relating to religious festivals (words can fit either or both criteria). No 2 letter words or IATA codes please. - Psnz
Contract #310 - 22 points: Construct a crossword with a least fifteen colors and then write a quiz using fifteen of the colors as names (first, last, or middle) for people (real or fictional) as the answers to the corresponding questions. - Ilona_Ritter
Contract #311 - 14 points: Write a quiz or crossword puzzle that is inspired by the work of another author on FunTrivia. - VBookWorm
Contract #313 - 13 points: Write a quiz from the "Old is New" list, using any of the 'new' quiz formats (order/label/classify), AND use an Author Challenge Title. - Bernie73
Contract #314 - 1 points: Write a quiz or crossword puzzle with a four word title where all four words begin with the same letter for either History or Humanities. Quiz must be a format other than MC. - Psnz
Contract #315 - 1 point: Construct a symmetric medium crossword puzzle whose answers do not contain any of the letters in "SKIN". No two-letter words or IATA codes, please. - Ceetee
Contract #316 - 5 points: Construct a symmetric medium crossword puzzle all of whose answers contain any of the letters in "SKIN". No two-letter words or IATA codes, please. - Windrush
Contract #317 - 1 point: Write a quiz or symmetrical crossword with a theme surrounding April Fools Day. - Kyleisalive
Contract #319 - 3 points: Create a symmetric medium or large crossword puzzle in which at least 60% of the clues or answers relate to loanwords commonly used in English. A minimum of six loanwords must be of Hungarian origin. No two-letter answers or IATA codes, please. - Windrush
Contract #321 - 2 points: Create a symmetrical crossword relating to important landmarks in Europe. These can be natural formations or man-made. - Psnz
Contract #322 - 9 points: Create a symmetric medium or large crossword puzzle in which at least 60% of the clues or answers relate to loanwords commonly used in English. A minimum of six loanwords must be of Italian origin. No two-letter answers or IATA codes, please. - Sam388
Contract #323 - 1 point: Construct a large symmetric crossword containing at least one word with consecutive double letters for 20 different letters (or more) of the English alphabet. The crossword title must include "double" or a variant of the word, such as "doubling." Please, no two-letter words, Roman numerals or IATA codes. - Leith90
Contract #324 (1) (2) - 3 points: Construct TWO crosswords, one large and one medium, to submit to the Brain Teasers category. Both puzzles should be in different sub-cats (eg, drop or add a letter, anagrams, cryptic etc) and the titles should reflect that they are a pair. Grids must be symmetrical with no two-letter words, IATA codes or Roman numerals please. - Psnz
Contract #326 - 2 points: Write a quiz that is meant to satisfy the Author's Gallery monthly challenge for at least one requirement. - VBookWorm
Contract #327 (1) (2) (3) - 6 points: Create a set of THREE linked crosswords (one small, one medium and one large) for either the Celebrities, History, Religion or Video Games categories. Titles should reflect that they are a set. Each puzzle grid must be symmetric, with no two-letter words, IATA codes or Roman numerals. - 1nn1

807 replies. On page 26 of 41 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41
1nn1


player avatar
I have had a couple of enquiries about Contract #176 seeking clarification of "visit 10 non-capital cities". This is meant to be "Non-national" capital cities simply because there are many quizzes where multiple countries are visited usually with the capital as the representative location of choice. Therefore provincial capitals like Toronto, Indianapolis and Brisbane are all fair game.

As there have now been some enquiries about this round the world tour contact, it looks like it is becoming a "race around the world".
See you at the finishing line!

Reply #501. Jun 29 21, 3:39 PM
psnz star


player avatar
I would like to claim Contract #185: Create a roughly symmetric crossword puzzle of any size with an emphasis on a figure from the Old Testament. (by Bernie73)

My "Moses" crossword is at:
link https://www.funtrivia.com/crossword/play.cfm?gid=8382

New Challenge:
Create a symmetric crossword puzzle entitled "It Happened in 1812". ALL FILLERS must be neutral or appropriate to the time period, so no clues about cars or computers (but carriages and abaci are okay). The puzzle must be submitted to the HISTORY category and contain no two-letter words.


Reply #502. Jun 30 21, 4:19 AM
leith90 star


player avatar
I would like to claim contract #192: Pick one (only) trigraph and construct a small crossword with 10 words that includes the trigraph.

link https://www.funtrivia.com/crossword/play.cfm?gid=8388

New contract: What's that I hear? A homophone is a word which sounds the same as another word, but is spelled differently, ie: die/dye or for/four/fore. Create a small or medium symmetrical crossword containing homophones. A small grid should contain 6 sets of two-word homophones and a medium grid 9 sets of two. No two-word answers please.

Reply #503. Jul 02 21, 6:16 PM
windrush star


player avatar
Well done, Leith. I created a medium one with 16 trigraphs, but once again, too slow. Never mind.

Reply #504. Jul 03 21, 6:53 AM
windrush star


player avatar
A small grid should contain 6 sets of two-word homophones and a medium grid 9 sets of two. No two-word answers please

Leith, you say it needs to have two-word homophones, but no two-word answers. How does that work?

Reply #505. Jul 03 21, 6:56 AM
leith90 star


player avatar
Oops, I'm so sorry. That should read 'two letter answers'.

Reply #506. Jul 03 21, 1:15 PM
leith90 star


player avatar
The two homphones don't need to go in the same answer.


Reply #507. Jul 03 21, 1:16 PM
pollucci19 star


player avatar
in other words, 6 pairs of homophones in a small grid and 9 in a medium

Reply #508. Jul 03 21, 4:50 PM
windrush star


player avatar
Gotcha!

Reply #509. Jul 03 21, 7:26 PM
1nn1


player avatar
I would like to claim Contract #171 Write a quiz of any length or format about a specific musical album. You cannot have listened to the album in entirety before before March 28, 2021.

link https://www.funtrivia.com/trivia-quiz/Music/How-Inviting-406026.html

I was given the "Saturday Night Fever" soundtrack for my 17th birthday it stayed unopened for 43 years . Couldn't stand disco in 1978 . Played it the day after my 60th birthday. Sold my soul to win a contract. Noe can't stand disco in 2021.

Next contract write a quiz or crossword on the disco Era of the late 70s.. (It may be prudent to know who the crossword and music editors are so you could get the right angle - Just joking)

Reply #510. Jul 04 21, 3:57 AM
apathy100 star


player avatar
I would like to claim Contract #176 - 20 points: Circumnavigate the globe and visit 10 non-capital cities on six continents and write a quiz on either the ten cities themselves or the regional cuisine of the city. You cannot backtrack, you must cross the equator at least twice and you must return to the city you started from. (by 1nn1)

link https://www.funtrivia.com/trivia-quiz/Hobbies/A-Circumnavigation-of-Food-and-Cuisine-395999.html

Next Contract: Create a quiz about any 10 styles of tattoos used as elimination challenges on the hit television series "Ink Master". Your quiz cannot be about "Ink Master" or any of its episodes.

Reply #511. Jul 07 21, 9:40 PM
bernie73 star


player avatar
I am claiming
Contract #191 - 5 points: Write a quiz with four of the same letter in the title. This letter can be either D, G or L. The quiz can be in any category but the chosen category cannot contain the chosen letter. (by 1nn1)

THREE times with my quiz "Good Golly, Miller Huggins Did the Deed"
link https://www.funtrivia.com/trivia-quiz/Sports/Good-Golly-Miller-Huggins-Did-the-Deed-405956.html

For the next contract, I propose:
Write a quiz with six of the same vowel in the title. The quiz can be in any category but the chosen category cannot contain the chosen vowel.

Reply #512. Jul 08 21, 1:15 PM
bernie73 star


player avatar
I see that we are very close to having Contract 200 proposed. That seems like a significant milestone. I hope that whoever gets to propose it chooses something appropriate.

Reply #513. Jul 09 21, 9:25 AM
psnz star


player avatar
As a “Johnny-come-lately” here, I’d like to know what might be regarded as “significant” as far as contracts go.

Reply #514. Jul 09 21, 10:07 AM
bernie73 star


player avatar
"Significant" is more my opinion than an official FunTrivia position. It seems, by my observation, that a number of authors create themes for their 50th, 100th, 200th, etc. quiz that relates to that number in some way. Something like that might be appropriate for the 200th contract.

Reply #515. Jul 09 21, 12:30 PM
kyleisalive


player avatar
If people anticipate that, then it wouldn't be much of a challenge. ;)

Reply #516. Jul 09 21, 12:39 PM
psnz star


player avatar
@bernie73:

So, if I was posting the 200th challenge and it read something along the lines of: a medium symmetric crossword containing 10 words with double 'c's (eg civic/flaccid/clavicle); would that meet your criteria?

Reply #517. Jul 10 21, 2:05 AM
spanishliz


player avatar
I had thought of something quite evil, but definitely significant :) Nothing to worry about though, as I'm not currently working on a contract to claim.

Reply #518. Jul 10 21, 7:31 AM
bernie73 star


player avatar
I would like to claim

Contract #193 - 5 points: Create a symmetric crossword puzzle entitled "It Happened in 1812". ALL FILLERS must be neutral or appropriate to the time period, so no clues about cars or computers (but carriages and abaci are okay). The puzzle must be submitted to the HISTORY category and contain no two-letter words. (by Psnz)

for my crossword puzzle: link https://www.funtrivia.com/crossword/play.cfm?gid=8390

For the next contract, I propose
Create a symmetric crossword puzzle focused on a decade prior to the 21st century. ALL FILLERS must be neutral or appropriate to the time period, The puzzle must be submitted to a category other than GENERAL and contain no two-letter words.

Reply #519. Jul 11 21, 7:55 AM
bernie73 star


player avatar
psnz,

It took me more than once reading your proposal for Contract #200 to see how it would reflect 200. Well done!

Reply #520. Jul 11 21, 7:56 AM


807 replies. On page 26 of 41 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41
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