Welcome to the third round of my contest! This competition will follow a modified tournament-style bracket with 4 rounds. For this round, 2 writers will be allowed to move on to the finals. The general rules are as follows:

1. Entries are due at 12:00 pm GMT on 22 March, 2018. No late entries will be accepted*, however if all contestants submit their entries early, judging and the next round will begin early.
   
2. Entries must be exclusively yours. No collaboration is allowed.
   
3. Whether you advance to the next round of competition is determined solely by my judgment. The amount of diamonds or favorites on your submission will not count toward your chance of moving on.
   
4. All rounds require the submission of a short story of 500-5000 words in prose. Please leave a word count somewhere on your submission.
   
5. Only the text of your story will be judged. Any visuals you use will not be judged, although they will be appreciated.
   
6. All submissions must be in the form of a blog post linked in a comment on this forum post before the deadline.
   

The challenge for this round is called "Atompunk".

Atompunk is a relatively modern derivative of the cyberpunk genre, which first reached popularity in the 1980s. As opposed to the cybernetic, technology-filled society that cyberpunk usually connotes, atompunk focuses on the "short twentieth century", approximately 1945-1965. It was a time filled with nuclear optimism, mid-century modernism, and the pervasive threat of nuclear war.

In this challenge, I want you to take an optimistic perspective on the era (a genre called "Raygun Gothic" in some circles). Write a story about a person or group of people in an atompunk society who interact with the fruits of atomic proliferation in their daily lives.

Because this is a very difficult topic, I have provided some research materials should you want them:

What is Atompunk?
Raygun Gothic
Mid-Century Modern
Streamline Moderne
Googie Architecture
Project Plowshare
American History Tellers, Season 1 Episode 4


The writers in this bracket are (in no particular order):

JediJerboa
Pwr2TheLocalDreemurr
CaelChan
LucianasLucario


The breakdown of the judging criteria is as follows:

Originality – Make your stories new and interesting! I want to see you think outside the box, present plots in unexpected ways, write something I've not read before!

Quality – Write well and present clearly. Proofread your entries!

Cohesion – Organize your thoughts and finish your stories. Make sure that your story is a complete package as-is, without the need for "Part 2" or other accessories.

Let me know if you would like my in-depth feedback of your work and I will PM my thoughts to you. However, keep in mind that my writing is not perfect and I judge from the perspective as a reader and writer.

If you missed the entry for this contest and would like to participate in a future one, let me know and I'll be sure to contact you when the next one happens.

Good luck writers!

*If you need more time than is currently allowed, contact me and suggest a new end date. A majority of the writers in the competition must agree to your extension in order for it to be valid.